Which North Pacific current flows northeastward past Japan?

The North Pacific current that flows northeastward past Japan is the Kuroshio Current.

The Kuroshio is a warm, powerful western boundary current of the North Pacific Ocean. It carries tropical water northward along the western edge of the Pacific basin, passing east of Taiwan and along Japan before separating from the Japanese coast near the Bōsō Peninsula and continuing east as the Kuroshio Extension.

Its name means “Black Current,” referring to the current’s deep blue appearance. Like the Gulf Stream in the North Atlantic, it transports heat toward higher latitudes and influences regional weather, marine ecosystems, fisheries, and storm development. Where it meets the colder Oyashio Current, mixing helps create productive fishing grounds.

A common mix-up is treating the Kuroshio Extension as a completely separate current. The extension is the eastward continuation of the main Kuroshio after it leaves Japan. The Kuroshio is also distinct from the North Pacific Current, which flows eastward farther north and forms another part of the basin’s subtropical circulation.