Is it possible that you set a toy boat in the sea of the coast of Portugal and it ending up in somewhere like Australia?

Question: Is it possible that you set a toy boat in the sea of the coast of Portugal and it ending up in somewhere like Australia?

Asked by lucasjacobs to Meeks, Pete, Stephen, Steve, Tom on 21 Jun 2010 in Categories: General.

Marieke Navin answered on 18 Jun 2010:

yeah I think so – the currents around the planet are so vast and chaotic I think they have tested it with boat debris and found it turn up all over the world.

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Tom Hartley answered on 18 Jun 2010:

I think it is possible, but not very likely (just because there are so many other places it could end up). Things can float a long way on ocean currents, and hitching a ride is one way living things can colonize new landmasses.

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Stephen Curry answered on 18 Jun 2010:

Have you done this and are trying to find out where to look for your boat?

I don’t know for sure – it will depend on the ocean currents – but it seems entirely possible to me. I’d go and look if I were you!

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Pete Edwards answered on 21 Jun 2010:

I think so. Ocean currents circulate all around the globe and have been known to carry things right around the planet. There’s a good NASA site at: http://oceanmotion.org/

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