Please feel free to
submit glossary term sugestions to seacoos@unc.edu.
4DWX
Four-Dimensional Weather Systems and Technology
Absorption spectra
Wavelengths of electromagnetic energy that substances can absorb and convert
to heat. Plotted as relative efficiency of absorption versus wavelength. *
Abyssal Fan
Fan-shaped sediment accumulation spreading out and decreasing in thickness
from a point of a large sediment input. Usually off the mouth of a river or
at the foot of a submarine canyon.*
Abyssal hills
Sediment-covered volcanic peaks that rise less than 1 km above the deep
ocean floor.*
Abyssal plain
Flat seafloor extending seaward from the base of the continental slope and
continental rise or from the seaward edge of an oceanic trench.*
Abyssal zone
The benthic environment between 4,000 and 6,000 m.*
Acid rain
Rain with acidity higher than normal because of dissolved gaseous emissions
of ndustry and automobiles, notably sulfur compounds.*
Expansion of a gas without the addition of external heat. Causes temperatures
of the gas to decrease. Adiabatic compression causes the temperature to increase.*
Adsorption
Attraction and adhesion of ions to a solid surface.*
AIRMAP is to develop a detailed understanding of climate variability and
the source of persistent air pollutants in New England.
Algae
Simple single-celled or many celled plants that have no root, stem , or
leaf system.*
Algal ridge
An irregular ridge on the wave-exposed seaward edge of many coral reefs.
Composed of encrusting algae.*
Alkalinity
The opposite of acidity. A measure of the degree to which the concentration
of hydroxyl ions (OH-) is greater than the concentration of hydrogen ions
(H+).*
Amino acids
One of a number of compounds that to form proteins.*
Amoeba
A microscopic single-celled animal that moves by making continuous protrusions
of the body and feeds by engulfing bits of food.*
Amphidromic
Amphidromic system or point
a tidal wave that rotates around an ocean basin during one tidal period. Rotates
around an amphidromic point (a node) at which the tidal range is zero.*
Amphipods
An order of Subphylum Crustacea, Phylum Arthropoda that includes laterally
compressed members such as the "sand hoppers."*
Amplitude
Vertical distance from the mean level of a wave (the still sea surface for
an ocean wave) to the crest or to the trough. Equals one-half the wave height.*
Anadromous
Pertaining to species of fish that are spawned in freshwater, migrate to
the ocean to live until they reach maturity, then return to freshwater to
spawn.*
Anemones
Multicellular animals of the Class Anthozoa, Phylum Cnidaria. Single or
colonial polypal forms.*
Angle of Incidence
The angle between a wave front (usually an electromagnetic wave) or a wave
ray and the plane of an interface that it meets. The angle of approach. Important
in refraction.*
The part of a standing wave where the vertical motion is at a maximum.*
Aphtoic Zone
The part of the ocean in which light is insufficient for photosynthesis.
Below about 1,000 m in clear ocean water, shallower in more turbid waters.*
Argonite
A mineral form of calcium carbonate. Less common than calcite but comprises
shells of many pteropod species.*
ASOS
Automated Surface Observing System
ASOS is an automated meteorological observing system sponsored by the Federal
Aviation Administration (FAA), National Weather Service (NWS) and the Department
of Defense (DOD).*
Aspect ratio
An index of the propulsive efficiency of a fish species obtained by dividing
the square of caudal fin height by the area of the caudal fin.*
Assimilative capacity
Maximum rate at which a particular segment of the environment or ocean can
accommodate the input of a substance. Usually applies to anthropogenic waste
materials.*
Asthenosphere
A plasitc or partially molten layer of the Earth's upper mantle on which
the continents "float." Variable in thickness, with its upper boundary at
depths of 10 km or more and its lower boundary at depths as great as 800 km.*
Atoll
A ring-shaped coral reef that grows upward from a submerged volcanic peak
and encloses a lagoon. May support low-lying islands composed of coral debris.*
Autotroph
Autotroph (adj. autotrophic)
Plant or bacterium that can synthesize organic compounds from inorganic nutrients
by photosynthesis or chemosynthesis.*
AWOS
Automated Weather Observing System
AWOSis an automated meteorological observing system consisting of both FAA
purchased and maintained stations as well as stations owned and operated by
state, local, and private organizations.
