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79 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
water masses in motion
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currents
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horizontal water motion due to winds
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surface currents
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sinking and spreading of water below the surface due to density differences of water
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deep currents
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what was the first satellite to measure the height of oceans in 1992, revealing ocean circulation patterns
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TOPEX/Poseidon
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currents that occur above the pycnocline (above 1000 m)
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surface currents
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approximately how much of the wind's energy is transferred to the ocean surface
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2%
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radio-transmitting devices that float with currents to provide information about the currents
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drift bottles
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what shipping vessel lost many shoes in a storm in 1990
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Hansa Carrier
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knowledge of circulation in what body of water was increased by the 1990 shoe spill
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North Pacific Ocean, west of Washington
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large, circular-moving loops of water
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gyres
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largest gyres found at low to medium latitudes
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subtropical gyres
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direction of subtropical gyres in northern hemisphere; southern hemisphere?
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clockwise; counterclockwise
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direction of subpolar gyres in northern hemisphere; southern hemisphere?
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counterclockwise; clockwise
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westward-moving currents above and below 0 degrees
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equatorial currents
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are western boundary currents warm or cool?
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warm
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are eastern boundary current warm or cool?
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cool
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smaller gyres found at higher latitudes
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subpolar gyres
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currents at the equator moving in the opposite direction of the currents above and below them
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equatorial counter currents
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why do equatorial counter currents travel east
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gravity pulls down piled-up water
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where is the Weddell Sea
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just above Antarctica
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where is the Sargasso Sea
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in the middle of the North Atlantic gyre
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what explorer drifted the Fram through ice near the North Pole
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Fridjtof Nansen
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circulation model that shows varying water directions and speeds at different depths
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Ekman Spiral
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what direction does surface water flow compared to wind direction; net transport angle?
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45 degrees; 90 degrees
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sampling apparatus for collecting water named after Arctic explorer
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Nansen bottle
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average maximum depth of Ekman spiral
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100 m
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average movement of water near surface perpendicular to wind direction
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Ekman transport
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piling up of water in the middle of a subtropical gyre
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subtropical convergence
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net effect resulting from balance between gravity and coriolis effect in the middle of a gyre
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geostrophic current
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phenomenon of faster, narrower currents on the west sides of gyres; apex moves to east or west?
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western intensification; west
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a flow rate unit of currents (volume per time)
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Sverdrup (Sv)
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a Sverdrup is equivalent to
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1 million cubic meters per second
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vertical movement of cold, deep, nutrient-rich water to the surface
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upwelling
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vertical movement of surface water to deeper areas
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downwelling
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is surface productivity lower near upwelling or downwelling areas
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downwelling areas
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upwelling caused by divergence of water due to ekman transport of equatorial current waters
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equatorial upwelling
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upwelling caused by movement of water away from shore due to coastal winds and Ekman transport
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coastal upwelling
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where is coastal upwelling most common and prominant in the Americas
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west coasts of North and South America
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why do upwelling and downwelling frequently occur at high latitudes
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absence of pycnocline
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another name for the Antarctice Circumpolar Current
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West Wind Drift
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nickname for strong winds from 40-50 degrees S
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roaring forties
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nickname for strong winds from 50-60 degrees S
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furious fifties
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nickname for strong winds from 60-70 degrees S
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screaming sixties
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what causes the unusual strength of the roaring forties, furious fifties, and screaming sixties
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lack of friction with continents
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largest volume current; current flow
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Antarctic Circumpolar Current; 130 Sv
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squeeze of Antarctic Circumpolar Current between tip of South America and Antarctica
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Drake Passage
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what is the Sargasso Sea named after
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ubiquitous Sargassum algae
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are western boundary currents rich in life
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no, but the edges are
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bends in a current
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meanders
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large rotating masses of water that have broken off of currents due to meandering
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eddies, vortexes, or rings
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do cold water eddies move to the north or south of the Gulf Stream; spin direction
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south; counterclockwise
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which have more nutrients and are more productive: cold-water or warm-water eddies
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cold-water eddies
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what American charted the Gulf Stream using sailing data from his nephew
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Benjamin Franklin
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who was Ben Franklin's sea captain nephew
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Timothy Folger
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what is another name for the Peru Current
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Humboldt Current
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what fish are a plentiful food source near Peru and Ecuador due to upwelling
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anchovies
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what country is the single largest producer of fish from the sea in the world
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Peru
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atmospheric circulation cell in the equatorial South Pacific
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Walker Cell
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wedge of warm water on the western side of the Pacific Ocean due to trade winds
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Pacific warm pool
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ENSO
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El Nino-Southern Oscillation
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the warm-water phase with less upwelling and a hurt fishing industry
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El Nino
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the cold-water phase with more upwelling and a better fishing industry
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La Nina
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which is associated with stronger Walker circulation: El Nino or La Nina
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La Nina
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PDO
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Pacific Decadal Oscillation
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phenonemon of varying Pacific sea surface temperatures every 20 to 30 years
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Pacific Decadal Oscillation (PDO)
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what is the weaker analogous event to El Nino-Southern Oscillation in the Atlantic Ocean
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North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO)
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program designed to study how El Nino events develop
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Tropical Ocean-Global Atmosphere (TOGA)
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season of winds that bring lots of rain to Asia from air masses above the Indian Ocean
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monsoon
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southernmost tip of Africa
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Cape Agulhas
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abrupt turn of the Agulhas current as it meets the strong Antarctic Circumpolar Current
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Agulhas Retroflection
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typical range of speeds of deep currents
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10 to 20 km/yr
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typical range of speeds of surface currents
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10 to 20 km/hr
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worldwide circulation driven by surface currents and deep currents
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conveyor belt circulation, aka global conveyor belt
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where and why are deep currents initiated
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poles; dense, salty water sinks
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diagram showing density in relation to temperature and density
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temperature-salinity (T-S) diagram
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densest water of the open ocean
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Antarctic Bottom Water (AABW)
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what causes the polar waters to become so salty
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water freezing
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deep ocean circulation driven by dense waters sinking
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thermohaline circulation
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which can dissolve more gas: cold or warm water
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cold water
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