Tools of Oceanography Flashcards
Sounding is a technique used?
to measure the depth of water beneath a ship, where a package is attached to a line and dropped to the seafloor.
Sidescan sonar is what?
A broad sound beamis sent from an instrument tied behind a boat.
Port
The left side of a boat.
Starboard
The right side of a boat.
Bow
The front of a boat.
Stern
The back of a boat.
Identify and describe.
Reversing thermometer.Used in Nansen bottles. Only records temperature when flipped 180 degrees, and temperature does not changes while being hauled to the surface. It can therefore record temperature at a specific depth.
Identify and describe.
Hydrometer, type used in aquariums. Measures salinity in parts per thousand (ppt). Functionally measures the change in density and therefore does not account for density changes due to temperature.
Identify and describe.
Salinometer. Measures salinity in parts per thousand. Functionally measures the electrical conductivity.
Identify and describe.
Secchi Disk. Measures vertical visibility or turbidity. It is lowered by hand on a line until the disk becomes invisible.
Identify and describe.
Surface drifter. Used to measure currents. Many are released at a time in hopes of recapturing a few. (Can be a form of pollution.)Also used, same purpose:drift cards, seabed drifters (same as these but without a float)
Identify and describe.
Grab sampler. They are used to sample surface sediments. They may mix the sediments and are not used for deeper samples.
Identify and describe.
Box corer. A supporting framework is lowered to the seafloor and it sinks 20 or 30 cm into the sediment, where it pulls large amounts of sedimentup with minimal disturbance. May be very heavy and difficult to deploy.
Identify and describe.
Piston corer. Used to obtain long vertical samples (up to 50 m)of soft sediments.
Identify and describe.
Nansen bottle. Used to sample water at a specific depth. Nansen bottles are attached to a wire; a stainless steel messenger slids down and triggers the bottle to move into an “upside down” inverted position. This traps seawater.
Identify and describe.
Mechanical current meter. Measures current rate and direction.This is one type. Different types can measure current in different ways; byrate of rotation of a rotor, rate of rotation of a propeller, and by the angle of which the meter is pushed.
Identify and describe.
Plankton net. Designed to collect plankton (preferably alive).Extremely fine mesh.
Identify and describe.
Purse seine. Used to quickly encircle schools of fish and capture them.
What type of lights is required for all boats longer than 5 meters?
Running lights
On a boat, what color running light is to be mounted and seenfrom the stern?
White
On a boat, what color running light should be mounted and seen from the port side?
Red
On a boat, what color running light should be mounted and seen from starboard?
Green
Powerboats must display what kind of light?
White masthead light, mounted higher than running lights
Sailboats are not required to have what kind of light?
Mast light
Mast lights can be used in combination to indicate the “status” of a boat. What do the combination of lights mean in this system?
Red over red: not under commandRed over white: fishingGreen over white: trawlingWhite over white: short tow lineWhite over white over white: long tow lineRed over white over red: Restricted in maneuverability (may be carrying out underwater operations)
When referring to boats, a gunwale is?
The upper edge of the side of a boat
When referring to sailboats, ajib is?
small triangular sail near the front
When referring to sailboats, a boom is?
A long pole fixed to the bottom of the mainsail, in order to maneuver the sail
When referring to boats, a cleat is?
Metal fitting to which a rope can be fastened
SCUBA stands for?
Self Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus
What is an ROV?
Remotely Operated Vehicle; they are tethered to a boat and are operated bya person on the surface.
What is an AUV?
Autonomous Underwater Vehicle; these do not require input from an operator.
What are Alvin’s most famous exploits? Who operates Alvin?
Surveying the wreck of the RMS Titanic (1986) Locating lost hydrogen bomb in Mediterranean (1966) Exploration of the first known hydrothermal vents (1970s)
Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute
TheJason/Medeasystem is a what, operated by who?
ROV, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute
Jason Jr.was a prototype ofJason.What was it used for?
Small ROV.Assisted in finding the RMS Titanic; deployed from Alvin and explored areas otherwise inaccessible to Alvin.
REMUS stands for what?
Remote Environmental Monitoring UnitS. AUVs designedby Woods Hole; torpedo shaped and designed to be operated by a laptop computer.
Mast light red over red means
Not under command
Mast light red over white means
Fishing
Mast light green over white means
Trawling
Mast light white over white means
short tow line
Mast lights Red over white over red means
Restricted in maneuverability (may be carrying out underwater operations)
Mast light White over white over white means
long tow line
