Ocean Water and Sea Basins Flashcards
(38 cards)
Oceans cover __ percent of the Earth’s surface
70
The ____ of ocean water is still under scientific debate
origin
The land on the globe is concentrated in the ______ hemisphere
northern
The Southern Hemisphere is primarily…
oceans with very little land
which hemisphere contains all of our major continents?
northern
Does the uneven distribution of land affect large scale ocean water circulation?
Yes
the uneven _____ of land affects large scale ocean water ______
distribution, circulation
What are the four main, main,interconnected ocean basins comprising the world ocean?
Pacific, Indian, Atlantic, and Southern
when all of the continents were joined in the supercontinent Pangea, ocean currents were..
very simple
As the continents split apart, ocean currents became more…
complex
Where is the deepest part of the ocean? How deep is it?
- Marianas Trench
- 11km at its deepest. 4.5 km average
The overall topography of the ocean floor: there is a continental _____ that is part of the crust that _____ downward to the ocean _____.
shelves, slopes, floor
What is the ocean floor also called?
the abyssal plain
Oceanic crust, on average, is ______ then continental crust
younger
How old is the oldest oceanic crust?
200 million years
Oceanic crust is younger because it is rapidly _____ through ______ at subduction zones and ______ at mid ocean ridges
renewed, destruction, formation
margins between continents can be either _____ or _____
active, passive
margins between continents can be either active or passive depending on…
tectonic activity at the margin
margins between continents can be either active or passive depending on ______ activity at the margin.
tectonic
Is there a lot of sediment deposited in the deep ocean floor?
No
why is there scarce sediment deposited in the deep ocean floor?
because it is too far away form any source of sediment (land)
what is one way that sediment reaches the ocean floor?
turbidity currents
turbidity currents are like ______ under the water
landslides
Turbidity currents can be considered as avalanches that flow down the ______ slope
continental