oceanography - stolen from quizlet

How much of the Earth is covered in Water?

70%

Where is most of the water located on Earth?

Oceans

What is the largest body of water on Earth?

Oceans, interconnected to each other

What are seas surrounded by?

Smaller bodies of water surrounded by Land

How is salinity in water determined/measured?

The amount of dissolved solids in water, measured in g/1000 with an average of 3.3-3.6%

What elements are in saltwater?

Halite (sodium & chloride) 85% and tiny trace elements of phosphorous and gold

What factors affect salinity?

Evaporation, precipitation, currents, temperature, coastal run-off/ice melt

When it rains, does salinity increase or decrease?

salinity decreases due to dilution

When there is a lot of evaporation (like in hot conditions, or in shallow water) does salinity increase or decrease?

Salinity increases because the salt is more concentrated

What processes affect the gas exchange in the water?

Interaction with the atmosphere through evaporation, as well as photosynthesis and respiration of marine plants and animals (giving off/breathing in CO2 and Oxygen and nitrogen),

How long can the ocean store carbon?

Thousands of years

What does it mean when we say the ocean is a carbon sink?

It is a natural or artificial reservoir that accumulates and stores some carbon-containing chemical compound for an indefinite period

What affects the temperatures in the ocean?

Depth (shallow or deep water) and location (near the equator or poles)

What part of the ocean is most affected by solar energy (the sun)?

The surface where the sun shines directly on the water

What temp are polar waters?

-1.9 deg Celsius

What is pack ice also known as?

Insulation. The sea ice layer restricts wind and wave action near coastlines, lessening coastal erosion and protecting ice shelves. Sea ice also creates an insulating cap across the ocean surface, which reduces evaporation and heat loss to the atmosphere.

How does sea ice protect coastlines?

Protects against erosion

How does sea ice protect the ocean?

reduces evaporation of sea water and heat loss

What is the temperature difference in a thermocline?

Warmer water is at surface, cooler water is deeper

In a thermocline, does temperature drop or rise the deeper you go?

As you get deeper, the temperature drops significantly (gets colder)

In a thermocline, where is the water most dense?

Most dense in colder layers of water

In a thermocline where is water most saline?

Most saline in the denser, deeper, colder layers of water

Does colder, denser, saltier water sink or rise to the surface?

Colder, denser, saltier water sinks

What water rises to the surface?

Warmer, less dense, less saline water rises

What process carries colder, denser, saltier water to the surface?

Upwelling, the wind pushes surface water away from the coast and deeper water moves into the shoreline

What process drives warmer, less denser, less salty water down?

Downwelling, the wind pushes surface water toward the shoreline and that surface water cycles down into the the deeper zones (opposite direction of upwelling cycle)

What is a thermoHaline current?

ocean currents that flow thousands of meters below the surface

driven by differences in the water's density, which is controlled by temperature (thermo) and salinity (haline).

When sea ice forms, what is left in the sea water that was not frozen?

Salt. So cold polar water is saltier because of the glaciers.

When glaciers melt, what happens to the ocean/seawaters?

The ocean/seawater becomes less salty due to the melting water from the glaciers. Imagine a melting ice cube in a glass of lemonade….the lemonade gets watered down from the melting ice

What is the basic process of the thermohaline cycle?

Polar ice forms, leaving the seawater even saltier. That salty cold water sinks. More surface water moves in to replace the sinking surface water, which also eventually gets saltier and sinks. This creates a cycle of water being pulled into an area, becoming more salty, then sinking.

Does water absorb all light waves the same?

No, there are different absorption rates

Which light is reflected the longest?

Blue

Which light wave is lost first?

Red

In what depth of water does light go the deepest?

Sunlight goes deeper when it shines on open ocean---far off shore. Near the shore, the water is less clear from sediment cloudiness so the light can't go as deep.

Where is there more sediment stirred up in the ocean--near the shore or deep water?

More sediment near shore because the currents, tides, and waves bring it in and stir it up.

Salinity

A measure of the amount of dissolved salts in a given amount of liquid

Carbon Sink

The oceans that have an ability to dissolve and contain a large amount of CO2

Sea Salts

Dissolved solids that make up about 3.5% of the mass of the ocean water.

Pack Ice

A floating layer of sea ice that completely covers an area of the ocean surface

Density

The ratio of the mass of a substance to the volume of the substance.

Thermocline

A layer in a body of water in which water temperature drops with increased depth faster than it does in other layers

Phytoplankton

They are microscopic plants in the ocean that provides food to many of the oceans organisms

Upwelling

The movement of deep, cold, and nutrient rich water to the surface

Plankton

The mass of mostly microscopic organisms that float or differently in the waters of aquatic

Nekton

All organisms that swim actively in open water independent of currents

Benthos

Organisms that live at the bottom of the oceans or bodies of fresh water

Benthic Zone

The bottom region of oceans and bodies of fresh water

Pelagic Zone

The region of an ocean or body of fresh water above the Benthic Zones

Desalination

A process of removing salt from ocean water.

Aquaculture

The raising of aquatic plants and animals for human use or consumption

Why should we care about ocean surface temperature?

