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APPENDIX E 324 APPENDIX E Characteristics of Annex V Special Areas excerpts1 from: An Analysis of Proposed Shipborne Waste Handling Practices Aboard United States Navy Vessels R. L. Swanson, R. R. Young, and S. S. Ross Marine Sciences Research Center State University of New York at Stony Brook Stony Brook, New York CHARACTERISTICS OF SPECIAL AREAS Antarctic Ocean The East Wind Drift (attributed to the prevailing easterly winds) is a westward-flowing coastal current around most of the continent. Further north, the Southern Ocean is dominated by the Antarctic Circumpolar Current. This strong current flows in an eastward direction between about latitude 40°S and latitude 60°S. Surface flow is driven primarily by the frictional stress of the westerly winds in the region. This stress, together with the Coriolis force, contributes a northward component to the surface current, resulting in the formation of fronts. Below the surface layer, the density structure is in geostrophic balance with the circulation (Pickard and Emery, 1990). There are three major basins in the Antarctic Ocean: the Atlantic-Indian- Antarctic Basin, the Eastern Indian-Antarctic Basin (also referred to as the Australian-Antarctic Basin or Knox Basin), and the Pacific Antarctic Basin (or Bellingshausen Basin). There is also a single deep-sea trench, the South Sand- 1 These excerpts have been edited for grammar and style; factual accuracy is the sole responsibility of the authors. Copies of the complete paper may be obtained from the Marine Board, National Research Council, 2101 Constitution Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20418.