Question 1

A person is able to float more easily in the Red Sea than if they were floating in the Black Sea because the

Accepted Answer

A) Black Sea has a higher density than the Red Sea. 
B) Red Sea has a higher density than the Black Sea. 
C) Red Sea is warmer than the Black Sea. 
D) Black Sea is warmer than the Red Sea. 
A) Black Sea has a higher density than the Red Sea. 
B) Red Sea has a higher density than the Black Sea. 
C) Red Sea is warmer than the Black Sea. 
D) Black Sea is warmer than the Red Sea.

Question 2

The size of open ocean waves generated by the wind depend on the wind __________, the __________ of the wind, and the duration of the wind blowing.

Accepted Answer

A) strength; fetch 
B) drift; speed 
C) twice; strength 
D) period; frequency 
A) strength; fetch 
B) drift; speed 
C) twice; strength 
D) period; frequency

Question 3

The presence of abundant phytoplankton which contain __________ chlorophyll can make water appear __________.

Accepted Answer

A) blue; bluish 
B) green; greenish 
C) red; reddish 
D) brown; brownish 
A) blue; bluish 
B) green; greenish 
C) red; reddish 
D) brown; brownish

Question 4

Oceanographers distinguish between the different oceanic zones by using

Accepted Answer

A) sonar. 
B) salinity and temperature. 
C) the amount of organisms in each zone. 
D) depth and distance from shore. 
A) sonar. 
B) salinity and temperature. 
C) the amount of organisms in each zone. 
D) depth and distance from shore.

Question 5

Two negative ions that are found in seawater are

Accepted Answer

A) potassium and sodium. 
B) calcium and magnesium. 
C) chloride and potassium. 
D) chloride and sulfate. 
A) potassium and sodium. 
B) calcium and magnesium. 
C) chloride and potassium. 
D) chloride and sulfate.

Question 6

According to the different categories of ocean life, an organism that can actively swim in the open ocean against currents is called

Accepted Answer

A) plankton. 
B) zooplankton. 
C) nekton. 
D) phytoplankton 
A) plankton. 
B) zooplankton. 
C) nekton. 
D) phytoplankton

Question 7

What is thermohaline circulation and how does it work?

Accepted Answer

Thermohaline circulation is the vertical

Question 8

Why are waves larger during storms?

Accepted Answer

A) The larger wind speeds create more shear. 
B) The storm increases the amount of upwelling. 
C) There is more water pulled in by the storm. 
D) The motion of the water becomes more elliptical. 
A) The larger wind speeds create more shear. 
B) The storm increases the amount of upwelling. 
C) There is more water pulled in by the storm. 
D) The motion of the water becomes more elliptical.

Question 9

Which of the following provides the largest tide-generating force?

Accepted Answer

A) the Sun 
B) the Moon 
C) Earth 
D) the ocean 
A) the Sun 
B) the Moon 
C) Earth 
D) the ocean

Question 10

Explain the effects of geostrophic balance in the ocean and how geostrophic currents form?

Accepted Answer

When the inward-directed Coriolis force

Question 11

Which of the following briefly summarizes the food web and its group of organisms associated by feeding relationships?

Accepted Answer

A) Primary producers are heterotrophs. 
B) Consumers bring energy into the web. 
C) Primary producers are organisms that survive by extracting nutrients from nonliving energy sources. 
D) Consumers include any organism that is not an autotroph. 
A) Primary producers are heterotrophs. 
B) Consumers bring energy into the web. 
C) Primary producers are organisms that survive by extracting nutrients from nonliving energy sources. 
D) Consumers include any organism that is not an autotroph.

Question 12

Waves are created by

Accepted Answer

A) tides. 
B) wind. 
C) the crust. 
D) the Moon. 
A) tides. 
B) wind. 
C) the crust. 
D) the Moon.

Question 13

How does the desalinization process convert ocean water into freshwater?

Accepted Answer

Salt can be removed from water by desali

Question 14

Surface currents flow __________ in the Northern Hemisphere and __________ in the Southern Hemisphere.

Accepted Answer

A) counterclockwise; clockwise 
B) upward; downward 
C) clockwise; counterclockwise 
D) equatorward; poleward 
A) counterclockwise; clockwise 
B) upward; downward 
C) clockwise; counterclockwise 
D) equatorward; poleward

Question 15

Label the ocean currents of ocean basins shown in the image below using the following word bank (hint: not all of the words will be used).
   
Alaska Current
Benguela Current
California Current
Canary Current
Equatorial Counter Current
East Australian Current
West Greenland Current
West Wind Drift

Accepted Answer

A = West Wind Drift, B = Alask

Question 16

When oceanographers discuss the elevation of the boundary between ocean water and the air above, they are referring to the

Accepted Answer

A) altitude. 
B) sea level. 
C) isolines. 
D) horizon 
A) altitude. 
B) sea level. 
C) isolines. 
D) horizon

Question 17

The __________ is the rapid change in seawater density from less dense water above to more dense water below, whereas the __________ is the gradual boundary between warmer water above and colder water below.

