Sixty-two satellite-tracked buoys have been released in the northern part of the western and central North Atlantic during 1981 and 1982 by the Institut f¿r Meereskunde, Universit¿te Kiel, Federal Republic of Germany. Additionally, six buoys deployed in spring 1980 by the Bedford Institute have been taken over. Mean values and variances about the mean have been calculated for 3¿ by 3¿ areas. The mean velocities confirm the large-scale gyre circulation as deduced from hydrographic data and numerical models. The center of the gyre is located at about 33¿N. Eddy kinetic energy decreases east- and southward and is concentrated along the North Atlantic Current. It appears that the North Atlantic Current (Polar Front) is the main source of eddy kinetic energy along the North Atlantic, whereas the Mid-Atlantic Ridge is no source of eddy energy. Eddy kinetic energy along the North Atlantic Current decreases from about 1000 cm2 s-2 near Newfoundland to 300 cm2 s-2 west of Scotland. A homogeneous pool of low eddy kinetic energy (less than 100 cm2 s-2) appears in the central North Atlantic east of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. The level increases towards the European and African shelf where the mean southward flow also becomes stronger. The results concern the upper ocean.