Stating wind and current direction

    If someone says "we were diving yesterday and there was a strong north current", do they mean the current was coming from the north and pushing them south, or that they were being pushed north? I often find this to be a source of confusion as different people can mean one or the other.


    From Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wind_direction

    Quote

    Wind direction is reported by the direction from which it originates. For example, a northerly wind blows from the north to the south

    I accept this meaning and see no reason why it shouldn't apply to current as well. I wish everyone would agree on this.


    Anyways I was diving out of Miami Saturday and there was a somewhat unusual north current :)

    Note: The convention for indicating the direction of ocean currents differs from the convention used for wind directions. A "westerly" wind is a wind which blows from the west and goes to the east; a "westward" current is a current which comes from the east and flows towards west. This can cause confusion to people who rarely, if ever, go to sea; but it is easily understood and remembered when related to practical experience with winds and ocean currents. On land, it is important to know from where the wind blows: any windbreak must be erected in this direction. Where the wind goes is of no consequence. At sea, the important information is where the current goes: a ship exposed to current drift has to stay well clear from obstacles downstream. Where the water comes from is irrelevant.
    (M. Tomczak and J. S. Godfrey: Regional Oceanography: an Introduction. Pergamon, New York (1994), 422 pp.)


    So remember: westerly means from west, westward means towards west.

    "Great mother ocean brought forth all life, it is my eternal home'' Don Berry from Blue Water Hunters.


    Spearfishing Store the freediving and spearfishing equipment specialists.

    Quote from Dan

    Thank you Don :toast:


    So.. I was diving out of Miami Saturday and there was a somewhat unusual southward current :)


    Holly Shite ! the Gulf Stream is going backwards.:@


    Cheers, Don

    "Great mother ocean brought forth all life, it is my eternal home'' Don Berry from Blue Water Hunters.


    Spearfishing Store the freediving and spearfishing equipment specialists.

    Quote from Dan

    So.. I was diving out of Miami Saturday and there was a somewhat unusual southward current :)


    Dan, How was the vis? Some of the clearest water I've dove in SE FL was with southerly currents. Someone explained that it was likely a swirl / eddy current off the gulf stream. What do you think?

    Well, this thread has taught me to ask, "you mean north to south? Or south to north"? Because you can't count on the fact that the guy telling you knows the proper way to say it. Unless it's your regular dive buddy….

    Quote from hank

    Well, this thread has taught me to ask, "you mean north to south? Or south to north"? Because you can't count on the fact that the guy telling you knows the proper way to say it. Unless it's your regular dive buddy….


    very true maybe that's why i'm always confused :crazy:

    Brad

    Quote from matt hudson

    For east and west winds I normally say onshore (blowing east to west) or offshore (blowing west to east)... I guess It would be the opposite for the gulf side.


    A problem with this is that "on shore" is not always the direction one thinks. On the west coast, a west winds should be onshore right? Unfortunately not. Below central California, the majority of our beaches are south facing. A westerly wind could run 50 miles parallel to the land mass without touching it.

    Quote from Brendon

    A problem with this is that "on shore" is not always the direction one thinks. On the west coast, a west winds should be onshore right? Unfortunately not. Below central California, the majority of our beaches are south facing. A westerly wind could run 50 miles parallel to the land mass without touching it.


    Yeah I don't say that in the keys haha. Usually it's in reference to local surface conditions.

    Promontorium Tremendum

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