Back Scatter
The portion of the light or sound randomly reflected off particles suspended
in a fluid that is scattered back in the general direction of the light or
sound source.*
Back-island Basin
Generally shallow sea created on the non-subducting plate at an oceanic
convergent margin where the subduction is fast enough to stretch the edge
of the non-subducting plate. Lies behind the volcanic island arc.*
Backshore
The inner portion of the shore that is landward of the mean spring-tide
high water line. Acted upon by the waves only during exceptionally high tides
and severe storms.*
Backwash
The water flowing down a beach after the swash of one wave has stopped and
before the swash of the next wave arrives.*
Bacteria
Microscopic single-celled organisms of the Phylum Schizophyta. Predominantly
autotrophic and decomposers. Mostly parasitic. Reproduce by cell division.*
Baleen
A horny material consisting of numerous plates with fringed edges that grows
down from th eupper jaw of plankton-feeding whales. Used to filter (strain)
the plankton food from water.*
Bar-built Estuaries
Shallow estuaries (lagoons) separated from the open ocean by bar such as
a barrier island. Water usually well mixed vertically.*
Barnacles
An order of the Subphylum Crustacea, Phylum Arthropoda that attach to the
substrate, secrete a protective covering of calcareous plates and shells,
and strain food particles from the water with a web-like structure.*
Barrier islands
Long, narrow islands built of wave transported sand, separated from the
mainland by a usually shallow lagoon.*
Barrier Reef
Coral reef that parallels the shore but is separated from the landmass by
open water.*
Basaltic
Pertaining to a dark colored volcanic rock characteristic of the ocean crust.
Rich in iron, magnesium, and calcium.*
A shallow bar, usually of sand, that extends partially or completely across
the mouth of the bay.*
Beach
Sand or sediment covered zone between the seaward limit of permanent vegetation
and the mean low water line. Sometimes includes the seafloor from the mean
low water line to the surf zone.*
Benthic
Pertaining to the seafloor, or to organisms that live on or in the seafloor.*
A nearly horizontal portion of a beach backshore at whose seaward edge the
beach abruptly slopes seaward.*
Bioaccumulation
Bioaccumulation (vb. Bioaccumulate.)
the process by which dissolved chemicals are taken up by organisms until the
concentrations in the tissues are at equilibrium with those in the solution.*
Bioassay
A test in which organisms are exposed to different concentrations of a substance
to determine the concentration at which the substance is toxic to that species.*
Bioavailable
In a chemical form that is suitable for uptake by organisms.*
Biochemical
Pertaining to the synthesis, conversion, use, and decomposition of organic
chemicals in the life process of organisms.*
Biodegradable.
Capable of being composed by organisms in the environment. Generally refers
to decomposition to harmless substances.*
Biodiversity
A poorly defined term that refers to a combination of genetic diversity,
species diversity, ecosystem diversity, and physiological diversity within
a community or ecosystem.*
Biogenous
Pertaining to material of a biological origin. Usually applied to sediments
in which the hard-part remains of organisms (e.g., Diatom tests, radiolarian
shells) constitute a high proportion of the grains.*
Biogeochemical cycle
The transfer of compounds among the living and nonliving components of an
ecosystem.*
Bioluminescent
Light producing. Applied to organisms that use chemical reactions to produce
light.*
Biomagnification
Biomagnification (vb) Biomagnify
The process by which dissolved chemicals are taken up by organisms and continuously
accumulated to higher concentrations throughout the life cycle. Tissue concentrations
are not in equilibrium with concentrations in the surrounding environment.*
Biomass
The total amount of living matter, expressed in units of weight in the entire
water column per unit area of water surface, or weight per unit of water volume.*
Bioturbation
Reworking (churning and mixing) of sediments by organisms that burrow in
them.*
Bloom
A very dense agregation of phytoplankton, resulting from a rapid rate of
reproduction.*
Refers to water that is a mixture of freshwater and sea water and has a
low salinity.*
Breakwaters
Artificial structures constructed in the ocean to protect a shore from the
action of ocean waves.*
Brine
Water that has a higher salinity (generally much higher) than normal seawater.*
Brittlestars.
