Chloe Zhang
There are five plastic gyres in the world's oceans: the North Atlantic Gyre, the South Atlantic Gyre, the North Pacific Gyre, the South Pacific Gyre, and the Indian Ocean Gyre. These gyres are systems of circulating ocean currents that draw in and accumulate vast amounts of marine debris, particularly microplastics, posing a significant threat to marine life and ecosystems. The most well-known gyre is the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, located in the North Pacific Gyre, but it is not the only one. Efforts to address plastic pollution in oceans are gaining momentum globally, with countries implementing bans on specific plastic products and individuals adopting more reusable habits.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Number of Plastic Gyres | 5 |
| Names of the Gyres | North Atlantic Gyre, South Atlantic Gyre, North Pacific Gyre, South Pacific Gyre, Indian Ocean Gyre |
| Most Famous Garbage Patch | Great Pacific Garbage Patch |
| Location of the Great Pacific Garbage Patch | Between Hawaii and California, in the North Pacific Ocean |
| Size of the Great Pacific Garbage Patch | 1.6 million square kilometres, twice the size of Texas or three times the size of France |
| Mass of Plastic in the Great Pacific Garbage Patch | 45,000–129,000 metric tons |
| Concentration of Plastic Particles in the Great Pacific Garbage Patch | 334,721 pieces per square kilometre |
| Mean Mass of Plastic in the Great Pacific Garbage Patch | 5.1 kilograms per square kilometre |
| Percentage of Plastic in the Great Pacific Garbage Patch from Fishing Activity | 86% |
| Age of Some Plastic in the Great Pacific Garbage Patch | Over 50 years old |
| Examples of Plastic in the Great Pacific Garbage Patch | Plastic lighters, toothbrushes, water bottles, pens, baby bottles, cell phones, plastic bags, nurdles |
| Impact of Plastic in the Gyres | Harms marine life, impacts ecosystems, health, and economies |
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What You'll Learn
The Great Pacific Garbage Patch
There are five plastic gyres in the oceans: the North Atlantic Gyre, the South Atlantic Gyre, the North Pacific Gyre, the South Pacific Gyre, and the Indian Ocean Gyre. These gyres are large systems of swirling ocean currents that act as a "highway" for marine debris, transporting it over long distances.
The most well-known of these gyres is the North Pacific Gyre, which encompasses the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. The Great Pacific Garbage Patch is the largest accumulation of plastic in the open ocean, located between Hawaii and California and extending to Japan. It is formed by the convergence of four currents: the California Current, the North Equatorial Current, the Kuroshio Current, and the North Pacific Current. The patch consists of microplastics, or tiny pieces of plastic that are often microscopic, as well as larger items such as fishing gear. These plastics originate from a variety of sources, including land-based sources, boats, and marine sources such as fishing nets.
The accumulation of plastic in the Great Pacific Garbage Patch has severe ecological consequences. A 2021 study found that over 90% of the plastic debris examined was inhabited by more than 40 animal species. Some marine animals mistake microplastics for plankton and other forms of food, leading to poisoning. The mix of coastal and open-ocean species in the patch has raised concerns about the formation of "neopelagic communities," where coastal creatures may compete with or consume open-ocean species.
Efforts are being made to address the issue of plastic pollution in the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. The Ocean Cleanup project, for example, is currently working on cleaning up the patch. Additionally, countries around the world are implementing bans on specific plastic products, such as plastic bags, cups, and cutlery. These combined efforts of cleanup and reduction in plastic production are crucial in combating the pervasive problem of plastic pollution in our oceans.
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The North Pacific Gyre
There are five plastic gyres in the world's oceans: the North Atlantic Gyre, the South Atlantic Gyre, the North Pacific Gyre, the South Pacific Gyre, and the Indian Ocean Gyre. Together, these five currents are the "backbone" of the world's ocean currents, and they are all becoming increasingly clogged with plastic.
The gyre's rotational pattern draws in waste material from across the North Pacific, incorporating coastal waters off North America and Japan. As the material is captured in the currents, wind-driven surface currents gradually move the debris towards the centre, trapping it. The Great Pacific Garbage Patch covers an estimated surface area of 1.6 million square kilometres, an area twice the size of Texas or three times the size of France.
The upper water column of the North Pacific Gyre fills with tiny bits of plastic, or microplastics, harming marine life in ways that are only just beginning to be understood. Marine animals end up consuming microplastics while searching for plankton and other forms of food, which poisons them. The plastic chemicals can also be absorbed by predators of these species, and the concentration of these chemicals increases through each trophic level of the food chain, a process known as biomagnification.
