Oceanography final True False

Thick sediment accumulations occur on the continental shelves and rises, especially near the mouths of major rivers because these locations are close to major sources of lithogenous sediment

True

Evidence suggests that the Sun and the rest of the solar system formed about five billion years ago

True

Few abyssal plains are located in the Pacific Ocean because the deep-ocean trenches found on the convergent active margins of the Pacific Ocean prevent sediment from moving past the continental slope

True

Most of the physical properties of pure water and sweater are very similar BECAUSE seawater is 96.5% water

True

Satellites are used to map the ocean floor because the shape of the ocean surface reflects large features on the seafloor

True

The depth of the deepest ocean trench exceeds the height of Mount Everest

True

The seafloor magnetic pattern is best described as parallel to and symmetric about mid-ocean ridges

True

Our planet's extreme climate is one of the main reasons life exists on Earth

False

Tectonic plates move about as fast as a river flows

False

Terrigenous sediment is another name for biogenous sediment

False

The Mid-Atlantic Ridge is an example of a convergent plate boundary (oceanic-oceanic)

False

The Pacific Ring of Fire is home to the majority of Earth's active volcanoes and large earthquakes because of the prevalence of divergent plate boundaries along the Pacific Rim

False

The White Cliffs of Dover are made from five (5) coccolithophores tests

False

The speed of a shallow-water wave is a function of wave period

False

The transfer of water between the atmosphere, the oceans, and the continents is known as the geologic cycle

False

The vertical distance between the wave tough and the wave crest is the wavelength

False

Thermohaline circulation is wind-driven

False

Surface currents affect about 90% of the world's ocean water

False

Surface or wind-driven currents move water primarily in a vertical direction in the ocean

False

A wave train moves more slowly than individual waves

True

According to the fossil record on Earth, the earliest-known life-forms were primitive bacteria

True

Along the margins of the of the Pacific are found most of Earth's oceanic trenches

True

An area of the ocean where rapid change in ocean density occurs with a change in depth is the pycnocline

True

Active margins are characterized by broad continental shelves

False

Internal waves are formed by the movement of water of different densities along an air-water interface

False

An eastern boundary current is generally narrow and swift

False

Coral reefs that initially develop along the margin of an island or continent where environmental conditions are suitable are called atolls

False

Many of the unique properties of water are attributed to the fact that water exists in three states of matter on Earth's surface

False

Organisms found at mid-ocean ridges are able to survive in the absence of sunlight because the light generated by the undersea lava flows is enough for photosynthesis to occur

False

Paleomagnetic reversals were used by Alfred Wegner as evidence for continental drift

False

A very important way to increase the settling rate of fine particles in the open ocean is via fecal pellets

True

Deep ocean water masses have characteristic temperatures and salinities

True

In the northern hemisphere, Ekman transport pushes surface water to the right of the wind direction

True

Marine sediment accumulations are interesting to oceanographers because they often contain microscopic fossils that provide clues to the past geographic distributions of marine organisms

True

Microscopic biogenous ooze is common on the deep-ocean floor because there is so little lithogenous sediment deposited at great distances from the continents that could dilute the biogenous material

True

The European "Age of Discovery" began with Columbus' discovery of the "New World"

True

The Hawaiian Islands are located where the Pacific plate is moving over a hot spot or mantle plume

True

The Pacific Ocean is the deepest ocean in the world

True

The Sun and the rest of the solar system formed about 5 billion years ago from a huge cloud of dust and gas called a quasar

True

The circular movement of surface water currents are driven by the major wind belts are called gyres

True

The lithosphere is composed of the crust and the uppermost portion of the mantle

True

The orbital motion of water molecules in a wave goes down to a depth equal to the wavelength divided by two

True

A shallow-water wave must form in water depth less than 100 meters

False

A storm surge might form in association with a seafloor avalanche

False

A wave will break when wave steepness is equal to 1/20

False

A fracture zone is seismically inactive, occurs beyond offset mid-ocean ridge segments, and the relative movement between two points on either side of the feature is in the same direction

True

composed mostly of iron and nickel with a liquefied metallic outer layer

mantle

Abyssal clays are commonly red-brown or buff in color because they contain gypsum

False

Biogenous sediment usually contains abundant calcite below the calcite compensation depth

False

Continental crust and oceanic crust have equivalent densities

False

Deep earthquakes occur near Ocean trenches

True

Deep ocean currents often move cold, dense water away from the poles

True

Deep-water waves move faster than shallow water waves because they are not slowed by friction with the ocean bottom

True

Tsunamis can be generated by geological activity that causes a sudden change in sea floor elevation such as submarine fault motion

True

Volcanoes on the seafloor that are flat-topped because of wave erosion are called tablemounts

True

Western boundary currents such as the Gulf Stream transport warm water from the tropics to higher latitudes

True

Wind speed, duration, and fetch are the three conditions necessary to produce a fully developed sea

True

composed mostly of iron and nickel with a liquefied metallic outer layer

core

gaseous and dusty space cloud (precursor to a solar system)

nebula