Organisms of the Class Ophioroidia, Phylum Echinodermata that have long
slender arms covered in bristles attached to a small central disk.*
Bulkheads
Structures constructed to separate land and water areas at the shoreline
and designed to reduce earth slides and slumps or lessen wave erosion at the
base of a cliff.*
Buoyancy
Buoyancy (adj. buoyant)
The ability of an object to float (or rise through a fluid) due to a density
difference between the object and the fluid in which it is immersed.*
Bycatch
Fish and other marine animals caught in fishers' nts that are not the target
of the fishing. They are generally thrown over as waste.*
A crater in a volcano, usually at the center, created by an explosion or
collapse of the volcanic cone.*
Calorie
The unit of heat energy defined as the amount of heat needed to raise the
temperature of one gram of water by 1 degree Celcius.*
Capillary waves
Small ocean waves that have wavelengths less than 1.5 cm. The primary restoring
force for these waves is surface tension.*
Carbonate compensation depth
The depth below which all calcium carbonate particles falling from above
are dissolved before they can be incorporated in the sediments.*
Carcinogens
Carcinogens (adj. carcinogenic)
Compounds that cause cancer in animals.*
Carnivores
Carnivores (adj. carnivorous)
Animals that depend solely on other animals for their food supply.*
Caro-COOPS
Carolinas Coastal Ocean Observing and Prediction System
Provide information used to monitor and model estuarine and coastal ocean
conditions, as well as develop predictive tools and ultimately forecasts for
coastal manager. http://www.carocoops.org/
Cartilaginous
Pertaining to vertebrate animals that have skeletons made of cartilage,
a tough elastic tissue.*
Catadromous
Pertaining to a species of fish that are spawned at sea, migrate to a freshwater
stream or lake where they live until they reach maturity, then return to sea
to spawn.*
Chesapeake Bay Observing System
Observing System with real-time data http://www.cbos.org/
CDIP
The Coastal Data Information Program
Measures, analyzed, archives, and disseminates coastal environment data for
use by coastal engineers, planners, and managers as well as scientists and
mariners. http://cdip.ucsd.edu/
Central Rift Valley
A steep-sided linear valley that runs along the crest of many parts of the
oceanic ridges. Created by pulling apart of the diverging plates.*
Centripital Force
The force that acts toward the center of rotation of an orbiting body and
that is needed to maintain the object in its circular path and prevent it
from moving off in a straight line.*
Cephalopoda
A class of organisms of the Phylum Mollusca with a well- developed pair
of eyes and a ring of tentacles surrounding the mouth. Most have no, or an
internal, shell. Includes squid, octopus, and nautilus.*
Cetaceans
An order of marine mammals that includes whales, porpoises, and dolphins.*
Chaotic
Pertaining to the apparently random behavior of systems that involve non-linear
relationships.*
Chemosynthesis
The formation of organic compounds from inorganic substances by use of energy
obtained from oxidation of substances such as hydrogen sulfide, ammonia, hydrogen,
and methane.*
Chloroflorocarbons
A class of compounds used as refridgerants and for many other purposes.
When released to the atmosphere they migrate upward to the ozone layer where
they react with ozone, reducing its concentration.*
Chlorophyll
A group of green pigments that are essential to plants and are active in
the capture of light energy for photosynthesis.*
Chordata
The phylum of animals to which mammals, reptiles, birds, fishes, and tunicates
belong.*
Chronic toxicity
Sublethal or lethal effects due to long-term exposure of an organism to
a toxis substance at concentrations below that at which the organism suffers
immediate (within days or weeks) sublethal or lethal effects.*
Climate
The long-term averages of weather conditions such as temperature, rainfall,
and percentage cloud cover and the distribution of these averages among the
seasons at a given location.*
Clones
Members of a species that are genetically identical because they are asexually
reproduced.*
C-MAN
Coastal Marine Automated Network
C-MAN is a real-time marine station observing network which records air temperature,
wind velocity, and MSLP.
Cnidarians
Also called Coelenterata. Phylm of predominately marine animals with a sac-like
body and stinging cells on tentacles that surround a single opening to the
gut cavity. The two basic body forms are the medusa and the polyp.*
Coast
A strip of land that extends from the shore inland to the seaward limit
of terrain that is unaffected by marine processes.*
Coastal Plain
The low-lying land next to the ocean extending inland until the first major
change in the features of the terrain.*
Coastal plain estuary
An estuary formed by flooding of a coastal river valley as sea level rises.*
Coastal upwelling
Vertical transport and mixing of deep nutrient water into the surface water
mass as a result of offshore Ekman (windblown) transport of surface water.*
Coastal zone
The zone between the coastline and the point offshore to which the influence
of freshwater runoff extends (often the shelf break). Also, can mean this
area of coastal ocean plus the adjacent coast.*
Coastline
The landward limit reached by the highest storm waves on the shore.*
Coccolithophores
Microscopic plankton algae surrounded by a cell wall embedded with calcareous
discs called "coccoliths".*
Pertaining to the molecular force between particles within a substance that
