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Oceanography > Unit 2 > Flashcards

Unit 2 Flashcards

1
Q

What atoms are combined to make water?

A

2 hydrogen atoms bonded to an oxygen atom with a covalent bond

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2
Q

Name 3 properties of water

A

Polar = uneven distribution of charge
Cohesion = tendency of molecules of the same kind to stick to one another
Adhesion = attraction between molecules of a different types

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3
Q

What are three different states of water?

A

Solid Liquid Gas

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4
Q

What is turbidity?

A

the quality of being cloudy, opaque, or thick with suspended matter.

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5
Q

What is pressure and why does it change with debth?

A

Water pressure is the result of the weight of all the water above pushing down on the water below.

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6
Q

What is sound propagation

A

The TRANSMISSION of acoustic energy through a medium via a SOUND WAVE.

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7
Q

Be able to explain salinity

A

the saltiness or amount of salt dissolved in a body of water, called saline water

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8
Q

What is salinity’s impact

A

crop yield declines, coastal forest loss, salt-tolerant invasive species takeover, eutrophication and marsh migration.

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9
Q

How does salinity change

A

“Evaporation takes freshwater from the ocean into the atmosphere and increases the ocean salinity; precipitation puts freshwater into the ocean and reduces its salinity

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10
Q

What is the current ocean pH?

A

about 8.1

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11
Q

How is the current ocean pH changing?

A

as the ocean continues to absorb more CO2, the pH decreases and the ocean becomes more acidic.

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12
Q

What is causing the pH to change?

A

human-driven increased levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere

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13
Q

Be able to explain how pH changes can impact organisms

A

If the pH of their body or their environment fluctuates too much the organism can die

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14
Q

Identify the different generating forces, as well as which is the most common

A

wind, displacement of large volumes of water

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15
Q

Identify which wave type forms first and how it develops

A

capillary waves, The ruffling of the water’s surface due to pressure variations of the wind on the water

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16
Q

Understand how different generating forces, as well as which is most common

A

The gravitational attraction between Earth and the moon and sun, and (2) the rotation of the Earth-moon and Earth-sun systems

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17
Q

Understand how different aspects impact the wave (Fetch, wind speed/duration, land masses, bathymetric features, restoring forces, etc.)

A

Wave Height - The vertical distance between crest and trough.

Wavelength - The horizontal distance between successive crests or troughs.

Wave Period - The time it takes for one complete wave to pass a particular point.

Wave Frequency - The number of waves that pass a particular point in a given time period.

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18
Q

Be able to identify the anatomy of a wave, how it moves, and how that changes as it approaches the shore

A

The highest part of the wave is called the crest. The lowest part is called the trough. Wave height is the overall vertical change in height between crest and trough. The distance between two successive crests (or troughs) is the length of the wave, or wavelength.

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19
Q

Be able to differentiate between wave cancellation and wave reinforcement

A

Reinforcement occurs when the waves are in-phase with each other, cancellation occurs when the waves are out-of-phase with each other

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20
Q

Understand differences between deep, intermediate, and shallow water waves

A

A deep water wave is one that occurs at depths greater than half a wave’s wavelength. A shallow water wave is one that occurs at depths shallower than the wavelength of the wave divided by 20

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21
Q

Be able to identify the impact of wave refraction and longshore transport

A

Wave refraction causes wave fronts to parallel the shape of the coastline as they approach shore and encounter ground.

22
Q

Be able to differentiate between standing waves internal waves, and surface waves

A

Internal waves form at the boundaries of water masses of different densities (i.e. at a pycnocline ), and propagate at depth. These generally move more slowly than surface waves, and can be much larger, with heights exceeding 100 m. However, the height of the deep wave would be unnoticeable at the surface.

23
Q

Explain the cause of tides, and which cause has the strongest impact

A

The major tidal constituent is the moon’s gravitational pull on the Earth.

24
Q

Differentiate spring tides/neap tides (height, moon phase, sun/moon positions)

A

Spring tides occur twice each lunar month all year long without regard to the season. Neap tides, which also occur twice a month, happen when the sun and moon are at right angles to each other.

