Lecture 1: Introduction to Physical Oceanography

Question 1

Why do we care about physical oceanography?

Answer 1

-ocean absorbs & distributes heat across the globe
-great ocean conveyor bealt
-global heat content change (has a much larger capacity to absorb heat than the atmosphere)

Question 2

How can the ocean serve as a renewable energy source?

Answer 2

Turbines can drive generators

Question 3

What type of scales does physical oceanography operate on?

Answer 3

Time & Space Scales (wide range)

Question 4

How much of the Earth’s surface does water cover?

Answer 4

~71%

Question 5

What are the major ocean basins?

Answer 5

Pacific (46%), Atlantic (23%), Indian (20%), Arctic & Southern (11%)

Question 6

What are marginal seas?

Answer 6

separated from major ocean basin by a sill (a shallow ride on sea floor), can impact global ocean (“meddies”), have independent deep water circulation

Question 7

What was the outcome of the rubber ducky ‘study’?

Answer 7

Rubber ducks seemed to circulate way faster than what the models predicted (~50% faster than the water in the current), this is because wind affects both the water movement and the object’s movement

Question 8

What is windage?

Answer 8

The force of wind on an object, the higher an object sits in the water, the high windage it has

Question 9

What are ocean surface currents driven by?

Answer 9

Wind