(Lesson 6.03)
Large amounts of plastic are found in the “Great Garbage Patch” in the northern Pacific Ocean. From which location would these plastics most likely originate?

Question

BlackTom AI · Accepted Answer

The North Pacific Subtropical Gyre is a clockwise-rotating circulation in the northern Pacific that concentrates floating debris into the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. Surface wind-driven currents (the North Pacific Current, Kuroshio, and North Equatorial Current feeding into the gyre) converge and trap plastics in the central region.

Step-by-step reasoning:
1. Relevant concepts: subtropical gyres (large, rotating systems in each ocean basin) collect and concentrate floating material because surface currents converge toward their centers. In the Northern Hemisphere these gyres rotate clockwise, carrying debris from adjacent coasts into the central accumulation zone.
2. Identify the gyre and nearby coasts on the map: the Great Garbage Patch lies in the northern Pacific between California, Hawaii, and Japan. Coasts that feed this gyre are those bordering the northern/eastern Pacific (Central America and the western coast of North America) and across the ocean in East Asia.
3. Follow the surface-current arrows: currents along the west coast of Central America (point D) feed into the North Pacific surface circulation and are carried into the subtropical gyre where plastics accumulate. Winds and coastal runoff make this coast a direct source of debris that will be entrained and moved into the gyre.
4. Why D is correct: D (the west coast of Central America) is the only option that borders the northern Pacific region that directly supplies the North Pacific Gyre; debris from there is advected into the accumulation zone.

Why the other choices are incorrect:
- A (northwest coast of South America) is in the tropical/southern Pacific region and is influenced by different currents (and the Humboldt current) that do not feed the northern gyre.
- B (northeast coast of North America) is in the Atlantic Ocean, not the Pacific, so its debris would enter Atlantic gyres instead.
- C (east coast of Australia) lies in the southern Pacific and feeds southern-hemisphere gyres, not the northern Pacific patch.

Therefore, the correct answer is D: the west coast of Central America, matching the provided answer.

(Lesson 6.03) Large amounts of plastic are found in the “Great Garbage Patch” in the northern Pacific Ocean. From which location would these plastics most likely originate? Single choice

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