OCEA 10: Final Exam
A tropical cyclone with wind speed greather than 250 km/hr. would be classified as Category ________ on the Saffir-Simpson Scale of hurricane intensity.
Five
A tropical cyclone with wind speed greather than 250 km/hr. would be classified as Category________ on the Saffir- Simpson Scale of hurricane intensity.
Five
Which of the following modern seven seas was also recognized by pre-15th century Europeans as one of their seven seas?
The Indian Ocean
Which ocean covers more than half of the ocean surface area on Earth?
The Pacific Ocean
The most likely place to find abundant manganese nodules is on the ________.
abyssal plain far from a continent
Diverging surface waters are areas of ________ and ________ productivity.
upwelling; high
With respect to mid- ocean ridges, transform faults are ________.
perpendicular to the ridge axis
Where are the deepest portions of the world's oceans found?
At convergent plate boundaries
The Sargasso Sea is the water that circulates around the rotation center of the ________ gyre.
North Atlantic
Which type of breaker forms on moderately steep beach slopes?
Plunging breaker
Which type of breaker is a turbulent mass of air and water that runs down the front slope of the wave as it breaks?
Spilling breaker
Which ocean is the shallowest ocean in the world?
The Arctic Ocean
Which of the following statements is TRUE of the lithosphere?
The lithosphere is composed of the crust and the uppermost portion of the mantle.
Sediments that are poorly sorted were most likely deposited by ________.
a glacier
Manganese nodules are an example of ________.
hydrogenous sediments
Phosphate - rich nodules form in ________.
regions of upwelling
Based on chemical composition, Earth consists of ________ layers
three
A deep-water wave occurs when the water depth is equal to at least ________.
1/2 of the wavelength
Waves from separate sea areas move away as swell and produce an interference pattern when they come together. If Sea A has wave heights of 1.5 meters and Sea B has wave heights of 3.5 meters, what would be the height of waves resulting from destructive interference?
2 meters
A full lunar tidal cycle is ________.
24 hours and 50 minutes in duration
What percentage of the Sun's energy that reaches Earth is reflected back into space?
30
A boundary or belt characterized by light, variable winds, dry, clear, fair weather with little precipitation occurs in which of the following regions?
30 degrees
How much are global surface temperature expected to increase by the year 2100 if humans follow a "business- as- usual" scenario?
4.0°C
What percentage of oil that enters the oceans worldwide is caused by underwater natural oil seeps?
47%
The trade winds occur in which of the following regions?
5 to 30 degrees
Which of the following would you expect to find on a summertime beach?
A wide, sandy berm
The 1989 oil spill that harmed Prince William Sound in Alaska was due to which of the following?
An oil tanker ran aground
The main current in Antarctic waters is the ________ Current.
Antarctic Circumpolar
Which of the following domains includes simple life- forms with cells that usually lack a nucleus?
Bacteria
If one were to walk from the ocean landward across a barrier island complex, in which order would one encounter the following environments?
Beach, dune, barrier flat, high marsh, low marsh
High-energy environments are most likely to deposit which one of the following?
Large particles such as gravel
Which of the following estuaries forms when sea level rises and floods an existing river valley?
Coastal Plain Estuary
Where does the deep- ocean basin begin along a passive continental margin?
Continental slope
Which of the following is not an effect of climate change in the oceans?
Decreasing ocean acidity
Active continental margins are characterized by which of the following?
Deep-sea trenches
Compared to an eastern boundary current in a gyre, which of the following statements is true for a western boundary current?
Deeper currents, increased current velocity, warmer water, and narrower current are all true of western boundary currents
Which of the following is a biogenous sediment?
Diatom ooze
Which of the following best explains why there is a difference between a lunar day and a solar day?
During one Earth rotation, the Moon has continued orbiting Earth.
Of all the following processes which one increases the salinity of water?
Evaporation
Which of the following contains calcium carbonate (CaCO3)?
Foraminiferans
The prevailing westerly winds blow in which of the following directions in the Northern Hemisphere?
From southwest to northeast
Which of the following currents contributes to the South Eastern United States being humid?
Gulf Stream
The water level of the eastern Mediterranean Sea is lower than the level at the Strait of Gibraltar due to which of the following?
High evaporation
Which of the following is not a natural cause for global climate change?
Increase in elevation
High- energy environments are most likely to deposit which one of the following?
Large particles such as gravel
All animals capable of moving independently of the ocean currents are called ________.
Nekton
A vast majority of all large tsunami are generated in the ________ Ocean.
Pacific
The largest of the ocean basins, which currently covers more than half of the ocean surface, is the:
Pacific Ocean.
Which of the following is not considered a pollutant in the marine environment?
Phytoplankton
Which of the following types of plankton can photosynthesize and produce its own food?
Phytoplankton
Polar high pressure occurs in which of the following regions?
Poles (90 degrees)
Which of the following methods are used to measure ocean surface currents indirectly?
Pressure gradients
Which of the following contains silica (SiO2)?
Radiolarians
Which of the following is the only viable explanation for the documented and observable recent climate changes, including the increased average temperature of Earth's surface?
Release of human-caused emissions
Which of the following is an example of a continental transform plate boundary?
San Andreas Fault
Which of the following, from earliest to latest, represents the typical wave formation?
Sea, swell, surf
Which of the following best describes turbidity currents?
Underwater avalanches of muddy water mixed with rocks and other debris
Which of the following statements about wetlands is incorrect?
Wetlands are inefficient at cleansing polluted water.
