Processes
Upwelling
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The wind-driven rise of dense, cooler and usually nutrient-rich water from depth toward the ocean surface, replacing warmer, nutrient-depleted surface water. The nutrients feed the growth of phytoplankton so effectively that roughly a quarter of the global marine fish catch comes from five upwelling regions occupying only five percent of the ocean's area, and upwelling zones announce themselves in cool sea surface temperatures and high chlorophyll.
Facts
TimescaleA single coastal upwelling event lasts days to a few weeks, driven by wind; the seasonal pattern that sustains repeated events recurs year to year. 1 Driving ForceWind blowing parallel to a coastline, which pushes surface water offshore and draws colder, nutrient-rich water up from depth to replace it. 1 Resulting FeatureBrings nutrient-rich deep water to the sunlit surface, fueling some of the ocean's most productive fisheries off coasts such as Peru, California and northwest Africa. 1 SignificanceCoastal upwelling zones cover only a small fraction of the ocean surface but support a disproportionate share of the world's marine fish catch. 1 Cross-Tradition Connections
Associated With
The overturning circulation is balanced by upwelling and surface return flows.
In Discipline
An oceanographic phenomenon.
Sources
1. Upwelling (Wikipedia)
Wikimedia FoundationLead sectionQuote, Lead section
Upwelling is an oceanographic phenomenon that involves wind-driven motion of dense, cooler, and usually nutrient-rich water from deep water towards the ocean surface.
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