Oceanography Vocabulary

Front

What is El Nino?

Back

El Nino is the warming of the Pacific Ocean that causes changes in global weather patterns.

Tags

NGSS.MS-ESS2-6

Front

What is a Neap Tide?

Back

A Neap Tide is a tide with a minimum range that occurs during the first and third quarters of the moon.

Tags

NGSS.MS-ESS1-1

Front

What are waves?

Back

Waves are a rhythmic rise and fall of the water's surface primarily caused by wind.

Tags

NGSS.MS-PS4-1

Front

What characterizes an Active Margin?

Back

An Active Margin contains a trench, located between ocean and continental crust at a plate boundary.

Tags

NGSS.HS-ESS1-5

NGSS.HS-ESS2-1

Front

What is density in the context of oceanography?

Back

Density is the amount of mass in a unit of volume.

Front

What is the significance of ocean currents?

Back

Ocean currents are significant as they regulate climate, transport nutrients, and affect marine life.

Tags

NGSS.MS-ESS2-6

Front

Define thermohaline circulation.

Back

Thermohaline circulation is the global conveyor belt of ocean currents driven by temperature and salinity differences.

Tags

NGSS.MS-ESS2-6

Front

What is the role of salinity in ocean water?

Back

Salinity affects the density of ocean water, influencing water movement and marine ecosystems.

Tags

NGSS.MS-ESS2-4

Front

Explain the Coriolis effect.

Back

The Coriolis effect is the deflection of moving objects, including ocean currents, due to the Earth's rotation.

Tags

NGSS.MS-ESS2-6

Front

What is a continental shelf?

Back

A continental shelf is the submerged border of a continent that slopes gently into the ocean.