What is sea water Flashcards
How do satellites show chlorophyll on the globe?
chlorophyll influences the green light reaching satellites
primary production definition
amount of phytoplankton biomass in sea water because of photosynthetic carbon fixation
total
primary productivity
rate of change of phytoplankton biomass is seawater because of photosynthetic carbon fixation
rate
wind field
seasonally averaged near watered winds
strength and direction
what direction do the winds usually come from?
from the NW in the summer
from the south in the winter
surface currents
seasonally averaged direction and relative strength of currents
interested in where they go
are horizontal velocities or vertical velocities faster in the ocean?
horizontal
upwelling
vertical upwards flow
downwelling
vertical downwards flow
what would be the diameter of all the water on earth if it were a sphere?
1384 km
stratification
layers in liquid that separate because of variations in densities with depth
density
mass per unit volume (kg/m^3)
mixing
irreversible mingling of liquids. If liquids don’t separate again after time, they have been mixed
nutrients
chemicals that phytoplankton must acquire from the surrounding water in order to grow
(not mammal nutrients)
what is the standard method for how are physical properties sampled in seawater?
CTD, conductivity-temperature-depth probe
how does a CTD work
electronic instrument that measures salinity (conductivity), temperature, and depth (pressure)
sampling bottles area closed at specific depths
how are ocean profiles viewed because of CTDs?
in vertical profiles since the machine is being lowered into the ocean
salinity
dissolved salt content (g/kg)
what increases density?
increased salinity
decreased temperature (effect is small in cold water)
increased pressure (slightly)
how does salinity change globally
low in polar regions, increases with depth in cold regions
high in tropics because of evaporation, decreases with depth because of warm surface
how does temperature change with depth?
decreases from surface down
increases from a certain point downwards because temperature increases with pressure
(bike pump analogy)
in situ temperature
temperature reading on thermometer sent down into the ocean
potential temperature
temperature you would read if you brought the deep water back to sea surface pressure adiabatically (no heat exchange happens)
benefits of in-situ temperature
life in deep ocean experiences
determines rate of chemical reactions