Beaufort Gyre in the Arctic Ocean; the majority of the Arctic's freshwater supply originates from Russian rivers as runoff. The clockwise circulation of the Beaufort Gyre is induced by the wind patterns associated with the permanent anticyclonic high pressure system over the western part of the Arctic. In a clockwise-rotating gyre in the Northern Hemisphere, the Coriolis force causes the ocean water to flow inward toward the gyre's center where it accumulates, effectively forming a dome of water. If the wind patterns shift into a cyclonic circulation due to the residence of a low pressure system (rising air induced by warmer ocean
Milky seas effect Milky seas effect Milky seas, also called mareel, is a luminous phenomenon in the ocean in which large areas of seawater (up to ) appear to glow brightly enough at night to be seen by satellites orbiting Earth. Modern science only tentatively attributes this effect to bioluminescent bacteria or dinoflagellates, causing the sea to uniformly display an eerie blue glow at night. However, no modern research proves that bioluminescent bacteria are capable of illuminating the ocean from horizon to horizon and for days at a time, as described in mariners' tales for centuries (notably appearing in chapter 23 of Jules