Agulhas Current

The Agulhas Current is a strong western boundary current that flows southward along Africa’s eastern coast. Near the continent’s southern tip, it sheds warm, salty water into the South Atlantic through rings and filaments.

Western boundary current: A swift ocean current flowing along the western edge of an ocean basin, driven by wind and Earth’s rotation. The Agulhas is the Indian Ocean’s western boundary current.
Atlantic meridional overturning circulation: A large-scale Atlantic circulation that carries warm surface water northward and returns colder deep water southward. Agulhas leakage supplies salt that can influence this overturning circulation.
Wind-driven ocean circulation: The movement of ocean water caused by winds acting on the sea surface. Winds over the Indian Ocean help drive the circulation feeding the Agulhas.
Agulhas Current Experiment: An oceanographic field campaign measuring the Agulhas Current and its transport off South Africa. Direct observations quantify the current’s strength and variability.
Agulhas Retroflection: The sharp turning of the Agulhas Current back toward the Indian Ocean near southern Africa. This turn sheds rings and filaments that carry Agulhas water westward.
South Atlantic: The portion of the Atlantic Ocean between the equator and the Southern Ocean. Agulhas rings and filaments carry Indian Ocean water into this basin.
Coriolis effect: The apparent deflection of moving objects caused by Earth’s rotation. It helps organize the Indian Ocean’s wind-driven circulation into a strong western boundary flow.
Agulhas leakage and the last glacial maximum: The study of how Agulhas water transfer into the Atlantic changed during the last glacial maximum. Past changes in leakage offer evidence about links between ocean circulation and climate.
Agulhas rings: Large, warm-core eddies shed by the Agulhas Current as it retroflects. They transport warm, salty Indian Ocean water into the South Atlantic.
Indian Ocean: The ocean basin between Africa, Asia, Australia, and the Southern Ocean. The Agulhas Current carries its water southward along Africa’s eastern margin.

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