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Figure 25. Schematic diagram showing inferred surface water circulation of the Australian Antarctic region during the late Oligocene (26 Ma). Plate tectonic reconstruction is modified from Cande et al. (2000). At this time, the Antarctic cryosphere had increased significantly. The expansion of the Antarctic Circumpolar Current (ACC) continued as the South Tasman Rise and Tasmania moved northward from Antarctica. Note increasing decoupling of the East Australian current from the Antarctic margin associated with the increasing strength of the ACC.