North Atlantic Current in the south and 20 Sv as it crosses the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. It reaches speeds of 2 knots near the North American coast. Directed by topography, the NAC meanders heavily, but in contrast to the meanders of the Gulf Stream, the NAC meanders remain stable without breaking off into eddies. The colder parts of the Gulf Stream turn northward near the "tail" of the Grand Banks at 50°W where the Azores Current branches off to flow south of the Azores. From there the NAC flows northeastward, east of the Flemish Cap (47°N, 45°W). Approaching the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, it then turns
Overturning in the Subpolar North Atlantic Program of heat, mass and freshwater for a comparison to records of convective activity and water mass transformation at high latitudes in the North Atlantic. The OSNAP observing system, fully deployed in the summer of 2014, consists of moorings, gliders and RAFOS floats spanning the subpolar North Atlantic from Labrador to Greenland to Scotland. Measurement contributions come from the US, the UK, Germany, the Netherlands, Canada, China and France. Vigorous boundary currents crossing the OSNAP line are directly measured in the Labrador and Irminger Seas by current meter arrays, and over the eastern flank of the Reykjanes Ridge by deep arrays.