Final answer:
The Gulf Stream's warming effect is less pronounced in Providence, Rhode Island, and Bangor, Maine, because it moves away from the U.S. coastline going northeast, and the prevailing westerly winds carry cooler continental air masses over these regions rather than the warmer maritime air masses.
Step-by-step explanation:
The Gulf Stream is a powerful ocean current that carries warm water from the Gulf of Mexico northward into the Atlantic. However, the Gulf Stream's influence on the climate of coastal regions like Providence, Rhode Island, and Bangor, Maine, diminishes as it moves north and east away from the U.S. coastline.
As the Gulf Stream flows northeast, it warms areas to the east such as Western Europe but has less impact on the northeastern United States due to its offshore position.
Another reason these areas don't experience significant warming from the Gulf Stream is the prevailing westerly winds. These winds blow from the west to the east and carry continental air masses with them, which have a tendency to be cooler than the maritime air masses that would be influenced by the Gulf Stream.
Thus, areas further to the north and east, like Providence and Bangor, experience a climate moderated more by these continental air masses than by the warming effects of the Gulf Stream.