Schott <1989> demonstrated that velocity estimates of the near-surface ocean, made with an upward looking Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler (ADCP), could be used to estimate wind directions. Subsequent studies have attempted to repeat Schott's results with limited success <Brown et al. 1992; Ruiz, 1993; Visbeck and Fischer, 1995>. Considering the behavior of this near-surface velocity with changes in wind speed and other observations of near-surface acoustic scattering, we conclude that the acoustic backscatter is caused by subsurface bubbles generated by wave breaking. Data sets from both the equator and the North Pacific are examined. The North Pacific data were collected in a region where geostrophic flows are relatively small (typically a few centimeters per second). The ADCP measured surface currents in this region are shown to be directed, on average, at -12¿¿23¿ (i.e., to the right) of the wind direction. The amount of deflection increases with wind speed. We interpret this effect to be a consequence of Ekman dynamics and increased bubble concentration in the surface range bin at high wind speeds. In principle, the wind speed dependence of the surface current deflection can be accounted for, although additional data will be required to demonstrate that such a correction is generally applicable. At the equator, currents driven by large-scale zonal winds contribute to the observed surface velocity. We estimate the regional current by using ADCP velocity observations from 24 m depth and calculate the locally wind-driven surface current as a residual. The results obtained using this technique for equatorial data show an average difference between wind direction and wind-driven surface current direction to be 1.4¿¿8¿. ¿ American Geophysical Union 1996.