25
Q

Define each of the tidal patterns: semidiurnal, mixed semidiurnal, diurnal

A

When the two highs and the two lows are about the same height, the pattern is called a semi-daily or semidiurnal tide. If the high and low tides differ in height, the pattern is called a mixed semidiurnal tide

26
Q

Understand terms: high water, low water, ebb tide, flood tide, slack tide Be able to define “tidal range,” identify what areas have the largest tidal ranges

A
  1. another term for high tide
  2. another term for low tide
  3. the tidal phase during which the water level is falling
  4. an incoming tide.
  5. the short period in a body of tidal water when the water is completely unstressed
27
Q

Explain what a “tidal bore” is and where it typically occurs

A

along a coast where a river empties into an ocean or sea.

28
Q

Define each atmosphere layer

A

troposphere, stratosphere, mesosphere, thermosphere and exosphere

29
Q

Understand uneven heating of the earth and its impact

A

This uneven heating causes Earth’s surface and atmosphere to be warmer near the equator than near the poles

30
Q

Be able to describe the greenhouse effect

A

the process through which heat is trapped near Earth’s surface by substances known as ‘greenhouse gases.

31
Q

Understand the Coriolis effect/force, and its impacts on both the ocean and
atmosphere

A

The Coriolis effect makes storms swirl clockwise in the Southern hemisphere and counterclockwise in the Northern Hemisphere

32
Q

Be able to identify the different types of heat transfer and how they impact atmospheric and oceanic temperatures

A

convection, conduction, and radiation

33
Q

Understand the connections between Ekman spiral/layer/transport

A

Each layer of water molecules is moved by friction from the shallower layer

34
Q

Be able to differentiate between the impacts of Ekman transport (upwelling,
downwelling, equatorial upwelling)

A

Ekman transport piles up surface water in some areas of the ocean and removes water from other areas, producing variations in SSH

35
Q

Define “gyre”

A

Is a circular or spiral motion or form

36
Q

Understand what a stable water column is, and what factors can change the stability, causing overturn

A

f a change in temperature or salinity occurs that results in a layer of dense water being above less dense water

37
Q

Be able to define and understand the causes and impacts of the Great Ocean
Conveyor

A

a combination of thermohaline currents (thermo = temperature; haline = salinity) in the deep ocean and wind-driven currents on the surface.

38
Q

Understand how oceans help regulate the earth’s temperature

A

Ocean currents act as conveyer belts of warm and cold water, sending heat toward the polar regions and helping tropical areas cool off

39
Q

Be able to define “oscillation”

A

the process of repeating variations of any quantity or measure about its equilibrium value in time.

40
Q

Understand and be able to identify the impacts of El Niño-Southern Oscillation

A

wetter conditions than usual in the Southern U.S. and warmer and drier conditions in the North

41
Q

how El Nino differs from La Niña

A

El Niño refers to the above-average sea-surface temperatures that periodically develop across the east-central equatorial Pacific. It represents the warm phase of the ENSO cycle. La Niña refers to the periodic cooling of sea-surface temperatures across the east-central equatorial Pacific.

42
Q

Be able to define cyclonic storms, know their name in different regions, and how they are classified

A
  1. a warm-core low pressure system, without any front attached, that develops over the tropical or subtropical waters and has an organized circulation.
  2. In general, tropical cyclones are named according to the rules at regional level
  3. depending on how extreme they are is how its defined
43
Q

Identify which greenhouse gases humans are creating the most

A

Carbon dioxide (CO2)

44
Q

Be able to define “anthropogenic”

A

of, relating to, or resulting from the influence of human beings on nature.

45
Q

Know which anthropogenic sources are creating greenhouse gas emissions

A

burning fossil fuels for electricity, heat, and transportation.

46
Q

Be able to identify the reasons for sea level rise

A

the added water from melting ice sheets and glaciers, and the expansion of seawater as it warms.

47
Q

Understand the major impacts of climate change on organisms and humans

A

affecting the food we eat, the water we drink, the air we breathe, and the weather we experience.

48
Q

Understand the correlation between salinity, temperature, and density

A

The warmer the water, the more space it takes up, and the lower its density. When comparing two samples of water with the same salinity, or mass, the water sample with the higher temperature will have a greater volume, and it will therefore be less dense.

49
Q

Define what a buffer is

A

A buffer is a solution that can resist pH change upon the addition of an acidic or basic components

50
Q

What do buffers come from

A

Simply put, a buffer is a mixture of a weak acid and its conjugate base or a weak base and its conjugate acid

51
Q

What buffers impact

A

Buffers play a vital role in maintaining stable pH levels in chemical systems.

Oceanography (1 decks)

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