Ocean Vocab. Words Flashcards
the alternate rise and fall of sea level caused by the gravitational attraction of the Moon and the Sun
tide
the layer of ocean water that begins at a depth of about 200 m and becomes progressively colder with increasing depth.
thermocline
ocean current that moves cold, deep water to the ocean surface.
upwelling
an organism that obtains food by eating other organisms.
consumer
a process that occurs in deep ocean water, where sunlight does not penetrate, in which bacteria make food from dissolved sulfur compounds.
chemosynthesis
marine animals, such as fish and turtles, that actively swim in the ocean waters.
nekton
the process by which plants, algae, and many types of bacteria use sunlight, water, and carbon dioxide to make food and oxygen.
photosynthesis
a rhythmic disturbance that carries energy but not matter.
wave
tiny marine organisms, such as diatoms, that drift in the surface waters of every ocean.
plankton
an organism that can make its own food by photosynthesis or chemosynthesis.
producer
ocean current that usually moves only the upper few hundred meters of seawater.
surface current
all the living organisms in an area, as well as the nonliving parts of their environment, that interact with each other and their surroundings.
ecosystem
a series of stages that show the transfer of energy from producers to consumers and decomposers.
food chain
the measure of dissolved solids, or salts, in seawater.
salinity
circulation pattern in the ocean that forms when a mass of more dense seawater sinks beneath less dense seawater.
density current
