Oceanography Lab Exam 1

In early December, just a few weeks prior to the Northern Hemisphere's winter solstice, the __________ Hemisphere is warmer. a. Southern b. Northern

a. Southern

Most of the Indian Ocean is located in the ___________ Hemisphere. a. Southern b. Northern

a. Southern

In general, ocean depth increases more rapidly moving away from the U.S. ___________ Coast. a. West b. East

a. West

SST is lower along the U.S. ________ Coast. a. West b. East

a. West

The Norwegian Sea and Mediterranean Sea _____________ considered to be part of the Atlantic Ocean. a. are b. are not

a. are

The curving swirls of water vapor in the middle latitudes of the Northern and Southern Hemispheres of the animation show that atmospheric motions ____________ transporting water vapor north and south as well. a. are b. are not

a. are

The ocean's central role in Earth's climate system and climate change is evidence by its absorption of _________________. a. carbon dioxide b. heat c. both heat and carbon dioxide d. neither heat nor carbon dioxide

a. carbon dioxide

As viewed from the North Pole, all points on Earth's surface are following a ____________ path as Earth rotates. a. circular b. straight

a. circular

As viewed from the South Pole, all points on Earth's surface show ____________ motion due to Earth's rotation. a. circular b. straight

a. circular

The sense of Earth's rotation as seen from the North Pole is _____________ around the North Pole as seen from above. a. counterclockwise b. clockwise

a. counterclockwise

Water is lost from the ocean via ______________. a. evaporation b. surface runoff c. precipitation

a. evaporation

From the time rain and snow begin to fall toward's Earth's surface until the water is returned to the ocean directly or by streams and groundwater flows, ___________ drives the movement of the water. a. gravity b. solar energy c. Earth's rotation

a. gravity

Relatively high values of SSS are likely due to __________. a. greater evaporation b. greater precipitation

a. greater evaporation

From your position above the equator, you see that Earth's rotation is causing objects attached to Earth at the equator to be moving towards the east ___________. a. in a straight line b. while curving to the right c. while curving to the left

a. in a straight line

At constant temperature, an increase in the salinity of ocean water causes its density to __________. a. increase b. decrease

a. increase

From the Mid-Atlantic Ridge westward toward the east coasts of Greenland and North America, the age of the oceanic crust _____________. a. increases b. does not change c. decreases

a. increases

With falling temperature and constant salinity, the density of ocean water ____________. a. increases b. decreases

a. increases

The existence of Iceland, a volcanic island along the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, ___________ geological processes known to operate at divergent plate boundaries. a. is consistent with b. is opposed to

a. is consistent with

The east coasts of North and South America are tectonically ____________. a. passive b. active

a. passive

At constant temperature, the surface water salinity is likely to be lower where the climate is ________, that is, where precipitation is greater than evaporation. a. rainy b. arid

a. rainy

The plate to the west of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge is moving generally ___________ while the plate to the east is moving in the opposite direction. a. westward b. eastward

a. westward

When viewing the global composite water vapor imagery animation, we can often see atmospheric water vapor plumes and clouds in the tropics, being embedded in the trade wind circulation, generally migrating ____________ in the Northern Hemisphere. a. westward b. eastward

a. westward

The west coast of South America is tectonically ____________, while the east coast of North America is not. a. passive b. active

b. active

The west coasts of the Americas are tectonically ____________. a. passive b. active

b. active

Bathymetry reveals an ocean trench deepest off the ___________ portion of South America's western coast. a. northern b. central c. southern

b. central

The sense of Earth's rotation from the South Pole vantage point is ___________. a. counterclockwise b. clockwise

b. clockwise

At constant salinity, raising the temperature of ocean water causes its density to ____________. a. increase b. decrease

b. decrease

Flood waters discharged into coastal waters by a large river are likely to ___________ the salinity of surface coastal water. a. increase b. decrease

b. decrease

At lower latitudes, there is a net flow of atmospheric water vapor evaporated from the Atlantic Ocean across Central America to the Pacific Ocean. There, rain freshens Pacific surface water and _____________ salt concentration and water density. a. increases b. decreases

