Oceanography chapter 2

Matthew Maury

A Virginian & us naval officer , became interested in exploring winds and currents for commercial and naval purposes.

Echo sounder

A device that bounces sound waves off the ocean bottom, to study the depth and contour of the seafloor

Vikings

Bands of Scandinavian adventures and treasure seekers whose remarkably fast, strong, and stable ships enabled them to sail or row up rivers faster then a horse and rider could spread warning.

What famous American is also famous for publishing the first image of an ocean current? What was his motivation for studying currents?

Benjamin Franklin. As a deputy postmaster , he became interested in the North Atlantic Ocean circulation patterns. While in England , Franklin heard a question about why it took mail longer to reach any than RI. He then asked his cousin who told him that merchant ships routinely avoided a strong eastbound mid - ocean current while the mail packets captain sailed dead into it, fighting an adverse current. Franklin worked with his cousin and other ship captains, learning enough to chart the current and name it the Gulf Stream.

James Cook

Commander of the HMS endeavor from Plymouth harbor. The primary reason for the voyage was to assert the British presence in the South Seas, but the expedition had numerous scientific goals as well.

What were the contributions of Captain James Cook ?

Cook led the departure from Plymouth , Harbor in 1768 of HMS Endeavor . he conveyed several members of the Royal society to Tahiti to observe the transit of Venus across the disk of the sun. then, cook turned south into unknown territory to search for a hypothetical Southern Continent. they found & charted several countries.

Eratosthenes of Cyrene

First to calculate the circumference of Earth.was the first to estimate it's true size.

Cartographers

First were probably Mediterranean traders who made routine journeys from producing areas to markets.

Charts

Graphic representations that primarily depict water and water - related information.

How did Eratosthenes calculate the approximate size of Earth?

He measured the shadow angle of a vertical pole that was casted during the day and found it to be a bit more then 7 degrees, about 1/50 of a circle. He correctly assumed that the sun is a great distance from Earth, which means that the sun rays would approach Syene and Alexandria in parallel lines.

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration ( NOAA)

Includes the National Ocean Service, the National Weather service , the National Marine Fisheries Service , and the office of Sea Grant

Latitude

Lines drawn parallel to the equator

Longitude

Lines ran pole to pole

Chinese navigators

More skilled navigators , their vessels grew larger and more seaworthy. They set out to explore the other side of the world.

How can a satellite in space study the ocean?

Satellites are wonderful for looking at very large areas of the world in a very short time. This is called synoptic. The analysis of remoting- sensed ocean data makes it possible to understand the ocean in new ways. The satellites carry sensors designed to monitor oceans from space.

What are the major developments in marine science since 1990?

Sonar ( sound navigation ranging) , scuba diving, helmet diving, diving bells, submersibles, ROVs ( remotely operated vehicles) , remote sensing using transmitters and satellites , computer technology.

Meteor expedition

The German expedition , introduced modern optical and electronic equipment to oceanographic investigation

What was the first purely scientific oceanographic expedition , and what were some of its accomplishments.

The first expedition was by Charles Thomas & his student John Murray. They convinced the Royal Society and the British Government to provide a Royal Navy Ship and trained crew for a "prolonged and arduous " voyage of exploration across the oceans of the world. They coined a word for their enterprise: oceanography . The discovery of life in the depths of the oceans stimulated the new science of marine biology.

Library of Alexandria

The library constituted history's greatest accumulation of ancient writings. Founded by Alexander the Great

Polynesia

The peopling of the central and eastern pacific islands. The Polynesians are one of the Oceanian peoples who inhabitated some 10,000 islands scattered across nearly 26 million square km of open Pacific Ocean.

Prince Henry the Navigator

Third son of the royal family of Portugal . He established a center at Sagres for the study of Marine Science and navigation " through all the watery roads." Captains under his patronage explored from 1451 to 1470 , compiling detailed charts wherever they went.

Challenger expedition

To investigate Edinburgh professor Edward Forbes contention that life below 549 meters was impossible because of high pressure and lack of light.

Voyaging

Traveling on the ocean for a specific purpose , comes from records of trade in the Mediterranean Sea.