| Term: | West Greenland current |
| Definition: |
A current of the North Atlantic subpolar gyre flowing northward along the west coast of Greenland. It is fed from the East Greenland Current and from the cyclonic circulation of the Labrador Sea and achieves a transport of over 30 Sv (30 x 10^6 m^3/s). Some of its water turns westward at 64N to join the Labrador Current; the remainder continues northward as a relatively warm current through Davis Strait and into Baffin Bay, where it can be seen as a temperature maximum of greater than 1C at a depth of 500 m. This water eventually turns westward as well to feed the Baffin Current and through it the Labrador Current. AMSglossary
GCW |