Weather Words: Agulhas Rings

The first thing that came to my mind when I saw the image below was “The Starry Night” by Vincent van Gogh. The tiny swirls off the coast of Africa are not only beautiful, but they also remind us of just how complex and incredible our world is.

They are called Agulhas Rings, and while similar phenomena occur all over the world, these in particular form off the coast of southern Africa. They are formed by the Agulhas current, which originates along the equator in the Indian Ocean. From there, this warm, salty current travels southward along the east coast of Africa, where it sheds these “swirling vortices of water” called Agulhas rings.

According to NASA, these rings can last for years as they travel across the Atlantic Ocean westward toward South America. They are an important transport system that carry fish, larvae and other microorganisms across the ocean.

Currently like the Agulhas current, as well as other currents around the globe work in tandem as they influence weather and climate all over the world. Much like a conveyor belt, they transport warm water and precipitation from the equator to the poles and cold water from the poles back to the equator. This helps regulate global temperatures and solar radiation. Without these currents, temperatures would be much more extreme.

So Agulhas Rings aren’t just incredible to look at, they play a critical role in keeping our world in balance.

Jennifer Gray is a weather and climate writer for weather.com. She has been covering some of the world's biggest weather and climate stories for the last two decades.