Oceans Flashcards
(25 cards)
Atlantic
second largest
Indian
third largest
Arctic
smallest
Pacific
biggest
Southern
known as the antartic
Salinity
measure of dissolved salts
Surface zone
extends to 200 meters below the water level
Thermocline
a steep temperature gradient in a body of water
Deep zone
the deepest part of the ocean laying on the bed of it
Water cycle
the cycle of processes by which water circulates between the earth’s oceans involving precipitation as rain and
Evaporation
water vapors that rise up after being heated up
Condensation
water which collects as droplets on a cold surface when humid air is in contact with it
Precipitation
any liquid that falls back to earth as rain or snow
Continental shelf
a large mass of land that mass be swollowed up or sank in a body of water
Continental slope
the slope between the outer edge of the continental shelf and the deep ocean floor
Continental rise
it represents the final stage in the boundary between continents and the deepest part of the ocean
Abyssal plain
an underwater plain on the deep ocean floor
Mid-ocean ridge
a seafloor mountain system formed by plate tectonics
Rift valley
a large elongated depression with steep walls formed by the downward displacement of a block of the earth’s surface
Seamount
a submarine mount
Ocean trench
topographic depressions of the sea floor
Plankton
the diverse collection of organisms that live in large bodies of water and are unable to swim
Nekton
aquatic animals that are able to swim and move independently of water currents
Benthos
the flora and fauna found on the bottom
