Reflection Questions

1. What kinds of factors could hinder the forward progress of a message in a bottle in an ocean current? What factors could aid the movement? There are plenty of factors that could hinder the process including: hurricanes, waves, tsunami and sea animals. Some factors that could aid the process would be wind and the currents. 
2. In the lesson, you learned about a debris convergence zone, or “garbage patch,” that can form in the center of the Pacific Ocean. How is the formation of this patch related to ocean currents? Where else in the world’s oceans are garbage patches likely to form? They are related to ocean currents because they usually form in the center of gyres which are circulating currents around ocean basins. You are likely to find a gyre between South American and Africa.
3. Hundreds of millions of years ago, all the continents on Earth were connected to form a giant “supercontinent” called Pangaea. How might ocean currents have differed during the time of Pangaea compared to today? Explain your answer. During Pangaea it could have only one current going east and west while today we have currents going all over the place.