Name ________________________________________ Period _____ Date _________
Chapter 20.1 Earth Systems Ocean Properties Chart
Directions: Copy the notes. Then sketch and label the drawings.
Earth System Standard and element: SES6. Students will explain how life on Earth
responds to and shapes Earth systems.
a. Relate the nature and distribution of life on Earth, including humans, to the chemistry
and availability of water.
1.)
Placed chart in notebook behind the
Chapter 20 Word Study. (Friday, March 28)
Sketch was shaded, accurate and included all drawings.
All 22 labels were accurately placed.
Sketch and descriptors were accurate, neatly drawn and written,
and large enough to be easily read.
2.)
3.)
4.)
____ yes
____ yes
____ yes
____ no
____ no
____ no
____ yes ____ no
OCEAN WATER
Ocean water is not pure and has many solids and gases dissolved in it. There are
also huge amounts of matter and large numbers of tiny organisms that are suspended in
oceans. Ocean water is complex and sustains many plants and animals.
PROPERTIES OF OCEANS?
Dissolved Gases:
 nitrogen (N2) and oxygen (O2) are the two main gases dissolved in ocean water
 carbon dioxide (CO2) is the third major gas
 other atmospheric gases make up the rest of the gases in oceans
How Do Gases Enter Oceans:
 gases enter oceans from rivers and streams
 gases enter oceans from underwater volcanic eruptions at mid-ocean ridges
 gases enter oceans from plants and animals that live in the ocean
 oxygen enters oceans directly from the surface where oceans and atmosphere
meet
How Does Temperature Affect Gases in Oceans:
 gases dissolve more readily in cold water than in warm water
 more gases dissolve in cold surface oceans than in tropical waters
 warm surface ocean water releases gases back to the atmosphere since warm

water holds fewer gases
as oceans heat and cool, gases are constantly being exchanged between the
atmosphere and the ocean water
Carbon Sinks:
 carbon is a nonmetallic element found in all living organisms
 oceans contain 60 times more carbon than is found in the atmosphere
 dissolved carbon dioxide (CO2) may be trapped on ocean floors for thousands of
years in places called carbon sinks
 carbon dioxide (CO2) affects the atmosphere's ability to trap solar energy from the
sun so oceans help regulate the climate
Dissolved Solids:
 ocean water is 96.5% pure water or two hydrogen molecules and one oxygen
molecule we call H2O
 dissolved solids in oceans make up 3.5% of the rest of the mass of oceans
most abundant elements dissolved in ocean water chlorine, sodium, magnesium,
sulfur, calcium, and potassium
 the salt halite makes up more than 85% of the oceans' dissolved solids
 trace elements or small amounts of gold, zinc, and phosphorus are found in oceans

Sources of Dissolved Solids
 most dissolved solids in oceans come from volcanic eruptions, chemical weathering
of rock on land, and chemical reactions between sea water and new rock hardening
from volcanic eruptions
 some dissolved solids come from sediments from rivers
Salinity of Oceans:
 salinity of ocean water is measured by 35 parts salt per 1,000 parts ocean water
Factors That Change Salinity:
 in oceans where evaporation is higher than rainfall, salinity is higher
Temperature of Ocean Water:
 the surface temperature of tropical ocean water can be as high as 30oC or 86oF
 the surface temperature of polar ocean water is below the freezing point of fresh
water
layer of water in which water temperature drops faster than is other layers is
called the thermocline
 deep ocean zones can be as cold as 2oC or 35.6oF
 cold ocean water holds more salts and solids than warm ocean water

Color of Ocean Water:
 color is determined by the way it absorbs or reflects sunlight
 organisms, such as phytoplankton, and solids in ocean water affect color
differently
HOW OCEANS AFFECT EARTH'S CLIMATE