Britannica AI Icon

South Indian Current

ocean current

Quick Summary

The South Indian Current is a part of the West Wind Drift, which is the general counterclockwise movement of water in the southern Indian Ocean. As this current approaches Australia's west coast, it turns north and becomes the West Australian Current. This current's strength is influenced by winds, being weaker in winter and stronger in summer. It eventually dissipates, sending some water northwest to join the Indian South Equatorial Current and the rest northeast into the Timor Sea. The South Indian Current flows eastward at approximately 40° to 45° S latitude.12

Summary created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.

Ask Britannica AI about this topic

Britannica doesn't have a full article on this topic, so we've curated a list of our relevant coverage.