Planet Earth Ch 2

Front 1

What is the ocean's role in the water cycle?

Back 1

Very important because ocean water evaporates (salt left behind) forms clouds, moves over land, & rains

Front 2

What are oceanographers?

Back 2

Scientists who study the ocean

Front 3

What is salinity?

Back 3

Describes the amount of salt in the ocean water. It equals the number of grams per kg of ocean water. it is expressed in parts per thousand & is between 33-37 parts per thousand

Front 4

Salinity of the ocean water is about the same in most areas, but what are some of the exceptions?

Back 4

Salinity is lower where freshwater runs into the ocean.
Salinity is higher in warm areas where there is little rainfall & much evaporation.
Salinity is higher near poles
Animal life can also affect salinity

Front 5

How are the abundant gases(like nitrogen, carbon dioxide, and oxygen) affected in the ocean water?

Back 5

They are abundant near the surface b/c sunlight easily penetrates.
The amount of gases are affected by the temperature of the ocean water (warm water holds less gas than cold)

Front 6

What is the surface zone?

Back 6

The zone where waves & currents mix the water. Temp is constant, but can change b/c of location & season

Front 7

What is the thermocline zone?

Back 7

The second zone where temp changes rapidly.
(Warm surface water doesn't mix easily with cold water b/c of different densities, warm = less dense)

Front 8

What is the deep zone?

Back 8

The third zone that has extremely cold water & goes down to 4000 M or more.
The temp only decreases slightly as you go down.

Front 9

What is the shoreline?

Back 9

The boundary where the land & ocean meet

Front 10

What is the continental margin?

Back 10

The area where the underwater edge of a continent meets the ocean floor.
It is made up of a continental shelf, a continental slope, & a continental rise

Front 11

What is a continental slope?

Back 11

The boundary b/t the crust of the continent & the crust of the ocean floor

Front 12

What is the continental rise?

Back 12

Separates a continental slope from the ocean floor. It is made up of sediments

Front 13

What is it called when the sediments are carried down the slope in masses of flowing water?

Back 13

Turbidity Currents

Front 14

What are submarine canyons?

Back 14

V-shaped & they cut through a continental shelf & slope

Front 15

What are large, flat areas of the ocean floor?

Back 15

Abyssal Plains

Front 16

What are seamounts?

Back 16

Underwater volcanic mountains that rise more than 1000 meters above the ocean floor

Front 17

What are guyots?

Back 17

Seamounts with a flat top. Guyots are formed by wave erosion.

Front 18

What are trenches?

Back 18

the deepest parts of the ocean. They are long, narrow crevices.

Front 19

What are midocean ridges?

Back 19

Mountain ranges in the ocean. They are formed when molten material from inside the earth flows to the surface. (Mountain ranges on land are formed when the earth's crust folds and is squeezed together.)

Front 20

What are coral reefs?

Back 20

Limestone structures that contain the shells of animals. Only found in tropical waters

Front 21

What are fringing reefs?

Back 21

Coral reefs that touch the shoreline of a volcanic island

Front 22

What are barrier reefs?

Back 22

Separated from the shore by an area of shallow water called a lagoon

Front 23

What is an atoll?

Back 23

A ring of coral reefs that surround an island

Front 24

How are animals and plants in the ocean classified?

Back 24

According to their habits and depth of water they live in.

Front 25

What is the largest animal and plant classification in the ocean?

Back 25

plankton-they float at or near the surface to get sunlight & are the main food

Front 26

What are forms of ocean life that can swim, search for food, avoid predators, and are found at all levels of the ocean?

Back 26

Nekton

Front 27

What is the name of organisms that live on the ocean floor?

Back 27

benthos

Front 28

What is the intertidal zone?

Back 28

It is b/t the low & high tides. It is the most changeable zone in the ocean. Sometimes it's land, sometimes it's water, & it is hard to survive here

Front 29

What is the neritic zone?

Back 29

Has the richest life of any part of the ocean. Best fish & seafood is here.

Front 30

What is the bathyal zone?

Back 30

One of the two open-ocean zones. Light doesn't reach the bottom, so few plants. Squid & octopus are here.

Front 31

What is the abyssal zone?

Back 31

One of the two open-ocean zones. No sunlight, little food, high pressure, & animals make their own light.

Front 32

How do you map the ocean floor?

Back 32

Indirectly by echo sounding, radar, & sonar. Measuring the speed of sound in water and how long speed takes to bounce back tells us how deep it is.

Front 33

What is the highest point of the wave called?

Back 33

Crest

Front 34

What is the lowest point of the wave called?

Back 34

Trough

Front 35

What is the wavelength?

Back 35

The horizontal distance between two consecutive crests or two consecutive troughs

Front 36

What is the wave period?

Back 36

The amount of time it takes consecutive crests or troughs to pass a given point.

Front 37

What are tsunamis?

Back 37

Ocean waves caused by earthquakes

Front 38

What currents are caused mainly by wind patterns called?

Back 38

surface currents

Front 39

What currents are caused mainly by the differences in density of water?

Back 39

deep currents

Front 40

What is upwelling?

Back 40

The rising of deep cold currents to the ocean surface. Upwelling is important because rising currents carry food from the ocean floor to the surface

Front 41

What are tides?

Back 41

The regular rise & fall of ocean water caused by the gravitational attraction b/t the earth, moon, & sun

Front 42

When do low tides occur?

Back 42

Between the high tides