Ocean Environment, Science 5.6
Terms
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- What percentage (%) of the Earth's surface is covered by oceans?
- 70%
- The ocean floor near a continent is divided into three parts. What are the three parts?
-
continental shelf
continental slope
continental rise - The ocean floor is covered with thick _______ made up of sand, mud, and rocks.
- sediment
- The depth of the ocean varies. What part of the ocean floor is the most shallow?
- continental shelf
- The depth of the ocean varies. What part of the ocean floor is the deepest?
- ocean trenches
- Ocean water is a complex mixture of ____ and dissolved ______.
-
gasses (air)
solids - The solids dissolved in the ocean water is mainly composed of ____.
- salt or sodium chloride
- Why is it important to have dissolved gases in ocean water?
- Marine organizms use the dissolved air to "breath" for survival.
- What two factors change the salinity of ocean water?
-
rate of evaporation
runoff of fresh water from nearby land - What are the basic motions of the ocean water?
-
waves
ocean currents
tides - Name at least one ocean current.
-
The Gulf Stream surface current is a western boundary current, one of the strongest--warm, deep, fast, and relatively salty. It separates open-ocean water from coastal water.
The California current is an eastern boundary current. It's broad, slow, cool, and shallow
The Somali current, off Africa's eastern coast, is unusual because it reverses direction twice a year. - Ocean currents are caused by
- wind patterns and differences in water densities.
- What is water density?
- Density describes how heavy and thick ocean water may be.
- What can change the density of ocean water?
-
Temperature--The colder the water, the more dense it becomes.
Salinity--The salt in ocean water makes it more dense than ocean water. - Ocean water is ____% salt and ____% water.
-
4% salt
96% water - Where is the Gulf Stream located?
- Off the Eastern coast of the United States.
- Navigation routes are affected by
- Ocean Currents
- Ocean currents mix ocean water. This changes what?
-
Plant and animal populations
Ocean currents can bring warmer, nutrient rich water to places farther north for example, to help certain types of life grow. - As you go deeper in the ocean, the temperature _____.
- decreases
- As you travel deeper in the ocean, the pressure _____.
- increases
- The amount of light in the ocean visible from the surface becomes brighter...
- in shallower water.
- Ocean organizims have special _____ to help them live at all levels of the ocean.
- adaptations
- Most of the ocean's creatures live in the _________ areas of the ocean.
- shallow
- What is the base for the ocean ecosystem and provides the majority of the Earth's oxygen?
- Plankton (phytoplankton)
- Plankton receives its energy from the ______ because it is a producer.
- sun
- Plankton need nutrient rich water to flourish. Where does this water come from?
- It upwells from the deep ocean.
- Phytoplankton is a source of food for...
- Animal-like plankton, swimming organisms (like fish and whales), and creatures that live on the ocean bottom.
- What is the longest mountain range in the world?
- The Mid-Atlantic Ridge underneath the Atlantic Ocean