primary productivity, gases & nutrients Flashcards
o2 and co2 important for
life processes
Major gases
N2, o2, co2
primary productivity (autotrophs) the conversion of…
inorganic compounds into organic ones
photosynthesis uses
solar radiation
99.9 percent of the oceans biomass relies directly or indirectly on ______ for food
photosynthesis
photosynthesis = water (h2o) + carbon dioxide (co2). —->
sugar (ch2o) + oxygen (o2)
what formulation takes place in photosynthesis?
an organic compound
photosynthesis gives off
oxygen
at least half of photosynthesis takes place…
in the ocean
when the process of photosynthesis is reversed, what happens?
the high energy bonds that were formed during construction of the carbohydrate are broken
in reversed photosynthesis, WHAY is the energy of the bond used to do?
to run the organism
the reverse process of photosynthesis is known as
oxidative respiration
do all organism respire?
yes
in respiration, sugar and oxygen —->
water + carbon dioxide. heat energy is released.
in secondary productivity (heterotroph) there is a transfer of…
organic compounds from one tropic level to another
photosynthesis and plant growth can take place only in the…
photic zone
respire occurs _______ the ocean
throughout
at the surface, the abundant gas is
oxygen
~200 - ~1000m oxygen goes _____ and carbon dioxide goes ____
down, up
1000 - 4000m oxygen goes _______ ______, co2 continues to ____
up slightly. rise.
primary nutrients are substances consumed in ______ growing through _____
phytoplankton, photosynthesis
primary nutrients are ____ by phytoplankton decay through ____
released, respiration
4 important elements
phosphorous, nitrogen, carbon and silicon.
the _____ of living organisms are composed of carbon, hydrogen and ______
tissues, oxygen.
many organisms have skeletons composed of _____, (. )
silica (calcium carbonate)
What are some factors affecting primary productivity?
- nutrient availability *biogeochemical cycling
* upwelling
* productivity in tropical oceans
* equatorial upwelling
* coastal upwelling
* high-latitude regions
* polar ocean productivity
* temperate ocean productivity
most nutrients are available from
river run off
nutrient productivity is high along
continental margins
biogeochemical cycling is the flow of.
nutrients
matter does not ____ (as energy does) - cycled from one ____ to another
dissipate, chemical
in upwelling there is diverging _______
surface water
in upwelling, the _____ surface waters allow for _____ movement of _____, nutrient rich water to the surface
diverging, vertical, cold
is there a high or low biological productivity in upwelling?
High
in tropical oceans, what is a barrier to vertical mixing?
permanent thermocline.
is there a high or low rate of primary productivity in tropical oceans? why?
low - lack of nutrients
is there high or low primary productivity in areas of equatorial upwelling? how about coastal?
high for both
in equatorial upwelling, what is the name of the transport that causes surface water _____ of the equator to veer…(left or right?)
ekman transport.
north.
right.
in equatorial upwelling, what direction does water south of the equator veer?
right
in equatorial upwelling, what does ekman transport result in?
divergence of the surface waters that causes upwelling
in coastal upwelling, where does Ekman transport move the surface water?
offshore
What happens when ekman transport moved the surface water in coastal upwelling?
cool, nutrient rich water comes up to replace displaced surface waters
where does upwelling and downwelling occur?
high latitude regions
why does upwelling and downwelling occur in high-latitude regions?
no pynocline, no thermocline
high - latitude regions allows for the _______ (vertical or horizontal?) mixing between surface and deep waters.
vertical
in high latitude regions is there high or low productivity?
high
in polar oceans, what is the winter like? and the summer? what does this allow to happen?
darkness in winter, sunlight in summer. phytoplanktons (diatoms) bloom - zooplankton productivity follows.
temperate ocean productivity is limited by what 2 things?
sunlight and nutrients
how is the productivity of temperate oceans in the winter? why?
low - a lot of nutrients but little sunlight.
how is the productivity of temperate zones in the spring? why?
high - spring bloom.
how is the seasonal productivity of temperate zones in the summer? why?
low - few nutrients, abundant sunlight
how is the productivity of the temperate zones in the autumn? why?
