Article
Article
- Earth Science
- Oceanography
- Langmuir circulation
Langmuir circulation
Article By:
Smith, Jerome A. Marine Physics Laboratory, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California, La Jolla, California.
Last reviewed:November 2019
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1036/1097-8542.757655
A form of motion found in the near-surface water of lakes and oceans under windy conditions. When the wind is stronger than 5–8 m/s (10–15 knots), streaks of bubbles, seaweed, or flotsam form lines running roughly parallel to the wind, called windrows. Windrows are seen at one time or another on all bodies of water, from ponds to oceans. In the 1920s, Irving Langmuir hypothesized that they are produced by convergences in the water rather than by a direct action of the wind. Langmuir proposed that as the surface water is blown downwind it moves in a spiral fashion, first angling toward the streaks along the surface, next sinking to some depth, then diverging out from under the streaks, and finally rising again in between the streaks (see illustration). In a series of observations and experiments conducted in the North Atlantic and on Lake George in New York, he was able to confirm this basic form of the circulation.
The content above is only an excerpt.
for your institution. Subscribe
To learn more about subscribing to AccessScience, or to request a no-risk trial of this award-winning scientific reference for your institution, fill in your information and a member of our Sales Team will contact you as soon as possible.
to your librarian. Recommend
Let your librarian know about the award-winning gateway to the most trustworthy and accurate scientific information.
About AccessScience
AccessScience provides the most accurate and trustworthy scientific information available.
Recognized as an award-winning gateway to scientific knowledge, AccessScience is an amazing online resource that contains high-quality reference material written specifically for students. Contributors include more than 10,000 highly qualified scientists and 46 Nobel Prize winners.
MORE THAN 8700 articles covering all major scientific disciplines and encompassing the McGraw-Hill Encyclopedia of Science & Technology and McGraw-Hill Yearbook of Science & Technology
115,000-PLUS definitions from the McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Scientific and Technical Terms
3000 biographies of notable scientific figures
MORE THAN 19,000 downloadable images and animations illustrating key topics
ENGAGING VIDEOS highlighting the life and work of award-winning scientists
SUGGESTIONS FOR FURTHER STUDY and additional readings to guide students to deeper understanding and research
LINKS TO CITABLE LITERATURE help students expand their knowledge using primary sources of information