1 50 The Three-dimensional Temperature Distribution and its Variation in Time 



to the ocean bottom. From here this cold heavy water spreads out in general towards 

 the east within the Antarctic circumpolar Ocean to form the source of the meridional 

 northward outflow along the deep-sea troughs of the Ocean. It is still uncertain 

 whether there are other regions of bottom-water formation in the Antarctic, but 

 that in the Weddell Sea is in any case the most important and the most intense one. 

 In each ocean the Antarctic bottom water spreads out both in zonal and meridional 

 direction according to the bottom topography. There are seven cold streams of bottom 

 water spreading out along the seven major longitudinal troughs of the oceans towards 

 the north. These are listed in Table 68. 



Table 67. Mean zonal distribution of bottom potential temperature 

 (°C) in the deep sea (> 4000 m); mean for each latitude circle, 



(After WiJST 1938) 



* Minimum; f Maximum 



Table 68. Initial temperatures and northward extent of the cold 

 Antarctic bottom water 



