Ocean Acidification
What is ocean acidification?
a change in the properties of ocean water that can be harmful for plants and animals.
What is coral bleaching?
When corals lose their vibrant colors and turn white
What are ice cores and where are they typically obtained from?
Cylinders of ice drilled out of an ice sheet or glacier.
What is the North Atlantic Conveyor Belt?
a belt that transports heat from the equator up to the North Atlantic.
What is one cause of ocean acidification?
Carbon Dioxide absorption
Name the primary cause of coral bleaching.
How do scientists use ice cores to study past climate conditions?
look for patterns to track changes in the atmosphere's composition and temperature, and what activity on Earth shaped it
What is the movement of water called?
Ocean Currents
How does ocean acidification affect marine life, particularly shellfish?
It affects the ability of ocean life to build shells and skeletons
How can rising sea temperatures lead to coral bleaching?
It causes the coral to expel the algae from their tissue and turn completely white
What information can be gathered from the bubbles trapped in ice cores?
The amount of carbon dioxide and the global temperature
What is the pattern of currents in the NORTHERN and SOUTHERN hemisphere?
N- Clockwise
S- Counter-clockwise
What happens when carbon dioxide is absorbed into seawater?
the ph decreases and the ocean becomes more acidic
What are some consequences of coral bleaching for marine ecosystems?
Loss of habitat and food for marine life
Explain how ice cores provide evidence for climate change.
The bubbles trapped in the ice can even tell us what the air was like at the time the ice was first formed, helping us to measure the changing levels of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere
What could happen to global climate patterns if the North Atlantic Conveyor Belt were to slow down?
Rising sea temperatures
What potential long-term impacts could ocean acidification have on ocean ecosystems?
Alter marine food chains and food supply to humans
Describe one way to help prevent coral bleaching.
Recycle, reduce stormwater runoff, minimize use of fertilizers
What is the relationship between temperature and carbon dioxide?
they mimic each other. as one goes up so does the other and vice versa
What do we call big loops of surface currents all over earth?
Gyres