geo1080: uvu- chapter 7
El Niño conditions occur on average about every ________.
2-10 years
Which of the following currents causes the eastern coast of the United States to have milder winter climate?
Gulf Stream
Which of the following is NOT an eastern boundary current?
Gulf Stream
The map below is color coded for sea surface temperature anomalies. The dark blue line running along the equator indicates that ______________ are occurring.
La Niña conditions
The Brazil Current is associated with which Gyre?
South Atlantic Gyre
Which of the following statements is true of surface ocean currents?
Surface currents form circular patterns in the major ocean basins called "gyres."
The Southern Ocean is dominated by what single large current?
The Antarctic Circumpolar Current (West Wind Drift)
The figure below shows a map of a coastline in the southern hemisphere. Wind direction is shown. Which of the following is occurring?
The current moves away from shore and upwelling occurs.
In the Northern Hemisphere, subtropical ocean gyres rotate
clockwise.
In the Southern Hemisphere, subtropical ocean gyres rotate
counterclockwise.
Deep ocean currents are driven primarily by ________ and caused by ________.
density differences; differences in salinity and temperature
If you lived in Australia during an El Niño event, what would the weather be like?
drier weather than average
During winter months, monsoon winds over the Indian Ocean ________.
flow from land to sea and are dry
True or False: La Niña conditions are like normal conditions, but more pronounced.
true
Surface waters are pushed away from land and replaced by nutrient-rich deep water through ________.
upwelling
The temperature range for AAIW is ______________________.
3.5-6
The salinity range for AABW is ______________________.
34.6 to 34.8
Deep ocean currents occur in the deep zone below the pycnocline, so they influence about ________ of all ocean water.
90%
In the Atlantic, North Atlantic Deep Water (NADW) sinks near Greenland and heads south along the ocean bottom. Antarctic Bottom Water (ABW) sinks off Antarctica and moves north along the ocean bottom. What happens when they meet?
ABW stays on the bottom and NADW overrides it.
Which of the following is the only current that completely circumscribes Earth?
Antarctic Circumpolar
Which of the following is a western boundary current?
Brazil Current
Which of the following currents contributes to the South Western United States being arid?
California Current
The ENSO El Niño is responsible for worldwide climate situations. The economy of Peru has been greatly affected by El Niño. Why?
Cold, nutrient-rich upwelling waters that facilitate the fisheries were covered by the warm, nutrient-poor waters of El Niño.
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
The California Current is an example of which of the following types of currents?
Eastern Boundary Current
Which of the following move cool water from high latitudes towards the equator and are located on the eastern side of the oceans?
Eastern Boundary Current
The observation that ships and icebergs in the southern hemisphere float to the left of the wind direction is an example of which of the following?
Ekman transport
The map below is color coded for sea surface temperature anomalies. The dark red line running along the equator indicates that ______________ are occurring.
El Niño conditions
Which current grows stronger during an El Niño?
Equatorial Counter Current
Which currents travel westward and are located just north or south of the equator?
Equatorial Currents
The North Atlantic Gyre contains the following currents except which one?
Florida Current
Which of the following is NOT a result of a strong El Niño?
Great fishing off the coast of South America
Which ocean current moves warm water northward along the western margin of the Sargasso Sea?
Gulf Stream
Match the conditions in the eastern equatorial Pacific with normal, El Niño and La Niña conditions.
Normal conditions- cold water temps high El Niño conditions- warm water temps La Niña conditions- cold water temps very high
The California Current is associated with which gyre?
North Pacific Gyre
The figure below shows a map of a coastline in the northern hemisphere. Wind direction is shown. Which of the following is occurring?
The current moves towards the shore and downwelling occurs.
Which of the following currents move warm water from equatorial regions towards the poles and are located on the western sides of the oceans?
Western Boundary Current
Deep-water currents move ________ volumes of water and are much ________ than surface currents.
larger; slower
Ocean surface currents transfer about ________ of the total amount of heat from the tropics to the poles.
one-third
Upwelling occurs in high-latitude regions, where there is no ________.
pycnocline
Coastal upwelling along the coast of Chile is a result of winds from the ________ turning towards the ________ due to Ekman transport.
south; left
The El Niño Southern Oscillation can best be described as ________.
the relationship between sea surface temperature and changing atmospheric pressure
The Ekman spiral is caused by ________.
the wind and the Coriolis effect.
In the southern hemisphere, the direction of Ekman transport is always ________.
to the left of the wind direction
In the northern hemisphere, the direction of Ekman transport is always ________.
to the right of the wind direction
Cold currents flowing ________ on the ________ sides of continents produce arid conditions.
toward the equator; western
Equatorial currents are driven by the ________.
trade winds
Diverging surface waters are areas of ________ and ________ productivity.
upwelling; high
Surface ocean currents are driven primarily by ________ and modified by ________.
wind; the Coriolis effect and land
