Guided Notes about Ocean Movements

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Guided Notes about Ocean Movements

• Chapter 15, Section 3

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• 1. A wave is a rhythmic movement that carries
  energy through space or matter. An ocean wave is
  generated by wind flowing over the waters
  surface.

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• 2. The highest point in a wave is the crest, and
  the lowest is the trough. The vertical distance
  from crest to trough is the wave height.

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• 3. Wavelength is the horizontal crest-to-crest
  distance. Wave speed increases with wavelength.

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3 factors that determine wave height

• Wind speed
• Wind duration
• Fetch, which is the expanse of water that the
  wind blows across

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• 5. Tides are a periodic rise and fall of sea
  level. The daily cycle of high and low tides
  takes 24 hours and 50 minutes.

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• 6. Surface currents affect the upper few hundred
  meters of the ocean. They follow predictable
  patterns because they are driven by Earths
  global wind systems.

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• 7. Earths continents deflect ocean currents to
  the north and south so that closed circular
  current systems, called gyres, develop. The
  gyres of the northern hemisphere circulate in a
  clockwise direction because of the Coriolis
  effect.

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Define and state the importance of upwelling

• Upwelling is the upward motion of ocean water
  from cold, lower depths to the surface.
• Upwellings are important because they are rich in
  nutrients, which support abundant populations of
  marine life.