That area of the tropical and subtropical western North Atlantic Ocean encompassing the Gulf of Mexico, the Caribbean Sea, the Bahamas and Florida, the northeast coast of South America, and the juxtaposed coastal regions, including the Antillean Islands.
Meteorologically, the Intra-Americas Sea is a transition zone between truly tropical conditions in the south and a subtropical climate in the north. The Sea is also the region that either spawns or interacts with the intense tropical storms known locally as the West Indian Hurricane. Air flowing over the Sea acquires moisture that is the source of much of the precipitation over the central plains of North America. See also Hurricane; Monsoon meteorology; Tropical meteorology.
Ocean currents of the Intra-Americas Sea are dominated by the Gulf Stream system. Surface waters flow into the Sea through the passages of the Lesser Antilles, and to a lesser extent through the Windward Passage between Cuba and Haiti, and the Anegada Passage between Puerto Rico and Anguilla. These inflowing waters form the Caribbean Current, which flows westward and northward into the Gulf of Mexico through the Yucatán Channel. See also Ocean circulation.
River discharge from several South American rivers, notably the Orinoco and Amazon, drifts through the Intra-Americas Sea and carries materials thousands of kilometers from the deltas. The large deltas are heavily impacted by anthropogenic activities, but they remain the source of rich fisheries and plankton communities. Because of the small tidal range in the Sea, most deltas are wind-dominated geological features. See also Delta; Earthquake; Marine fisheries; Plate tectonics.