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The Indian Ocean Gyre
There are five major subtropical gyres across the world's oceans: the North Atlantic Gyre, the South Atlantic Gyre, the Indian Ocean Gyre, the North Pacific Gyre, and the South Pacific Gyre. These gyres are large systems of rotating ocean currents, which together form the backbone of the global conveyor belt, driving the oceanic conveyor belt that circulates ocean waters around the globe.
The South Equatorial Current forms the northern boundary of the Indian Ocean Gyre as it flows west along the equator towards the east coast of Africa. When the South Equatorial Current reaches the coast of Africa, it is split by Madagascar into the Mozambique Current and the East Madagascar Current, both of which are western boundary currents. These two currents then join south of Madagascar to form the Agulhas Current, which flows south until it joins the Antarctic Circumpolar Current, forming the southern edge of the Indian Ocean Gyre.
The Indian Ocean Garbage Patch, discovered in 2010, is a part of the Indian Ocean Gyre. It is a marine garbage patch, a gyre of marine litter, suspended in the upper water column of the central Indian Ocean. Like the other four gyres, the Indian Ocean Gyre is drawing in massive amounts of microplastics and other pollutants, contributing to the growing issue of plastic pollution in the world's oceans.
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The North Atlantic Garbage Patch
There are five oceanic gyres: the North Atlantic Gyre, the South Atlantic Gyre, the North Pacific Gyre, the South Pacific Gyre, and the Indian Ocean Gyre. These gyres are large systems of circulating ocean currents, similar to slow-moving whirlpools, and they have a significant impact on the ocean. While they circulate ocean waters, they also draw in the pollution released in coastal areas, known as marine debris.
One of these five gyres is the North Atlantic Garbage Patch, a garbage patch of man-made marine debris found floating within the North Atlantic Gyre. It was originally documented in 1972 and is located right off the east coast of the United States. The North Atlantic Garbage Patch is not a dense "island" and cannot be seen from satellites. The misconception that this is a floating island gives a false sense of how to address the issue. The patch is estimated to be hundreds of kilometres across in size, with a density of more than 200,000 pieces of debris per square kilometre. The concentration of plastic in the North Atlantic Garbage Patch has remained constant even though global plastic production has increased fivefold over the course of a 22-year study. This may be due to the plastics sinking beneath the surface or breaking down into smaller pieces that pass through the nets used by researchers to collect and study the material. Because of this, it is thought that the size of the North Atlantic Garbage Patch may be underestimated.
The plastic in the North Atlantic Garbage Patch originates from human-created waste that travels from continental rivers into the ocean. The surface of the garbage patch consists of microplastics such as polyethylene and polypropylene, which are commonly found in household items. Denser materials, such as polyethylene terephthalate used in soft drink and water bottles, are believed to exist under the ocean's surface but are not observed in the North Atlantic Garbage Patch as current collection methods only capture surface microplastics.
Efforts to address the North Atlantic Garbage Patch include awareness and clean-up initiatives such as The Garbage Patch State at UNESCO and The Ocean Cleanup. Additionally, countries around the world are taking steps to ban single-use plastics, with Kenya banning plastic bags and France prohibiting plastic cups, plates, and cutlery. While these measures are positive, the best way to tackle the issue is to reduce plastic production and consumption.
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The South Pacific Gyre
There are five plastic gyres in the world's oceans: the North Atlantic Gyre, the South Atlantic Gyre, the North Pacific Gyre, the South Pacific Gyre, and the Indian Ocean Gyre. Together, these five currents are the "backbone" of the world's currents, and they are all becoming clogged with plastic.
The centre of the South Pacific Gyre is the furthest point from any continent, known as the 'oceanic pole of inaccessibility' or Point Nemo. It is regarded as Earth's largest oceanic desert. The gyre contains an area with elevated concentrations of pelagic plastics, chemical sludge, and other debris known as the South Pacific Garbage Patch.
Satellite data images show that some areas in the gyre are greener than the surrounding clear blue water, which is often interpreted as areas with higher concentrations of living phytoplankton. However, the South Pacific Gyre contains very little organism growth, and some studies hypothesize that these green patches are a result of the accumulated waste of marine life.
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Frequently asked questions
There are five dense soups of microplastic throughout the world, concentrated among the world’s five major gyres.
The five plastic gyres are the North Pacific Gyre, the South Pacific Gyre, the North Atlantic Gyre, the South Atlantic Gyre, and the Indian Ocean Gyre.
Gyres are large systems of circulating ocean currents, like slow-moving whirlpools.