Because it can impact weather patterns. Help scientists identify warming and cooling trends and make predictions about the effects of global climate change

What 2 types of SST (sea surface temperature) data do scientists study?

Actual surface temperature and Anomalies (comparisons across time)

What makes temperature shift up and down (north and south)?

Ice formation and melting effects temperature.

How do ocean temps affect fish populations?

Fish that can not adapt to warmer water will either move into colder regions or die out.

What is coral reef bleaching?

Whitening of coral reefs (coral death) usually due to warmer temperature change. Animals can no longer live there.

How do warmer ocean waters affect phytoplankton?

Phytoplankton "bloom" in warm water, which offsets the balance. Too many phytoplankton is not good.

How does salt water concentration of seawater affect the freezing point?

Salty water freezes at a lower freezing point than regular water. So, if the seas continue to warm, all of the sea ice will melt because it will never get as cold as it needs to in order for ice to form.

What is affected by increased seawater due to melting sea ice?

Global climate, ocean currents/circulation patterns, animal habitats

What is the trend of artic sea ice?

Continual melting at a rate of 8%.

What else happens due to the loss of sea ice?

The loss of insulation so sea water (from melted ice) is reflecting more sunlight, which raises the air temperature. The Artic is getting warmer, further adding to the melting ice.

What drives atmospheric circulation and weather patterns?

Ocean heat energy. More evaporation (due to warm water) creates more water vapor in the air, resulting in more rainfall or snow. Cooler temps lead to drier conditions, like droughts.

What causes tropical storms?

increased evaporation from ocean in warm conditions

What is an anomaly?

A difference from something normal. Like warmer or colder temps from the normal temps

Are warmer temps positive or negative anomalies?

Positive

Are Colder temps positive or negative anomalies?

negative

What do anomalies over many years signify?

Climate change

What is El-Nino?

2 phase climate cycle that happens 3-7 years where the Pacific trade winds die down and allow the warm water from Australian to flow eastward (toward CA)

How does El Nino affect weather?

Generates more rain, causing storms/flooding east of Australia, but droughts IN Australia. It affects the jet stream, directing weather farther north than usual. More rain, more snow.

What is the sister of El Nino?

La Nina. Causes below average Surface Sea Temps, and cooler drier weather.

What is Thermal Expansion?

When warm water expands, raising sea surface height

What is the opposite of Thermal Expansion?

Thermal contraction, when cold water contracts and sea height goes down

How is Thermal Expansion a threat?

As sea ice melts, and waters warm, sea level rises, altering marine ecosystems (especially near coastlines) and reducing shorelines (they go underwater)

Why is it difficult to form conclusions about climate changes?

Because satellite records have not been around for very long to chart temps and there is a natural variability in climates. So, it is hard to know if there is a major climate change occurring or if it is a natural change

How do indigenous people (Natives) offer insight on climate change?

They have been around for a long time and typically observed changes in weather/climate. They might know better if climate is changing or just going through a natural cycle

How does scientific data help us make governmental policies?

The evidence from data supports decisions to make policies affecting sea level rise or changing ecosystems

What is the horizontal movement of water in a PATTERN, like a river?

Current

What is the horizontal movement of ocean water caused by wind?

Surface Current

A large circle of moving ocean water. 5 in the world. The ones in the North Hemisphere cycle clockwise, the ones in the South Hemisphere cycle counterclockwise.

Gyre

What current runs eastward and lies between the westward flowing currents?

Equatorial countercurrent (it runs counter to the westward currents)

The world's largest current, found in the southerly region's oceans (think of geography--what continent is near the south pole?).

Antarctic Circumpolar Current

Which current runs south of Greenland and takes off from the Gulf Stream, flowing northeast of Europe?

North Atlantic Current

What is the streamlike current that runs deep below surface of water?

Deep current

What is the strong undercurrent caused by an underwater landslide (like from sediment falling off continental slope)?

Turbidity Current

What is the periodic disturbance in a solid, liquid, or gas as energy passes through?

Wave

What do you call the period of time required for 2 wave crests to pass a given point?

Wave period

What is A on the picture? (crest, wave length, trough, or height?

Wavelength

What is B on the picture? (crest, wave length, trough, or height?

Wave Height

What is C on the Picture? (crest, wave length, trough, or height?

Trough

What is E on the picture? (crest, wave length, trough, or height?

Crest

What is the distance that wind blows across an area of sea, between waves?

Fetch

What is a wave called once it gets to the point where the top of the wave topples over (in the surf zone)?

Breaker

What is it called when waves come into shore in the shape of the shoreline?

Refraction

What currents flow parallel to shore, carrying sand and create sandbars?

Longshore currents

What is the cycle of water being pushed back into deeper water by gravity?

Undertow (see the arrows in the pic)

What happens when a lot of water comes into shore and is channeled back out to sea through a narrow channel?

Rip current

What is the periodic rise and fall of the water level called?

Tides

What is the range between high tide and low tide called?

Tidal range

What tide happens during new and full moons?

Spring tide

What tide occurs during quarter moons (waxing and waning moons)?

Neap tide