The Ocean

Beginnings of Oceanography
 Mid

1800s a U.S. Navy officer (Matthew Maury) made charts of ocean currents and winds.  1st research project in 1872: -the HMS Challenger used equipment to measure depth, temperature, map currents, and took water samples

brought great advances in technology (sonar and magnetic recorders).  Today we use robotic vehicles, computers, deep sea corers, submarines, and satellites to study the ocean.
 WWII

5 Major Oceans
 Pacific  Atlantic  Indian  Antarctic  Arctic

The oceans cover approximately 70% of Earths surface The average depth is greater than 4X the average elevation of the continents

Why is the ocean so important?

  

  

Influences weather & climate Enormous ecosystem (we need to protect and preserve species) Provides natural resources (food, oil beneath the floor, minerals, compounds for medicines etc..) Provides 50% of the Earths oxygen! Basis of our food chain Carbon Dioxide Reservoir (stores CO2)

Temperature
 The

top 200 meters are heated by sunlight and this layer is mixed by wind and waves (sunlight/mixed zone)  Warm water is less dense so it remains at the top.  Cold water is more dense so it sinks to the bottom of the sea

 The

mixed layer is the only place where there is enough light for plants to live (photosynthesis)  These plants (phytoplankton) produce 50% of earths oxygen and are the start of the food chain in the sea.  Zooplankton feed on the phytoplankton and so on..

 The

twilight zone (thermocline) is the layer in which the temperature quickly changes from warm to cold

 The

midnight zone is uniformly cold: Bacteria at the bottom of the sea use hydrogen sulfide from the vents on the seafloor to produce food. This is called chemiosynthesis. Other organisms (crabs, tube worms etc.) eat the bacteria. This is a separate food chain.

Salinity
   

The amount of dissolved salt in sea water Average salinity is 35 ppt (parts per thousand) Salinity is higher where there is more evaporation or freezing Salinity is lower where there is a lot of rainfall or freshwater entering the ocean

Ocean Currents
 Two

types of currents: 1. Surface 2. Density

Surface Currents
 Caused

by wind currents rotate clockwise in the northern hemisphere and counterclockwise in the southern hemisphere.  This motion is the result of the earth rotating and is called the Coriolis Effect

Density Currents
 Caused

by differences in temperature and salinity

Deep Currents
   

Driven by temperature & density Currents from the poles sink and move toward the equator Currents from the equator rise and move toward the poles An upwelling is a special deep current that is caused by wind moving a warm surface current away and a deep, cold mass of water surfaces. Brings lots of nutrients to the surface.

Global Conveyor Belt

 Both

surface and density currents have a major influence on earths weather and climate  These currents distribute heat from the equator to all parts of the globe.