b. decreases

With decreasing salinity and constant temperature, the density of ocean water ____________. a. increases b. decreases

b. decreases

The volcanically active Mid-Atlantic Ridge is marked with red arrows denoting motion that identifies it as a ____________ plate boundary. a. convergent b. divergent

b. divergent

The youngest ocean-bottom crust is associated with __________ plate boundaries. a. convergent b. divergent

b. divergent

Cloud and water vapor swirls in the mid-latitudes of the Northern and Southern Hemispheres migrate generally _____________. a. westward b. eastward

b. eastward

In the open ocean, the highest values of SSS are generally located ______________. a. at high latitudes b. in the subtropical latitudes c. along the equator

b. in the subtropical latitudes

Examination of the Atlantic and Pacific Ocean basins indicates the ocean floor generally __________ flat and featureless. a. is b. is not

b. is not

Darker regions forming two discontinuous latitude bands located north and south of the equator indicate _____________ humidity air. a. high b. low

b. low

Components of the Earth system interact in ____________ ways as described by natural laws. a. chaotic b. orderly c. random

b. orderly

The Mid-Atlantic Ridge is at a generally __________ ocean depth compared to the surrounding ocean farther from the ridge. a. deeper b. shallower

b. shallower

Because of the change in density from Caballing, the newly mixed water ____________ through the surrounding water column. a. rises b. sinks

b. sinks

The ultimate source of energy that lifts and transports the atmospheric water to its highest elevation is _____________. a. gravity b. solar energy c. Earth's rotation

b. solar energy

An important property of a Mercator flat maps of such conformal maps is that lines of latitude and longitude are _______________. a. curved b. straight and perpendicular to each other c. circular

b. straight and perpendicular to each other

This ____________ marks a convergent plate boundary. a. continental shelf b. trench

b. trench

Convergent plate boundaries are more closely associated with the __________ coasts of the Americas. a. east b. west

b. west

The ocean has __________ influence on Earth's weather and climate. a. no observable b. very little c. a major

c. a major

Water is transported to the ocean via ____________. a. groundwater flow b. stream flow c. both processes

c. both processes

Thunderstorms imply ___________ is/are entering the atmosphere from the underlying surface. a. energy b. water vapor c. both water vapor and energy

c. both water vapor and energy

Middle latitude swirls are storm systems that transport humid warm air poleward to be replaced by colder and drier polar air moving equator ward. Storm motions transfer ____________ within the Earth system. a. water particles and vapor b. heat energy c. heat energy, water particles, and vapor

c. heat energy, water particles, and vapor

Because distortion increases away from the equator, the Mercator projection shows another common feature of Mercator projections, that is, the distance between adjacent lines of latitude ___________ as latitude increases from the equator toward the poles. a. decreases b. remains the same c. increases

c. increases

The ocean is a ____________ component of biogeochemical cycles operating as part of the Earth system. a. insignificant b. minor c. major

c. major

The Indian Ocean ranks as the ______________ ocean basin. a. largest b. second largest c. third largest d. fourth largest

c. third largest

Mountain building is associated with a _______________ plate boundary.

convergent

The Southern Ocean is characterized by the ___________ Current, which flows ceaselessly eastward around the globe and is the world's largest ocean current. a. Agulhas b. Humboldt c. Weddel d. Antarctic Circumpolar

d. Antarctic Circumpolar

Appearing as though viewed on an actual globe, the depictions of Greenland and South America can be assumed to be _____________. a. equal-area b. conformal c. neither conformal nor equal area d. both conformal and equal area

d. both conformal and equal area

The Southern Ocean ranks as the ______________ largest of the five ocean basins. a. first b. second c. third d. fourth

d. fourth

The Pacific Ocean ranks as the ______________ ocean basin. a. smallest b. second smallest c. second largest d. largest

d. largest

The Atlantic Ocean is the ___________ of the ocean basins by surface area. a. smallest b. second smallest c. middle sized d. second largest e. largest

d. second largest