Hydrosphere

Question 1

What are the main movement processes in the hydrological cycle?

Answer 1

Evaporation, condensation, precipitation, infiltration, percolation, transpiration, evapotranspiration, sublimation, runoff

These processes describe how water moves through the environment in various forms.

Question 2

What types of storage are involved in the hydrological cycle?

Answer 2

Surface: atmospheric moisture, snow, ice, watercourses, lakes, oceans; Subterranean: groundwater, aquifers

Storage refers to how water is held in different forms and locations within the hydrological cycle.

Question 3

What drives the global ocean conveyor belt?

Answer 3

Thermohaline circulation and surface wind currents

These processes involve the movement of ocean water due to temperature and salinity differences.

Question 4

How does sea ice formation affect ocean water density?

Answer 4

It draws out freshwater and causes surrounding water to become saltier, increasing its density

This process leads to the sinking of colder, denser water, which drives deep ocean currents.

Question 5

What role does the Gulf Stream play in oceanic circulation?

Answer 5

It transports warm water away from the equator

This movement influences global climate and oceanic circulation patterns.

Question 6

What happens to cold bottom waters in the oceanic conveyor belt?

Answer 6

They return to the surface through mixing and upwelling

This process is essential for nutrient distribution in marine ecosystems.

Question 7

What factors affect oceanic circulation?

Answer 7

Thermohaline circulation, continental location, surface winds, Coriolis effect

Each of these factors influences how ocean currents are formed and maintained.

Question 8

What is the Coriolis effect?

Answer 8

The deflection of major surface ocean currents due to the rotation of the Earth

This effect causes water to move in a clockwise spiral in the northern hemisphere and an anti-clockwise spiral in the southern hemisphere.

Question 9

True or False: The Coriolis effect is absent at the equator.

Answer 9

True

This absence means that major ocean currents do not spiral at the equator.

Question 10

What is a gyre in oceanic circulation?

Answer 10

A major spiral of ocean-circling currents

Gyres play a significant role in the distribution of marine debris and nutrients.

Question 11

Fill in the blank: The circulating nature of ocean gyres traps _______.

Answer 11

marine debris

This trapping can lead to the accumulation of plastic and other pollutants in the ocean.