Japan Current

For the fish tank "Kuroshio Sea," see Okinawa Churaumi Aquarium.

The Oyashio current colliding with the Kuroshio current. When two currents collide, they create eddies. Phytoplankton growing in the surface waters become concentrated along the boundaries of these eddies, tracing out the motions of the water.

The Kuroshio (pronounced /kʊˈroʊʃi.oʊ/; Japanese 黒潮 "Black Tide") is a strong western boundary current in the western north Pacific Ocean. It begins off the east coast of Taiwan and flows northeastward past Japan, where it merges with the easterly drift of the North Pacific Current. It is analogous to the Gulf Stream in the Atlantic Ocean, transporting warm, tropical water northward towards the polar region. It's also sometimes known as the Black Stream—the English translation of kuroshio, and an allusion to the deep blue of its water—and also as the Japan Current.

The path of Kuroshio south of Japan is reported every day.^[1]

Its counterparts are the North Pacific Current to the north, the California Current to the east, and the North Equatorial Current to the south.

There is a concentration of uranium passing through this current every year (between 5 and 6 million tons).^[2]

The warm waters of the Kuroshio Current sustain the coral reefs of Japan, the northernmost coral reefs in the world. The branch into the Sea of Japan is called Tsushima Current.

The Japan Current is also responsible for the mild weather experienced around Alaska's southern coast.

See also

• Oyashio Current
• Rogue wave (oceanography)
• Agulhas Current

References

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