Ocean Studies // Chapter 1

Front 1

aerosols

Back 1

minute solid and liquid particles which are suspended in the atmosphere

Front 2

atmosphere

Back 2

a relatively thin envelope of gases and suspended particles surround the Earth and held there by gravity

Front 3

biogeochemical cycle

Back 3

pathways along which solid, liquid, and gaseous materials flow among the various reservoirs of Earth's planetary system

Front 4

biosphere

Back 4

consists of all living organisms on Earth; composed of ecosystems

Front 5

cellular respiration

Back 5

the process whereby food is broken down, liberating energy for maintenance, growth, and reproduction, while releasing carbon dioxide, water, and heat energy to the environment

Front 6

chemosynthesis

Back 6

the process whereby marine organisms in the absence of sunlight derive energy from substances such as hydrogen sulfide (H2S) or methane

Front 7

condensation

Back 7

the process whereby water changes phase from liquid to solid

Front 8

cryosphere

Back 8

the frozen portion of the hydrosphere, encompassing glacial ice, icebergs, sea ice, and ice in the permafrost

Front 9

deposition

Back 9

the process whereby water changes directly from vapor to solid (ice crystals) without first becoming liquid

Front 10

distillation

Back 10

purification of water through phase changes (e.g., evaporation followed by condensation). When water vaporizes, all suspended and dissolved substances such as sea salts are left behind

Front 11

ecosystem

Back 11

community of plants and animals that interact with one another, together with the physical conditions and chemical constituents in a specific geographic area

Front 12

electromagnetic radition

Back 12

energy in the form of waves that have both electrical and magnetic properties; these waves can travel through gases, liquids, and solids and require no physical medium. All objects emit all forms of electromagnetic radiation, although each object emits its peak radiation at a certain wavelength within the electromagnetic spectrum. Forms of electromagnetic radiation include gamma rays, x-rays, ultraviolet, visible light, infrared, microwaves, & radio waves.

Front 13

electromagnetic spectrum

Back 13

the various forms of electromagnetic radiation arranged and distinguished by type by their wavelength (or frequency)

Front 14

erosion

Back 14

removal and transport of sediments by running water, glaciers, wind, or gravity

Front 15

evaporation

Back 15

the process whereby water changes phase from a liquid to a vapor

Front 16

food chain

Back 16

a sequence of feeding relationships among organisms whereby energy and biomass is transferred from one trophic (feeding) level to the next higher trophic level (i.e., from autotrophs to heterotrophs)

Front 17

geosphere

Back 17

the solid portion of planet Earth consisting of rocks, minerals, and sediments

Front 18

geostationary satellite

Back 18

a satellite which revolves around Earth at the same rate and in the same direction as the planet rotates so that it always remains over the same point on the equator and monitors the same field of view. The satellite orbits Earth at an altitude of about 36,000km (22,300mi).

Front 19

glacier

Back 19

a mass of ice that flows internally under the influence of gravity

Front 20

global water cycle

Back 20

the ceaseless movement of water among its various reservoirs on a planetary scale

Front 21

hot spot

Back 21

a long-lived souce of magma caused by rising plumes of hot material originating deep in the mantle. As a tectonic plate moves over a hot spot or as a hot spot moves, magma may break through the crust and form a new volcano

Front 22

hydrosphere

Back 22

one of the major interacting subsystems of the Earth's planetary system which includes water in all three phases (ice, liquid, and vapor) that continually cycles from one reservoir to another within that system (i.e., the global water cycle)

Front 23

lithosphere

Back 23

the outer, rigid part of the Earth, consisting of the upper part of the mantle, oceanic crust, and continental crust

Front 24

magma

Back 24

hot molten rock material formed deep in the crust or upper mantle which wells up and migrates along rick fissures; called lava when it flows onto the Earth's surface

Front 25

model

Back 25

an approximate representation or simulation of a real system

Front 26

plate tectonics

Back 26

the process by which massive plates of the lithosphere are slowly driven across the face of the globe by huge convection currents in Earth's mantle

Front 27

polar-orbiting satellite

Back 27

satellite in a relatively low-altitude orbit that passes near the north and south geographical poles. Earth rotates through the plant of the satellite's orbit, which is at an altitude of about 800 to 1000km (500 to 620mi).

Front 28

precipitation

Back 28

water in frozen or unfrozen forms (rain, snow, drizzle, ice pellets, hail) that falls from clouds and reaches Earth's surface

Front 29

profiling float

Back 29

a free-moving instrument package that measures vertical profiles of ocean water temperature and salinity plus current velocity

Front 30

residence time

Back 30

the average length of time for a substance in a reservoir of be replaced completely

Front 31

sublimation

Back 31

the process by which water changes directly from a solid to a vapor without first becoming liquid

Front 32

system

Back 32

an interacting set of components that behave in an orderly way according to the laws of physics, chemistry, geology, and biology

Front 33

transpiration

Back 33

the process whereby water that is taken up from the soil by plant roots eventually escapes as vapor through the tiny pores (stomates) on the surface of green leaves

Front 34

troposphere

Back 34

the lowest thermal layer of the atmosphere; where the atmosphere interfaces with the ocean, cryosphere, lithosphere, and biosphere and where most weather takes place

Front 35

weathering

Back 35

the physical disintegration, chemical decomposition, or solution of exposed rock which takes place where the lithosphere (mainly the crust) interfaces with the other Earth subsystems