Oceanography midterm

Pacific Ocean

The largest ocean on Earth.

Arctic Ocean

The shallowest ocean.

Southern Ocean

The ocean that is not bordered by land.

Inland Seas

Often have a higher salinity than typical ocean water.

Ocean Acidity

Increases as atmospheric carbon dioxide increases.

Changes in Oceans

Include melting sea ice, rising sea levels, warming waters, and increased acidity.

Current Global Population

Approximately 7.8 billion.

Cod Fishery Lesson

A severely depleted fishery may never recover.

Aristotle's Quote

"That which is common to the greatest number has the least care bestowed upon it."

Human Impact on Oceans

Includes sea level rise, water warming, acidification, and melting ice.

Expected Sea Level Rise by 2100

1 meter.

Steady Rise in Global Fishing

Evidence that the fish population is not increasing.

By-catch

The unintentional catch of non-target species.

Fish Farms

Use natural fish as food.

Coral Bleaching

Occurs due to water acidification.

Individual Impact on Fisheries

Eating habits can affect ocean fisheries.

Additives in Polyethylene

Used to enhance physical and chemical properties.

Diesel Oil vs. Methane

Diesel oil has a longer hydrocarbon chain.

Volcanic Islands Productivity

Are not productive because they deflect warm surface water downward.

Largest Migration of Life

The daily migration from the deep ocean.

Plastic Harm to Marine Life

Includes ingestion, entanglement, and hormone mimicry.

Plastic Fragments Size Reduction

As they reduce in size, their chemical impact increases.

North Star Navigation

Its height above the horizon can be used to infer latitude.

Interdisciplinary Oceanography

Yes, oceanography is more interdisciplinary than most sciences.

Eratosthenes' Accomplishments

Did not discover the depth of the Mariana Trench.

Ming Dynasty Development

Associated with the compass.

Darwin's Beagle Voyage

Not the first purely scientific expedition.

Great Iron Catastrophe

Caused nickel and iron to settle to Earth's core.

Habitable Zone

Area of the solar system where liquid water can occur.

Oxygen Revolution

Not a sudden loss of oxygen from Earth's atmosphere.

Earth's Magnetic Field

Requires a fluid iron-nickel core and helps retain water.

Sources of Ocean Water

Comets, rocks, minerals, and volcanoes.

Azoic Zone

The zone that contains no life.

Dolly Rope

Used in bottom trawls.

Echo Sounder

Used to detect bottom depth.

Microplastics

Have no nutritional value when ingested.

Nanoplastics

Can cross cell boundaries.

Longitude Measurement

Requires accurate timekeeping.

Reverse Tribute

An ancient Chinese trade technique.

Tsunami Behavior in Shallow Water

The wave gets taller.

Asthenosphere vs. Lithosphere

The asthenosphere is more 'plastic' than the lithosphere.

Subduction Zone Volcanoes

Create island arcs.

Lithosphere

Rigid and brittle layer of Earth.

Outer Planets Construction

Made up of gaseous materials.

Asthenosphere Definition

Soft and plastic layer of the Earth.

Earth's Crust Composition

Mostly silicate material.

Lower Mantle and Core Composition

Mostly iron and nickel.

Hot Spots Definition

Stationary volcanoes.

Curie Point Definition

The temperature point that locks in magnetism.

Divergent Plate Boundary

Occurs at a mid-ocean ridge.

Inner Planets Makeup

Rocky materials.

Magnetic Stripe Definition

Represents a reversal of magnetic energy.

Convergent Plate Boundaries

Associated with trenches.

Plate Boundaries Types

Divergent, convergent, insurgent, and transform.

Earth's Magnetic Field Role

Allows it to retain water and atmosphere.

Thickest Ocean Sediment Location

Not near mid-ocean ridges.

Convergent Plate Boundaries

Associated with subduction zones.

Killer Waves

A collapsing wave is not one of the named killer waves.

Earth's Interior Heat Source

Radioactive decay.

Divergent Plate Boundaries Process

Involves spreading centers.

Oldest Ocean Rocks Age

170 million years old.

Wegner's Continental Drift Rejection,

His theory was initially rejected because he was not a geologist.

Curie Point Definition Corrections

Not where temperature reversal occurs.

Krakatoa's Killer Wave Cause

A landslide into the ocean.

Star Formation Process

Stars do not make lighter elements from heavier ones.

Hot Spot Definition

Is not a type of plate boundary.

Oceanic Trenches Location

At subduction zones due to slab pull.

Rocky vs. Gaseous Planets

Solar winds swept lighter atoms away.

Transform Faults

Offset ocean ridges.

Subduction Zones Earthquake Focus

Becomes progressively deeper.

Magnetic Stripes Function

Record changes in Earth's magnetic field.

Earth's Crust Composition vs. Rest of Earth

The crust has more aluminum and silica.

Gulf of Mexico Continental Shelf

Pockmarked due to numerous salt domes.

Last Ice Age Sea Level,

Was 130 meters lower.

Monterrey Canyon Formation

Not a submarine trench formed by subduction.

Atoll Center Composition

Contains volcanic rocks.

Oceanic Trenches Cause

Are found at subduction zones.

Black Smokers Definition

Hydrothermal vents near spreading centers.

Atoll Definition

A seamount found in tropical areas.

Active Continental Margin Characteristics

Narrow.

Increased Spreading Rates Effects

Result in rising sea levels.

Chemosynthesis Definition

The oxidation of sulfides.

Mid-Ocean Ridge Linkage

Connected to spreading centers.

Sediment Accumulation Location

Occurs in trenches.

Glacial Period's Sea Level Effect

Lowered sea levels.

Turbidites Function

Erode offshore canyons.

Guyot Definition

A flat-topped seamount.

Passive Continental Margin Characteristics

Not associated with subduction.

Abyssal Hills, Seamounts, Atolls, Guyots

All were once volcanoes.

Faster Spreading Rates Sea Level Effect

Do not cause lowering of global sea levels.

Global Sea Level Increase

Can be caused by increased spreading rates.

Passive Continental Margins Impact

Do not cause narrow continental shelves.

Geographical Feature of the Ocean

Most of the ocean is composed of abyssal plains.

Bahama Banks Origin

Resulted from a buildup of calcium carbonate over time.

Tall Mud Volcanoes

Due to the lack of erosion.

Hydrothermal Vents Chemicals

Discharge sulfides.

Seamounts and Guyots Relationship

All seamounts are guyots, but not all guyots are seamounts.

Water as Dipolar Molecule

Has a positive and a negative side.

Water's Heat Transfer during Phase Change

Does not take heat when changing from vapor to liquid.

Source of Ocean Dust

Comes primarily from adjacent land areas.