OCEAN CURRENTS 171 



far north. Another indication of the northerly drift of these 

 currents is found in the distribution of icebergs, This is shown 

 on the chart. 



There is also a cold current branching off from the ('ape 

 Horn Current south of the Falkland Islands, and running 

 northwards to the east of the islands. This joins the main 

 Falkland Current, which runs up the whole coast of Urugua\ 

 and South Brazil to Rio Janeiro and Cape Frio. In this current 

 the cold waters extend to considerable depths. A deep-sea 

 sounding of the Challenger expedition in 42 32' S. Lat. and 

 56 29' W. Long, gives a temperature of 2 at 274 metres ; in 

 the neighbouring Brazil current in 41 51' S. Lat. and 54 48' 

 W. Long, the 2 isotherm is found at 2,960 metres. 



The Falkland Current is bottle-green ; the Brazil Current, 

 on the other hand, has the deep blue, high salinity water of the 

 tropics. The cold green water is rich in fish life. 



(2) The South Atlantic Connecting Current is a continua- 

 tion of the easterly deflected Brazil Current, as well as the 

 north-easterly Cape Horn Current. Rennell describes this 

 current as connecting in the high southern latitudes of the 

 Indian and Pacific Oceans currents which run in the direction 

 of the earth's rotation from west to east. 



The average annual barometric pressure gives gradients to 

 the south in 35 S. Lat. In 40 S. Lat. the prevailing \vind 

 drives the water east or east-south-east ; in 55 south to the east 

 by south. A drift to the east-north-east results. 



The strength of the connecting current varies considerably 

 with the wind. According to the British charts, the velocity is 

 between 6 and 33 miles per day. The Challenger found 

 between Tristan da Cunha and the Cape of Good Hope 

 a direction north 27 east, and a velocity of 15*8 sea-miles 

 per day. 



(3) The Benguela Current is the South Atlantic counterpart 

 of the Canaries Current. From the South Atlantic Connecting 

 Current a branch is split off to the left to the South African 

 coast, going to the north behind the south-east trade drift. 



