ENVS-125 Oceanography

Which of the following statements about coastal upwelling are true? (Select all that apply.)

Coastal upwelling is responsible for the most nutrient-rich waters off the coast. Coastal upwelling is the major component of California's upwelling near the shore. Coastal upwelling is spatially variable along the coast due to orographic effects. Coastal upwelling is temporally variable along the coast due to atmospheric dynamics.

Which of the following statements about curl-driven upwelling are true? (Select all that apply.)

Curl-driven upwelling is generated by variability in coastal winds. Distinct components of the marine food web are supported by curl-driven upwelling. Coastal upwelling is stronger than curl-driven upwelling.

Which of the following statements about El Niño-Southern Oscillation is/are true? (Select all that apply.)

El Niño causes water in the California Current System to warm and is associated with lower productivity. El Niño years are characterized by a stronger than usual Aleutian Low, and result in more southerly storm tracks and high precipitation in CA. El Niño drives interannual variation in the California Current System.

True or false? Curl-driven upwelling farther offshore supports production of large phytoplankton and zooplankton, while coastal upwelling supports production of smaller planktonic types.

False

True or false? The North Pacific High pressure system and the Aleutian Low pressure system have little to no effect on the California Current System.

False

Which of the following statements about ocean acidification are true? (Select all that apply.)

It is exacerbated by upwelling in the California Current System. It is caused by rising atmospheric CO2 concentrations, which in turn increase dissolved CO2 levels in the ocean.

Which of the following are predicted effects of climate change on ocean dynamics? (Select all that apply.)

Reduced Oxygen Minimum Zone depth Increased ocean acidification Either increased or decreased upwelling strength in the California Current System

Which of the following statements help characterize the California Current System (CCS)? (Select all that apply.)

Strong spatial variability generates ecological diversity and variation in the CCS. There are three currents in the CCS, two of which flow poleward.

Why is upwelling in the California Current System strongest in spring and weakest in fall? (Select the best answer.)

The effects of equator-ward blowing wind and the North Pacific High pressure system are strongest in the spring and weaken in the fall.

True or false? The California Current System is one of the most productive and seasonally predictable marine ecosystems on Earth.

True

True or false? The offshore curl-driven upwelling is an order of magnitude weaker than the near-shore wind-driven coastal upwelling, but still contributes to the overall upwelling (and productivity) of the California Current System.

True

Which of the following statements about upwelling in the California Current System are true? (Select all that apply.)

Upwelling generates a rapid, southward-flowing upwelling jet along the coast. Upwelling causes cool, nutrient-rich waters to rise from depth to the surface.

Sea surface temperatures during the negative phase of the Pacific Decadal Oscillation (PDO) are: (Select all that apply.)

Warmer in the ocean interior Cooler along the coast of North America

One of the effects of climate change could be shoaling of the oxygen minimum zone (OMZ). Which of the following are predicted effects of climate-change induced shoaling of the OMZ? (Select all that apply.)

Would compress habitat for pelagic species, like tuna Could lift the OMZ to depths from which upwelling waters in the California Current System are derived Can interact with higher marine productivity to produce hypoxic events

Finish this sentence with the single best answer: Surface ocean temperatures and chlorophyll content in the California Current System are ________.

negatively correlated, with highest productivity in upwelling hotspots.

The largest and most consistent cyclical physical and biological changes in the California Current System occur on a time scale of ________. (Select the best answer.)

seasons