Drake Passage

High school (ages 12+)
Geography

Name:

Date:

Step 1 · Read the article

Open the article and read it at the level above. Then answer the questions below in your own words.

https://smallwhale.org/articles/drake-passage

Write what each word means, using the article.

Do not copy the article. Write two things you learned, the way you would explain them to a friend.

Answers below are taken from the article’s stored facts, so they match what the student read.

1. How tall is Drake Passage?Exceeds 40 feet (12 meters)
2. What is the geographic coordinates?Approximately 55° to 65° South latitude
3. What is the connecting oceans?Atlantic Ocean (Scotia Sea) and Pacific Ocean
4. Why is the Drake Passage so rough?Its powerful Antarctic Circumpolar Current pushes huge waves that can be over 40 feet tall. The meeting of different water masses makes the seas very stormy.
5. How does the Drake Passage affect the Earth's climate?It helps control the Antarctic Circumpolar Current, which keeps warm water away from Antarctica and moves heat from lower latitudes toward the poles.

Antarctic Circumpolar Current (ACC): The world's largest ocean current, flowing eastward around Antarctica.
Thermohaline Circulation: Global ocean currents driven by differences in temperature and salinity.
Bathymetry: The measurement and study of underwater depths and topography.
Oceanographic Nexus: A central point where different oceanic features and forces meet and interact.