Ekman publishes the theory of wind-driven surface transport
Ekman's paper "On the Influence of the Earth's Rotation on Ocean-Currents" showed that friction transmitted downward from the wind, combined with the Coriolis force, produces a velocity spiral with depth and a net transport perpendicular to the wind. The 20-to-40-degree surface deflection Nansen saw falls out of the same solution. Convergence and divergence of this transport is what drives both the gyres and coastal upwelling.
Historical — it happened, and the record is settled.
Subjects
- Vagn Walfrid Ekman · person · Sweden · not located
- Ekman Transport and the Ekman Spiral · natural phenomenon · Global ocean · not located
Evidence
Partly verified — Core facts are sourced; some optional detail is deliberately absent.
On the Influence of the Earth's Rotation on Ocean-Currents
Wind stress transmitted downward through a rotating ocean produces a velocity spiral with depth and a net transport at right angles to the wind, explaining Nansen's Fram observation that Arctic ice drifts 20–40 degrees to the right of the wind. The exact issue and page range were not confirmed and the paper was not consulted; the account here rests on biographical and teaching sources.
Arkiv för Matematik, Astronomi och Fysik · 1905 · Partly verified
Ekman, V. W., Arkiv för Matematik, Astronomi och Fysik, vol. 2 (1905)
Recorded on Vagn Walfrid Ekman
- Nansen observes ice drifting to the right of the wind
- Ekman publishes the theory of wind-driven surface transport
Related
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