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Oceanography

The study of the ocean, including its ecosystems, geology, chemistry, and physics.

Five Oceans

Pacific, Atlantic, Indian, Southern, Arctic.

Salinity

The total salt content in seawater, typically around 35 grams per liter.

Residence Time

The average length of time a substance remains in a particular location, such as water in the ocean.

Hydrophobic

Substances that do not interact well with water, such as oils.

Hydrophilic

Substances that easily interact with water, often capable of forming hydrogen bonds.

Eutrophication

An increase in nutrient levels in water bodies, often leading to overgrowth of algae.

Carbonate Compensation Depth (CCD)

The depth in the ocean at which the rate of dissolution of calcium carbonate equals the rate of its supply.

Kinematics

The study of motion without considering the forces that cause it.

Thermocline

A layer in a body of water where the temperature changes rapidly with depth.

Biodiversity

The variety of life in a particular habitat or ecosystem.

Photosynthesis

The process by which green plants and some other organisms use sunlight to synthesize foods with the help of chlorophyll.

Thermal Stratification

The layering of water in lakes and seas, based on temperature differences.

Upwelling

The process where deep, cold, nutrient-rich water rises to the surface.

Hydrologic Cycle

The continuous movement of water on, above, and below the surface of the Earth.

Ecosystem

A biological community of interacting organisms and their physical environment.

Isostasy

The equilibrium between the Earth's crust and the denser mantle below it.

Albedo

The reflectivity of a surface, indicating how much sunlight is reflected without being absorbed.

Carbon Cycle

The series of processes by which carbon compounds are interconverted in the environment.

Latent Heat

The heat absorbed or released during a phase change of a substance without changing its temperature.

Ocean Currents

Continuous, directed movements of seawater generated by forces acting upon the water, such as wind, the Coriolis effect, temperature and salinity differences.

Gyres

Large systems of rotating ocean currents, particularly those involved with large wind movements. Gyres are caused by the Coriolis effect.

Coriolis Effect

The apparent deflection of moving objects (like water or air currents) caused by the Earth's rotation. In the Northern Hemisphere, objects are deflected to the right, while in the Southern Hemisphere they are deflected to the left.

Ekman Transport

The net motion of fluid as the result of a balance between Coriolis and turbulent drag forces.

Tides

The periodic rise and fall of sea level caused by the gravitational pull of the Moon and the Sun.

Spring Tides

Tides that have the greatest tidal range due to the alignment of the Sun, Moon, and Earth. Occur during the full moon and new moon.

Neap Tides

Tides that have the smallest tidal range due to the Sun and Moon being at right angles to the Earth. Occur during the first and third quarters of the moon.

Waves

Disturbances that transfer energy through a medium (like water) without significant transport of the medium itself.

Wind Waves

Generated by wind blowing over the water surface.

Tsunamis

Large, destructive waves caused by earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, or landslides.

El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO)

A climate pattern that occurs in the Pacific Ocean and affects weather patterns worldwide. El Niño is characterized by warmer-than-average ocean temperatures, while La Niña is characterized by cooler-than-average temperatures.

Ocean Zones

Different layers or regions of the ocean based on depth, light penetration, and other factors.

Intertidal Zone

The area between the high tide and low tide marks, exposed to air at low tide and submerged at high tide.

Pelagic Zone

The open ocean, divided into different zones based on depth (epipelagic, mesopelagic, bathypelagic, abyssopelagic, hadopelagic).

Abyssal Zone

The deep ocean floor, typically below 4,000 meters.

Plate Tectonics

The theory that Earth's outer layer (lithosphere) is made up of plates that move and interact with each other, causing earthquakes, volcanoes, and mountain building.

Mid-Ocean Ridges

Underwater mountain ranges where new ocean floor is created through volcanic activity.

Ocean Trenches

Deep depressions in the ocean floor where one tectonic plate subducts (slides) beneath another.

Marine Life

The diverse organisms that live in the ocean, including plankton, nekton, and benthos.

Plankton

Microscopic organisms that drift in the water column (phytoplankton are plant-like and zooplankton are animal-like).

Nekton

Actively swimming organisms such as fish, whales, and squid.

Benthos

Organisms that live on or in the ocean floor, such as crabs, clams, and worms.