<p>I just had a little eureka moment!
I was looking again at this mid atlantic ridge along the western edge of the Eurasian plate.
<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lists_of_volcanoes" rel="noreferrer">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lists_of_volcanoes</a>
How it and the way it links to the South American Plate it reminded me of something, so I checked and yes, it seems to closely parallel the movement of the gulf stream!
<a href="https://scijinks.gov/review/gulf-stream/gulf-stream3.gif" rel="noreferrer">https://scijinks.gov/review/gulf-stream/gulf-stream3.gif</a>
I'm no expert at all, but I'm going to venture that there is a correlation between the underwater geological activity and topology and the oceanic movement of warm and cold currents.
Would I be correct?</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2018-05-02T05:06:44.757Z
The thing is, the video isn't very accurate.  [Here's a link to where the Gulf Stream currently is](http://polar.ncep.noaa.gov/global/monitor/).  It is typically quite close to the US coast up a ways... then cuts much more abruptly east over towards England.  So if you were thinking there's quite a similarity to the shape of the current and the mid-Atlantic ridge... maybe that video was a bit misleading?
JeopardyTempest
CC BY-SA 4.0
2018-05-02T05:16:19.910Z
It may appear to be true in segments only because any current is going to flow along the continental boundary and that boundary by necessity is going to roughly parallel the mid-Atlantic ridge. There's no physical mechanism for the geology you're looking at to impart any sort of current, let alone one stronger than the Coriolis force.
jeffronicus
CC BY-SA 4.0
2018-05-02T10:16:11.460Z
@JeopardyTempest Thank you for that, but that link is a little too isolated to the West Indies and USA Eastern seaboard. It doesn't show the entirety of the Gulf Stream process. This would be a better overview, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gulf_Stream#/media/File:Golfstream.jpg I am more intrigued by this and would like to see and hear more about the topology and geology of the ocean floor beneath the north, mid and south Atlantic - the whole area that the Gulf stream traverses, as well as the North Atlantic Deep Water. This being the return journey of the denser and colder saltier current.
Grapple Hoeker
CC BY-SA 4.0
2018-05-02T10:34:25.123Z
@jeffronicus Thank you. I'll accept that the continental boundary between the americas may well be partly responsible for steering the northward stream and the strength of that stream would be sufficient to keep it's trajectory going further than that boundary. I still think it's interesting to note that the turnaround point mainly coincides with Iceland at the mid Atlantic ridge. I understand the convection mechanism that causes the southern return of the stream, but the coincidence of the topology and geological activity at the turning point appears to be strong and I'd like to know more.
Grapple Hoeker
<plate-tectonics><ocean-currents>
Is there a correlation between the underwater geological activity and topology of the mid Atlantic ridge/ South American plate and the Gulf Stream?
Grapple Hoeker
# Is there a correlation between the underwater geological activity and topology of the mid Atlantic ridge/ South American plate and the Gulf Stream?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2018-05-02)

I just had a little eureka moment!
I was looking again at this mid atlantic ridge along the western edge of the Eurasian plate.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lists_of_volcanoes>
How it and the way it links to the South American Plate it reminded me of something, so I checked and yes, it seems to closely parallel the movement of the gulf stream!
<https://scijinks.gov/review/gulf-stream/gulf-stream3.gif>
I'm no expert at all, but I'm going to venture that there is a correlation between the underwater geological activity and topology and the oceanic movement of warm and cold currents.
Would I be correct?

**Tags:** plate-tectonics, ocean-currents

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: The thing is, the video isn't very accurate.  [Here's a link to where the Gulf Stream currently is](http://polar.ncep.noaa.gov/global/monitor/).  It is typically quite close to the US coast up a ways... then cuts much more abruptly east over towards England.  So if you were thinking there's quite a similarity to the shape of the current and the mid-Atlantic ridge... maybe that video was a bit misleading?  
> **username_2**: It may appear to be true in segments only because any current is going to flow along the continental boundary and that boundary by necessity is going to roughly parallel the mid-Atlantic ridge. There's no physical mechanism for the geology you're looking at to impart any sort of current, let alone one stronger than the Coriolis force.  
> **username_0**: @username_1 Thank you for that, but that link is a little too isolated to the West Indies and USA Eastern seaboard. It doesn't show the entirety of the Gulf Stream process. This would be a better overview, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gulf_Stream#/media/File:Golfstream.jpg I am more intrigued by this and would like to see and hear more about the topology and geology of the ocean floor beneath the north, mid and south Atlantic - the whole area that the Gulf stream traverses, as well as the North Atlantic Deep Water. This being the return journey of the denser and colder saltier current.  
> **username_0**: @username_2 Thank you. I'll accept that the continental boundary between the americas may well be partly responsible for steering the northward stream and the strength of that stream would be sufficient to keep it's trajectory going further than that boundary. I still think it's interesting to note that the turnaround point mainly coincides with Iceland at the mid Atlantic ridge. I understand the convection mechanism that causes the southern return of the stream, but the coincidence of the topology and geological activity at the turning point appears to be strong and I'd like to know more.  

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## 0 answers

