Ocean's Flashcards
Salinity
A measure of the amount of dissolved salts in a given amount of liquid
Water cycle
The continuous movement of water from ocean to the atmosphere to the land and back to the ocean
Condensation
The change of state from a gas to a liquid
Precipitation
Any form of water that falls to the Earths surface from the clouds
Continental shelf
Gently sloping section of the continental margin located between the shoreline and the continental slope
Continental slope
The steeply inclined section of the continental margin located between the continental rise and the continental shelf
Continental rise
The gently sloping section
Continental rise
The gently sloping section of the continental margin located between the continental slope and the abyssal plain
Abyssal plain
A large, flat, almost level area of the deep ocean basin
Mid-ocean ridge
A long undersea mountain chain that forms along the floor of the major oceans
Rift valley
A long, narrow valley that forms as tectonic plates separate
Seamount
A submerged mountain on the ocean floor that is at least 1,000 m high and that has a volcanic origin
Ocean trench
A steep and long depression in the deep sea floor that runs parallel to a chain of volcanic islands or a continental margin
Plankton
The mass of mostly microscopic organisms that float or drift freely in freshwater and marine environments
Nekton
All organisms that swim actively in open water, independent or currents
Benthos
The organisms that live at the bottom of the sea or ocean
Desalination
A process of removing salt from ocean water
Pacific Ocean
Largest and deepest of Earth’s oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean
Atlantic Ocean
2nd largest ocean that separates North and South America on the west from the Europe and Africa on the east
Indian Ocean
Ocean bordered by Africa in the west Asia in the north and Australia on the east and merging with the Antarctic Ocean in the south
Arctic Ocean
ocean surrounding the North Pole, north of the Arctic Circle
Southern Ocean
refers to the ring of ocean that circles Antarctica. While the Antarctic continent provides a clear southern boundary, the northern limit of the Southern Ocean is not so clearly defined
Surface zone
any of five great divisions of the earth’s surface with respect to latitude and temperature compare frigid zone, temperate zone, torrid zone
Thermocline
steep temperature gradient in a body of water such as a lake, marked by a layer above and below which the water is at different temperatures
