Terms
Study of the ocean
Oceanography
Back-and-forth movement that transfers energy
What large stream moves through the ocean?
Ocean current
Underwater plains that border the continents
Continental shelf
Daily predictable movement of the ocean caused by the moon's gravitational pull
Tide
Type of sea floor mud made from minerals and the remains of tiny ocean organisms
Ooze
Land along the edge of the ocean
Shore
Underwater mountain range
Mid-ocean ridge
Salinity
Saltiness
Drainage divide at which two major river systems flow into different oceans
Continental divide
What is the thicker part of the earth's crust that lies beneath the continents?
Continental crust
Steep incline at the edge of the continental shelf leading toward the ocean floor
Continental slope
When the ocean tide is at its highest point
High tide
Ccean current that moves across the surface of the ocean
Surface current
Offshore ridge made of sand and other sediments
Sandbar
Valley where the oceanic crust seems to be separating
Rift
All water on earth, whether liquid, solid, or gas
Hydrosphere
Enormous wave caused by an earthquake on the ocean floor
Tsunami
What is the thinner part of the earth's crust below the ocean basins?
Oceanic crust
Buildup of sediment at the base of the continental slope
Continental rise
When the ocean tide is at its lowest point
Low tide
Ocean current that moves deep in the ocean
Subsurface current
Island parallel to the mainland's shore
Barrier island
Deep valley that cuts through the abyssal plain; deepest places of the ocean
Ocean trench
Layer of rock that holds water
Aquifer
Land drained by a river; watershed
Drainage basin
Why is water essential for life?
Every living cell needs water to function
Flat and mostly level floor of the ocean
Abyssal plain
When the high tide is at its very highest during a full or new moon when the gravitational forces of the sun and the moon are combined
Spring tide
Body of water where the river meets the ocean; contains brackish water
Estuary
Underwater volcanic mountain
Seamount
Openings in the ocean floor that release hot, mineral-rich water
Hydrothermal vent
Stream that empties into a river and joins its course
Tributary
High ridge that separates two river systems
Drainage divide
What area of the continental crust is underwater and is made up of the continental shelf, continental slope, and continental rise?
Continental margin
Process in which sediments are transported along the coast with the current
Longshore drift
Weaker high tide that occurs during a quarter moon when the gravitational forces of the sun and the moon work at right angles against each other
Neap tide
Upward-flowing current caused by a land breeze moving surface water away from the coast
Upwelling
Low area of land near the coast that floods with the tide
Salt marsh
Tectonic plant activity in which heavier plates are believed to have slid under lighter plates
Subduction