Final Study Guide
Earth’s Structure
1. Describe the origin of Earth.
2. Know the different layers of Earth’s interior and their properties – crust, mantle, outer core, inner core.
3. Know differences between oceanic versus continental crust – composition, density, what is basalt, what
is granite.
4. List 3 lines of evidence for Earth’s internal structure. Explain
5. What are the 2 types of seismic waves? Describe each.
6. Describe how p-waves and s-waves help determine the property of Earth’s interior.
7. What is the lithosphere composed of?
8. What is the importance of a partially-molten asthenosphere in which the lithospheric plates sit on top of?
9. Know the composition of earth’s interior layers
Plate Tectonics
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List 4 lines of evidence that supports continental drift. Explain each.
Why was the Continental Drift Model not accepted?
Why was Continental Drift reexamined in the 1960’s?
What are the supporting evidence of Seafloor Spreading?
Briefly describe the idea behind Seafloor Spreading. Make a sketch show how sea floor spreading
works.
6. Describe how earthquakes, volcanoes, age of seafloor, paleomagnetism help support the idea of plate
boundaries.
7. What was the mechanism that provided the driving force to move lithospheric plates?
8. Who introduced the Theory of Plate Tectonics?
9. What are the Principles of Plate Tectonics?
10. Describe the three types of plate boundaries and give an example of each
11. Describe the three types of convergent boundaries and give examples of each.
Ocean Sediments
1. What are the 4 types of ocean sediments?
2. How do terrigenous sediments form and how are they transported to the deep ocean?
3. What type of sediment is found in the deepest oceans?
4. What is a biogenous ooze?
5. What 2 compositions make up biogenous oozes?
6. Give a “phytoplankton” and “zooplankton” example for both calcareous and siliceous oozes.
7. What is the Carbonate Compensation Depth (CCD)?
8. Be able to describe why calcareous oozes (CaCO3) are not found in the deep ocean bottom.
9. At what depths is CaCO3 found in the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans?
10. Siliceous oozes are found in areas of upwelling. Where does upwelling occur on a global scale?
11. Where are radiolarians found? Diatoms?
12. How do hydrogenous sediments form?
13. Be able to describe the formation of the cosmogenous sediments – microtektites – form.
Seawater Chemistry
1. What is salinity? What is the average salinity in our ocean?
2. What does it mean when we say 350\00
3. What are the 2 most abundant elements found in the ocean?
4. List the major constituents of seawater.
5. Why is the ocean salty?
6. What are the 2 sources of salts? The anions? And the Cations
7. Is the ocean getting saltier? Why or why not?
8. In what ways does salt leave the ocean?
9. What does the Principle of Constant Proportions state? How does this help us determine the amount
of salt present?
10. What are 2 ways of determining salinity?
11. Be able to calculate salinity and chlorinity using formula.
12. What factors affect salinity?
13. What does Residence Time mean?
14. Why are chlorine and sodium the most abundant elements in the ocean? In other words why do they
long residence times.
15. What are some of the effects of salinity?
16. List 3 ways to get fresh H2O from salt H2O. Be able to explain each.
17. What are the major gases in seawater?
18. Why is Oxygen (O2) abundant at the surface of the ocean?
19. Between 200 m – 1,000 m depth, O2 is decreasing and CO2 is increasing. Give 2 reasons?
20. At depths greater than 1,000 m O2 increases slightly. Explain how this happens.
21. How does CO2 control acidity?
22. What contributes to the increase of CO2 with depth?
23. Explain how CO2 acts a carbonate buffering system.
Dissolved Gases
24. What are some of the effects of salinity?
25. List 3 ways to get fresh H2O from salt H2O. Be able to explain each.
26. What are the major gases in seawater?
27. Why is Oxygen (O2) abundant at the surface of the ocean?
28. Between 200 m – 1,000 m depth, O2 is decreasing and CO2 is increasing. Give 2 reasons?
29. At depths greater than 1,000 m O2 increases slightly. Explain how this happens.
30. How does CO2 control acidity?
31. What contributes to the increase of CO2 with depth?
32. Explain how CO2 acts a carbonate buffering system.
33. Describe the gas cycle.
34. What are the major nutrients found in ocean water?
Atmosphere Circulation
1. What are convection currents? Be able to explain.
2. How are winds named?
3. Be able to explain why air rises at equator and 60º, and why air sinks at 30º and poles.
4. What is the Coriolis Effect?
5. If you lived near the equator, would you travel faster or slower on Earth than someone who lived near the poles?
6. Which way are winds deflected in the northern hemisphere? Southern hemisphere?
7. Which way do winds circle around a high pressure in the northern hemisphere – clockwise or counter-clockwise?
Southern hemisphere?
