Tropical Storms
• When moisture laden air blows over warm ocean water a low pressure system forms
• Winds will spiral around the depression• What’s the difference between a hurricane and
a typhoon?– Location Location Location
• As the systems moves over the warm water:– Pulls water vapor up into the air– Vapor condenses and adds energy
El Nino / La Nina
• Occurs every 3 – 7 years• Normal:– Trade Winds move warm water off the coast– Keeps coastal water cool and with lots of nutrients
• During El Nino:– Trade Winds are weakened or reversed– Moves warm water to the coast– Water contains less oxygen and nutrients
• During La Nina:– Coastal waters are colder than normal
Upwelling and Redtides
• Upwelling:– Seasonal movement of cold, deep, nutrient rich
water to the surface– Large influx of nutrients causes exponential
increases in algae populations• Redtide:– Dinoflagellate blooms which produce toxins
Salt Water and Oceans
• Ocean’s salinity varies, but it about 3.5%– For every 1 liter of sea water there are 35 grams of
salt• Barrier Islands:– Created by deposited sediments– Continually shifting– Act as a buffer zone to shorelines behind them
Coral Reefs
• A type of barrier island• Built by cnidarians– Secrete a hard
calciferous shells• Diversity Reserviors– Corals provide homes
and food for numerous species
– An Oasis in the Desert
Ocean Zones
• Coastal:– Area between the shore and the edge of the
continental shelf• Euphotic: – Has the highest levels of dissolved oxygen– Most sunlight, >>>photosynthesis– Warmest region
• Bathyal:– Below Euphotic Zone, < sunlight– Not enough light for photosynthesis– Cooler than Euphotic
• Abyssal:– Deepest region of the ocean– Extremely cold temps– Very low dissolved oxygen
levels– Lots of nutrients– >>> Pressure
Ocean Currents• Thermohaline Conveyor– Large circulation of sea water– Contributes to the climates throughout the world– Driven by differences in temp, salinity, density and
Earth’s rotation
Freshwater
• Contains small amounts of salts, not near the extent of the ocean ( < 1.0% salt )
• Formed by the accumulation of liquid atmospheric moisture and melted snow
• Lakes, rivers, streams, ground water
Vocab regarding Freshwater
• Watershed:– An area that drains an area of land into a particular river or stream
• Estuaries:– Freshwater with increased nutrients, salts, and sediments– ‘arms’ of the ocean that extend inland– Salt water marshes, mangrove forests, bays, inlets
• Wetlands:– Areas where excess water sits on the surface of the Earth– Marshes, swamps, bogs, prairie potholes, flood plains
• Deltas:– Areas of rivers/streams that meet the ocean– Significantly slowed flow velocity causes sediments to fall to the
bottom
Freshwater Stratification
• Epilimnion:– Upper most, photosynthetic, warmer, less dense, most
oxygenated• Hypolimnion:– Lower, more dense, less oxygenated, cooler
• Thermocline– The transition between the Epi- and Hypo-limnion where a
dramatic temperature shift is experienced• Pycnocline– The transition between different layers of water which have
differing densities
Freshwater Stratification
• Littoral Zone:– From the shoreline to the point where rooted plants stop
growing– Abundant sunlight and photosynthesis
• Limnetic Zone:– Surface of open water– Abundant sunlight and photosynthesis
• Profundal Zone:– Aphotic zone = no sunlight
• Benthic Zone:– Deepest layer of water– Low temps, low oxygen
Human Water Use Key Words
• Riparian Right– People have legal rights to use a riparian area
• Prior Appropriation– Water is given to people who have traditionally used it in the past
• Interbasin Transfer– Water moved long distances away from their original source
• Confined/Unconfined Aquifer– No water is readily transported / water can freely move vertically
or horizontally• Water-stressed
– Annual supply of 1,000 – 2,000 cubic meters per person• Water-scarce
– < 1,000 cubic meters of water per person