Accepted Answer

A) pycnocline; thermocline 
B) thermocline; pycnocline 
C) insolation; halocline 
D) halocline; insolation 
A) pycnocline; thermocline 
B) thermocline; pycnocline 
C) insolation; halocline 
D) halocline; insolation

Question 18

Autotrophs need __________ in order to survive.

Accepted Answer

A) salts 
B) sulfates 
C) zooplankton 
D) nutrients 
A) salts 
B) sulfates 
C) zooplankton 
D) nutrients

Question 19

According to researchers, the recent rise in sea level can be explained primarily by a(n)

Accepted Answer

A) increase in seawater salinity. 
B) decrease in seawater salinity. 
C) increase in seawater temperature. 
D) decrease in seawater temperature. 
A) increase in seawater salinity. 
B) decrease in seawater salinity. 
C) increase in seawater temperature. 
D) decrease in seawater temperature.

Question 20

Imagine a person is sailing across the Pacific Ocean and the deck of the boat is suddenly swamped by a wave twice as high as the waves have been during this entire journey. They have encountered a ____________wave.

Accepted Answer

A) tsunami 
B) rogue 
C) swell 
D) seismic 
A) tsunami 
B) rogue 
C) swell 
D) seismic

Exam 15: Ocean Waters: the Blue of the Blue Marble

A person is able to float more easily in the Red Sea than if they were floating in the Black Sea because the

The size of open ocean waves generated by the wind depend on the wind __________, the __________ of the wind, and the duration of the wind blowing.

The presence of abundant phytoplankton which contain __________ chlorophyll can make water appear __________.

Oceanographers distinguish between the different oceanic zones by using

Two negative ions that are found in seawater are

According to the different categories of ocean life, an organism that can actively swim in the open ocean against currents is called

What is thermohaline circulation and how does it work?

Why are waves larger during storms?

Which of the following provides the largest tide-generating force?

Explain the effects of geostrophic balance in the ocean and how geostrophic currents form?

Which of the following briefly summarizes the food web and its group of organisms associated by feeding relationships?

Waves are created by

How does the desalinization process convert ocean water into freshwater?

Surface currents flow __________ in the Northern Hemisphere and __________ in the Southern Hemisphere.

Label the ocean currents of ocean basins shown in the image below using the following word bank (hint: not all of the words will be used). Alaska Current Benguela Current California Current Canary Current Equatorial Counter Current East Australian Current West Greenland Current West Wind Drift

When oceanographers discuss the elevation of the boundary between ocean water and the air above, they are referring to the

The __________ is the rapid change in seawater density from less dense water above to more dense water below, whereas the __________ is the gradual boundary between warmer water above and colder water below.

Autotrophs need __________ in order to survive.

According to researchers, the recent rise in sea level can be explained primarily by a(n)

Imagine a person is sailing across the Pacific Ocean and the deck of the boat is suddenly swamped by a wave twice as high as the waves have been during this entire journey. They have encountered a ____________wave.

The Earth in Context

The Way the Earth Works: Plate Tectonics

Patterns in Nature: Minerals

Up From the Inferno: Magma and Igneous Rocks

A Surface Veneer: Sediments and Sedimentary Rocks

A Process of Change: Metamorphism and the Rock Cycle

Crags, Cracks, and Crumples: Crustal Deformation and Mountain Building

A Violent Pulse: Earthquakes

Deep Time: How Old Is Old

A Biography of Earth

Riches in Rock: Energy and Mineral Resources

Shaping the Earths Surface: Landscapes, the Hydrologic Cycle, and Mass Wasting

Freshwater: Streams, Lakes, and Groundwater

Extreme Realms: Desert and Glacial Landscapes

Marine Geology: the Study of Ocean Basins and Coasts

The Air We Breathe: Introducing Earths Atmosphere

Winds of the World: the Earths Major Weather Systems

Thunderstorms, Tornadoes, and Local Weather Systems

Climate and Climate Change

Our Solar System and Beyond

Our Neighborhood in Space

The Sun, Stars, and Deep Space

Prelude: Welcome to Earth Science

Filters

The size of open ocean waves generated by the wind depend on the wind , the of the wind, and the duration of the wind blowing.

The presence of abundant phytoplankton which contain chlorophyll can make water appear .

Surface currents flow in the Northern Hemisphere and in the Southern Hemisphere.

The is the rapid change in seawater density from less dense water above to more dense water below, whereas the is the gradual boundary between warmer water above and colder water below.