What term describes the net transport of water resulting from the Ekman spiral?

What term describes the net transport of water resulting from the Ekman spiral?

• A. Gulf Stream
• B. Gyre
• C. Ekman Transport
• D. ENSO

Answer: (C)

Ekman transport is the net movement of ocean water produced by the wind-driven Ekman spiral. When wind blows, the surface layer moves at an angle to the wind due to the Coriolis effect; each deeper layer shifts slightly more and at a different angle, creating a spiral. The transports of all these layers add up to a single net flow, which is roughly perpendicular to the wind (to the right of the wind in the Northern Hemisphere and to the left in the Southern Hemisphere). This term specifically describes that cumulative, wind-driven water movement. The other terms refer to different phenomena: the Gulf Stream is a major current, a gyre is a large circular current system, and ENSO is a climate pattern, not the net transport from the Ekman spiral.

Ekman transport is the net movement of ocean water produced by the wind-driven Ekman spiral. When wind blows, the surface layer moves at an angle to the wind due to the Coriolis effect; each deeper layer shifts slightly more and at a different angle, creating a spiral. The transports of all these layers add up to a single net flow, which is roughly perpendicular to the wind (to the right of the wind in the Northern Hemisphere and to the left in the Southern Hemisphere). This term specifically describes that cumulative, wind-driven water movement. The other terms refer to different phenomena: the Gulf Stream is a major current, a gyre is a large circular current system, and ENSO is a climate pattern, not the net transport from the Ekman spiral.