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How does the Florida Current become part of the Gulf Stream?

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Map of the North Atlantic Ocean showing major ocean currents, with warm currents like the Gulf Stream and North Atlantic Drift highlighted in pink and cold currents in blue. Arrows indicate current directions and relative speeds, connecting the eastern coasts of North America, the western coasts of Europe and Africa, and the Arctic region. — Gulf Stream Major warm and cold currents of the North Atlantic Ocean.

The Florida Current serves as the initial component of the Gulf Stream system. It emerges from the Gulf of Mexico and flows through the Straits of Florida.12

As this swift current moves northward between the Florida Peninsula and the Bahamas, it is deflected to the northeast by the submerged Great Bahama Bank. During this journey, it is joined by the Antilles Current, which flows northwestward along the north side of the Greater Antilles. The merging of these two currents forms the Gulf Stream, which then continues to flow northward along the continental slope of the United States toward Cape Hatteras.231