8. With regards to daily coastal variations in wind, explain onshore flows and offshore flows.
Surface Water Currents (Wind-driven)
1. When winds blow, how much are surface waters deflected? What is the net water movement when you take all of
the wind vectors into account?
2. Which way is water deflected in the northern hemisphere? Southern hemisphere?
3. Be able to determine whether coastal areas (West Coast or East Coast) experience upwelling or downwelling with
northerly and/or southerly winds.
4. Know whether convergence (currents coming together) or divergence (currents moving apart) produces upwelling
or downwelling.
5. What are gyres?
6. In the Pacific Ocean, where do you find warm ocean currents? Cold ocean currents?
7. Why are gyres displaced to the west?
8. What is the difference between “Western Intensification” and “Eastern Currents”?
9. Be able to list 5 factors that influence an El Nino Year.
Deep Ocean Current (Density-driven)
1. How does salinity affect density? If water is more saline, is it more dense? Or less dense?
2. What happens to more dense water (sink or rise)?
3. What are the 3 water masses found in the Atlantic Ocean?
4. What 2 factors determine the thickness and extent of the 3 water masses found in Atlantic Ocean?
5. What is responsible for deep ocean currents?
6. What is upwelling? Downwelling?
Make a drawing showing how oceans become stratified. Explain drawing
Waves
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What the 4 types of waves discussed in class and how are they generated?
Know all parts of a wave – crest, trough, height, etc.
Be able to define period (T). Frequency (f)
How are deep water waves classified? Shallow water waves?
Be able to describe the particle motion of deep water waves .
Where does water motion stop? If I give you a wavelength (L) and the depth of the ocean, be able to
tell me if water motion is dragging on the seafloor or not.
7. Know Velocity (V) = Wavelength (L)/Period (T). If I give you 2 factors, be able to calculate the 3rd.
For example, if I give you the Velocity (V) of a wave and its Wavelength (L), be able to calculate
Period (T).
8. Where are waves generated?
9. What is dispersion?
10. What is the relationship between wavelength and wave velocity
11. Which factors determine how large the waves will be.
12. What is Constructive Interference? Destructive Interference?
13. At what H/L ratio do waves break? If I give you the height (H) and wavelength (L), be able to tell me if
a wave will break or not.
14. What are the 3 types of waves and what are their differences?
15. What is refraction? Diffraction?
16. How does the wavelength, wave height, and particle motion of a wave change as it approaches the
coastlinge
17. What is a tsunami and what are their possible causes?
18. Know tsunami characteristics( height, wavelength, velocity, etc.
19. Make a drawing showing the a fault on the seafloor, and how the movement on the fault will
determine whether the trough or crest of the tsunami will hit the coast first.
20. What happens to the seawater along the coast when the trough of the tsunamic comes in first
Do Not Study Beaches—F’13
Beaches
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What is a beach?
Know shoreline divisions. Littoral zone, wave action, sediment profile
Know beach types and give an example of each
How are beaches classified?
What is the difference between a summer beach and winter beach?
Why does a beach grow in the summer and shrink in the winter?
What is refraction wave refraction?
How are longshore currents developed? Make a sketch
How does deposition and erosion occur when a groin is constructed on the beach. Make a sketch.
How does deposition and erosion occur when a breakwater is constructed on the beach. Make sketch.
Make a sketch showing how longshore transport develops.
What is a rip current? How is it formed?
Which beaches are likely to develop rip currents?
Describe movement of longshore current in terms of “swash” and “backwash”.
What is deposition and what are some of its features? Erosion and its features?
16.
What is a cliff, wave cut bench, and marine terrace?
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How is a cliff formed?
18.
How are arches, sea stacks produced? Are they formed by erosion or deposition?
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How are sand spits, barrier islands, bay mouth bars formed. Are they formed by erosion or deposition?
Know some of human impacts and interventions