An ocean current, the northward flowing division of the Aleutian current . It circulates cyclonically around the Gulf of Alaska; part of the water passes between the Aleutian Islands into the Bering Sea from which it emerges as the Oyashio , and part rejoins the Aleutian current. It enters the Gulf of Alaska along the American west coast and, since it comes from the south, it has the character of a warm current in spite of the fact that it carries subarctic water. It therefore exercises an influence on climatic conditions similar, on a small scale, to that which the North Atlantic current and Norwegian current exercise on the climates of northwestern Europe. Aleutian current - also called subarctic current. An eastward flowing ocean current which lies north of the North Pacific current; it is the northern branch of the Kuroshio extension which moves northeast then east between 40=AE$=AFN and 50=AE$=AFN. As it approaches the cost of North America it divides to form the northward-flowing Alaska current and the southward-flowing California current.