Upwelling

Upwelling is the upward movement of deep ocean water to the surface, where it often brings colder, nutrient-rich water into the sunlit zone.

Ekman transport: The net movement of water driven by wind stress and deflected by Earth’s rotation. It moves surface water offshore in coastal upwelling systems, allowing deeper water to rise.
Humboldt Current: A cold ocean current flowing northward along the western coast of South America. Its coastal upwelling supports one of the world’s most productive marine ecosystems.
Phytoplankton bloom: A rapid increase in the abundance of microscopic photosynthetic organisms in aquatic water. Upwelled nutrients can trigger blooms that feed marine food webs.
Downwelling: The downward movement of surface water into the deeper ocean. It reverses upwelling’s vertical direction and carries surface properties downward.
Coriolis effect: The apparent deflection of moving objects caused by Earth’s rotation. It helps set the direction of Ekman transport that removes water from an upwelling coast.
Benguela Current: A cold ocean current flowing northward along southwestern Africa. Wind-driven upwelling along its eastern boundary supports rich fisheries.
Oxygen minimum zone: A midwater ocean layer where dissolved oxygen concentrations are especially low. Upwelling can bring oxygen-poor waters toward the surface and affect coastal habitats.
Ocean convection: Vertical water movement driven by density differences, often after surface cooling or increased salinity. Convection can mix water vertically, unlike the wind-driven divergence central to many upwelling systems.
Coastal upwelling: Upward movement of deep water along a coast, commonly driven by winds that push surface water offshore. It is the best-known form of upwelling and shapes major productive coastal regions.
California Current: An eastern-boundary current flowing southward along western North America. Its coastal upwelling brings nutrients into surface waters from California to British Columbia.

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