The Kuroshio Current (Japanese 黒潮 "black" + "tide") is the world's second-largest (after the Gulf Stream) ocean current found in the western Pacific Ocean off the east coast of Taiwan and flowing northeastward past Japan, where it merges with the easterly drift of the North Pacific Current. It is analogous to the Gulf Stream in the Atlantic Ocean, transporting warm, tropical water northward towards the polar region. It's also sometimes known as the Black Stream — the English translation of kuroshio , and an allusion to the deep blue of its water; or also as Japan Current.Its northern counterpart is the North Pacific Current.Its eastern counterpart is the California Current.Its southern counterpart is the North Equatorial Current.There is also a high concentration of uranium passing through the current every year (about 5.2 millions tons)[citation needed].The warm waters of the Kuroshio Current sustain the coral reefs of Japan, the northernmost coral reefs in the world. The branch into the Sea of Japan is called Tsushima Current.