High - fall bloom
does temperature increase or decreases with depth? why?
decrease - the thermocline - water becomes isothermic when it reaches 3 degrees Celsius. because of less solar heat and because mixing does not occur below a certain point.
does salinity increase or decrease with depth? why?
increase - waters from lake and run off can dilute the surface water
does oxygen increase or decrease with depth? why?
decrease - lack of photosynthesis and less nutrients.
does nitrate increase or decrease with depth? why?
increase - organic decay
currents along the western side of the northern oceans have what qualifies? (narrow or wide? fast or sluggish? shallow or deep?)
how about the eastern side?
west = deep, fast, narrow
east = sluggish, shallow, wide
cities at the middle of the equator need to move faster or slower?
faster
why are winds deflected to the right in the northern hemisphere?
eastward rotation of the earth on it’s axis deflects the moving air to the right due to earths rotation. different velocity at different latitudes.
when warm air rises and falls it creates pockets of…
air cells.
what is the only current that completely circumscribes the earth?
Westwind drift
air ______ (rises or sinks) at the equator (_____ high or low) pressure
rises, low.
air ____ (rises or sinks?) at the poles. ____(high or low?) pressure.
sinks, high.
air flows from ______ to ______ pressure.
high to low
greatest corialis effect where? (equators or poles?)
poles
zero corialis effect at
the equator
how many circulation cells are there?
3
which cell is at 0 - 30 degrees latitude?
Hadley
which cell is at 30-60 degrees latitude?
ferrel
which cell is at 60- 90 degrees latitude?
polar
are currents at the surface or deep below?
both
surface currents occur above what?
the pynocline
What are large, circular loops of moving water called?
Gyres
where do gyres flow around?
the periphery of the ocean basin
the ekman spiral describes the _____ and _____ of seawater flow at different _____
speed and direction … depths
ekman transport is the average movement under the influence of ____
wind
ekman transport is how many degrees to the right or left of the wind in it’s given atmosphere?
90 degrees
What does ekman transport do within gyres?
pile up water
geostrophic flow is the balance of what and what?
coriolis effect and gravitational Forces
there are how many subtropical gyres? what are their names?
5
North Atlantic, south Atlantic, North Pacific, South Pacific, Indian Ocean
currents within gyres are subdivided into how many interconnected currents?
4
when the flow of a current within a gyre is blocked by a continent, what does it do?
currents turn clockwise to complete the circuit
the equatorial current is driven by what winds? what does it pick up?
trade winds, picks up heat
western boundary currents are where? what coast of continents? where do they move warm water? how are the waters?
western boundaries of ocean basins. east coast of continents. moves warm water poleward. narrow, fast and deep.
examples of western boundary currents?
Gulf Stream and Japan current
in northern or southern boundary currents, where direction is the flow across the water basin?
easterly
what are the northern and southern boundary currents driven by?
prevailing westerlies
eastern boundary currents are on what coast of continents? what kind of water do they carry and to where? what is the water like?
west. carry cold water equatorward. water is shallow, broad and slow.
what are some examples of eastern boundary currents?
California current and Canary current.
which solar beam covers greater surface area of the earth?
polar area
which area would the solar beam have to travel through a greater amount of atmosphere?
polar area
in which area is more of the sunlight absorbed and is therefore cooler?
poles
What two factors control the salinity of seawater?
precipitation and evaporation
does the pacific or Atlantic Ocean have a higher average salinity?
Atlantic
salinity ______ with depth in equatorial regions
decreases
salinity _____ with depth in polar regions
increases
the salinity of ocean water ______ below the halocine
remains fairly constant
the highest surface densities occurs where? w
polar regions
