Unique nature of pure water
What simple molecule comprises two hydrogen atoms bonded to one oxygen atom?
What in water?
What is the term for the dissolved salt concentration in seawater?
What is salinity?
What is the average PH of seawater?
What is 8-8.3?
What happens to coral reefs when ocean acidification increases?
They become weaker and break easy
How does burning fossil fuels change the carbon cycle?
what is increase in carbon dioxide?
What type of bonding between water molecules causes surface tension?
What in hydrogen bonding?
What increases by about 1 atmosphere every 10 meters of depth?
What is pressure?
What element do many sea creatures use to build shells?
What is calcium?
What happens to the pH of seawater when carbon dioxide dissolves in it?
In decreases
What happens to carbon when dead organisms sink to the ocean floor?
Stored in sediments
Why is water described as a universal solvent?
Because its polar nature allows it to dissolve many ionic and polar compounds
How does the freezing point of seawater compare to that of pure water?
It is lower
What system helps control ocean pH?
How does colder ocean water affect the rate of acidification?
Cold water absorbs more carbon dioxide, so it acidifies faster than warm water
After marine organisms die, what process breaks down organic carbon and returns carbon dioxide to the water or atmosphere?
What is respiration and decomposition?
How is solid water structurally different then it’s liquid form?
What process mixes warm and cold seawater around the world?
What is ocean circulation?
What major dissolved ion is the dominant positively charged ion in seawater?
What is sodium?
What gas emissions from human activity drive the increase of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere and its uptake into the oceans?
What is carbon dioxide
What process performed by marine phytoplankton removes carbon dioxide from seawater and converts it into organic matter?
What in photosynthesis?
What property of water gives it a high specific heat capacity, and why is this ecologically significant for ocean environments?
Because of hydrogen bonding, water can absorb large amounts of heat with little change in temperature, which moderates climate
What in the physical effect that causes seawater to be denser at higher salinity and lower temperature?
What is density stratification?
What happens to dissolved oxygen levels when water gets warmer?
They decrease
How does ocean acidification affect calcifying organisms?
It makes it more difficult for them to form calcium carbonate skeletons/shells, leading to thinner or weaker shells and skeletal structures.
What long-term process removes carbon from the atmosphere and locks it in rocks?
What is carbonate formation and sedimentation?