Isostatic adjustments are the result of the buoyancy of Earth's lithosphere as it floats on the ________ below which is denser and plastic like.
asthenosphere
An internal wave might form ________.
at a density boundary within the ocean
Oceanic crust is predominantly composed of the igneous rock called ________.
basalt
The Indian Ocean
billion
The current level of atmospheric ________ recently surpassed 400 parts per million.
carbon dioxide
The ________ force pulls an orbiting body toward the center of that orbit.
centripetal
Latent heat is the quantity of heat gained or lost as a substance undergoes a ________.
change in state
The air in the center of the eye of the hurricane is ________ air moving ________.
cool dry; downward
The angular distance of the Sun or the Moon above or below the Earth's equatorial plane is called the ________.
declination
In the troposphere, air temperatures ________.
decrease with increasing altitude
The density curve for high latitudes shows ________ density at the surface and ________ density at depth.
decreased, increased
Older lithosphere is destroyed in association with ________.
deep -sea trenches
Thermohaline circulation is driven by ________.
density differences
Deep ocean currents are driven primarily by ________ and caused by ________.
density differences; differences in salinity and temperature
As the salinity of seawater increases, its ________.
density increases
The dissolution of the thick tests of foraminifers below the CCD is an example of the ________ of biogenous sediment.
destruction
The majority of tsunami are caused by underwater ________.
earthquakes/ fault movement
Submarine canyons were most likely formed by ________.
erosion by turbidity currents
Overproduction of organic matter resulting in anoxic conditions is attributed to ________.
eutrophication
A very important way to increase the settling rate of fine particles in the open ocean is via ________.
fecal pellets
Based on physical properties, Earth consists of ________ layers
five
Refraction causes headlands to be areas of ________ surfing and sites of ________.
good; erosion
Currently, a little less than ________ of the carbon dioxide humankind releases into the atmosphere stays there.
half
Water can pile up a short distance above a container's rim due to ________.
high surface tension
If the side of the Earth that faces the Moon experiences a high tide, then the side of the Earth that is opposite from the Moon will have a ________.
high tide
In comparison to most other liquids, the heat capacity of liquid water is ________.
higher than other liquids
The Big Island of Hawaii is an example of a volcanic island associated with volcanic activity at a ________.
hotspot
In coastal regions, sea breezes happen ________ and land breezes happen ________.
in the afternoon; at night
Coral reefs ________.
include atolls, barrier, and fringing reefs
Eustatic changes in sea level might include ________.
increased glacial melting due to the global warming
The salinity curve for low latitudes shows ________ salinity at the surface and ________ salinity at depth.
increased, decreased
Based on the Theory of Plate Tectonics, you would expect to find ________ heat flow at the mid-ocean ridge and ________ heat flow at subduction zones when compared to other parts of the crust.
increased; decreased
The San Andreas Fault ________.
is a continental transform fault
In terms of erosion protection from wave action, seawalls ________.
lead to erosion of sediment on their seaward sides
The Hawaiian Islands are located where the Pacific plate is ________.
moving over a hot spot or mantle plume
The nutrients that tend to limit photosynthesis in marine environments include ________.
nitrogen and phosphorus
High-latitude ocean water tends to support large planktonic communities because ________.
of higher dissolved oxygen and nutrient concentrations
The type of circulation pattern found in Laguna Madre is ________.
opposite of the typical estuarine circulation pattern
Which of the following statements regarding pH is true?
pH relates to relative acid-base ion balance in a solution.
The seafloor magnetic pattern is best described as ________.
parallel to and symmetric about mid-ocean ridges
Tidal ranges will be greatest when the Earth and the Moon are at ________.
perigee
Fossils of ancient polar plants are currently found near the equator because the ________.
plants lived near the poles, but landmasses have drifted to current locations
Warm currents flowing ________ on the ________ sides of continents produce warm, humid conditions.
poleward; eastern
In general, the rate at which energy is stored by organisms through the formation of organic matter is called ________.
primary productivity
Phosphate-rich nodules form in ________.
regions of upwelling near shores
The difference between centripetal forces and gravitational forces is called the ________.
resultant force
The correct order of seafloor features from the coast to the mid- ocean ridge is ________.
shelf, slope, rise, abyssal plain
Deep ocean trenches are associated with ________.
subduction zones
In the United States, mixed tides commonly occur along ________.
the Pacific coast
The states of matter in which water exists is primarily determined by ________.
temperature
The fetch refers to ________.
the distance over which the wind blows without interruption
Frederick Vine and Drummond Matthews determined that new ocean floor was being produced at ocean ridges by examining ________.
the magnetic pattern of rocks on the seafloor
Hydrogen bonds form between neighboring water molecules because of ________.
the polarity of water molecules
Relatively few abyssal plains are located in the Pacific Ocean due to ________.
the presence of convergent active margins
Plate tectonics and evolution, which are held with a high degree of confidence because of rigorous testing and verification, are examples of:
theories.
The vertical difference between consecutive high and low tides is called the ________.
tidal range
The force that creates two simultaneous ocean bulges on opposite sides of Earth, directed toward or away from the Moon, is called the ________ force.
tide-generating
In the southern hemisphere, the direction of Ekman transport is always ________.
to the left of the wind direction
Low latitude wind belt(s) with strong, reliable, generally easterly winds is (are) the ________.
trade winds
The oceanic climate region(s) where the majority of strong tropical cyclonic storms are produced is ________.
tropical
The oceanic climate region(s) where the majority of strong tropical cyclonic storms are produced is ________.
tropical