Do First - The Gulf Stream

The gulf stream is a and fast moving ocean current. It runs from the gulf of Mexico following the eastern coastlines of the United States and Newfoundland before crossing the Atlantic oceans and becoming the Atlantic current.

The gulf stream is caused by large system of circular currents and powerful winds, called an oceanic .

There are 5 major gyres on Earth and the gulf stream is a part of the north Atlantic subtropical gyre. The gulf stream brings warm water from the gulf of Mexico all the way up to the sea. As the warm water comes in, colder denser water sinks and begins moving , eventually flowing along the bottom of the ocean all the way to Antarctica.

The gulf stream is fed by the westward flowing North equatorial current, moving from north Africa to the West Indies. The current splits into the Caribbean current, which passes into the Caribbean sea and through the Yucatan channel into the gulf of passing into the Antilles current, which flows into the north and west indies. The Caribbean current re-emerges into the Atlantic through the straights of Florida between the Florida and Cuba to form the Florida current. It is joined by the Antilles current and goes north.

The main portion of the gulf stream continues north towards the British Isles and the Norwegian sea where it becomes the North Atlantic drift.

The warm water and temperature along the edge of the gulf stream often increases the intensity of , also known as hurricanes.

75% of cyclones documented between 1951 and 2000 formed the gulf stream (warm water current). Hurricane Sandy in 2012 was an example of a hurricane gaining as it passed over the gulf stream heading toward the United States.