acts to hold the particles together. Cohesive particles behave as if they
were sticky.*
Colloidal
Pertaining to substances that have a particle size smaller than clay.*
Community
All of the organisms that live within some defineable area or volume of
ocean or land.*
Compensation Depth
Depth at which algae consume oxygen for respiration at the same rate as
they produce oxygen by photosynthesis.*
Complexed
Generally refers to a dissolved ion that has an association (a weak electromagnetic
bond) with the molecules of a polar organic substances. The association can
alter the ion's solubility, bioavailability, and toxicity.*
COMPS
West Florida Coastal Ocean Monitoring and Prediction System
A real-time Coastal Ocean Monitoring and Prediction System for West Florida,
provides additional data needed for a variety of management issues. http://comps.marine.usf.edu/
COMPS
Coastal Ocean Monitoring and Prediction System
A system provided by the University of South Florida, provide real-time data. http://comps.marine.usf.edu/tampa2.html
Contaminants
Contaminants (vb Contaminate)
A substance added to an ecosystem (or to a sample, organism, or other object)
in an amount that causes the concentration of the substance to exceed its
natural level. Does not imply that the addition has harmful effects.*
Continental collision margins
Where two lithospheric plates converge, each of which has continental crust
at the margin.*
Continental convergent margins
Where two lithospheric plates converge, one with continental crust at the
margin and the other with oceanic crust.*
Continental divergent margin
A region where a continent is splitting apart to form the edges of two new
lithospheric plates.*
Continental drift
the movement of the continents over the Earth's surface. Name of theory
that preceeded plate tectonics.*
Continental shelf
The zone bordering a continenet that extends from the low water line to
the depth at which there is a marked increase in the downward slope of the
seafloor that continues to the deep ocean floor.*
Continental slope
The relatively steeply sloping seafloor seaward of the continental shelf
that ends where the downward slope markedly decreases at the edge of the deep
ocean floor.*
Contour
Meter charted (e.g. ocean depth, temperature, salinity).*
Convection
Convection (vb, convect)
In a fluid being warmed at its bottom and/or cooled at its upper surface,
the process by which warmer fluid rises and cooler fluid sinks in a density-driven
circulation.*
Convection cell
The circulatory system established by convection in which water (or other
fluid) is warmed, rises, is displaced by newly upwelled warm water, cools,
and sinks to be warmed again.*
Convergence
Convergence (vb. Converge)
Location at which fluids of different origins come together usually horizontally
(often in a convection cell). Results in sinking (downwelling) or rising (upwelling)
when the convergence is at the top or bottom surface of a fluid layer, respectively.*
Convergent margin
Lithospheric plate boundary where the relative motion of adjacent plates
is toward each other, producing ocean trench/island arc systems or ocean trench/continental
mountain and volcano complexes.*
COOA
Coastal Ocean Observation and Analysis
One of nine partner institutions comprising NOAA's Coastal Observation Technology
System established by the University of New Hampshire. http://www.cooa.unh.edu/
COOL
Coastal Ocean Observation Laboratory
This network consists of a number of different observing systems, provide
by Rutgers University Institute of Marine Science. http://marine.rutgers.edu/mrs/
Center for Operational Oceanogrphic Produts and Services
Copepods
Small shrimp-like animals of the Subphylum Crustacea that are zooplankton.*
Coral reef
A mainly calcerous reef composed substantially of coral, coraline algae,
and sand. Present only in waters where the minimum water temperature is 18
degrees Celcius or higher.*
Coral(s)
A group of benthic cnidarians that exist as individuals or in colonies and
may secrete external skeletons of calcium carbonate.*
CORIE
Columbia River Estuary Real-Time Obseravtion and Forecasting
CORIE is a pilot environmental observation and forecasting system (EOFS) for
the Columbia River. It integrates a real-time sensor network, a data management
system and advanced numerical models. http://www.ccalmr.ogi.edu/CORIE/
Coriolis effect
An apparent deflection of a freely moving object caused by the Earth's rotation.
The deflection is cum sole.*
Cosmogenous
Pertaining to material that originated in outer space (e.g. meteorite fragments).
Generally applied to particles of such origin with sediments.*
Dark and non-reflective color on the upper half and light reflective color
on the lower half of a pelagic fish that reduces visibility to predators from
above and below.*
Covalent Bond
A chemcial bond in which atoms are combined to form compounds by sharing
one or more pairs of electrons.*
Crest
For a wave, the portion that is displaced above the still water line. Often
used to refer to the highest point of the wave (or other topographic feature)
only.*
CREWS
NOAA Coral Reef Watch Program
The mission of CREWS is to utilize remote sensing, computational algorithms
and artificial intelligence tools in the near real-time monitoring, modeling
and reporting of physical environmental conditions which adversely influence
coral reef ecosystems.
Crinoids
Animals of the Class Crinoidea, Phylum Echinodermata. Also called "feather
stars."*
CRN
US Climate Reference Network
The US Climate Reference Network is a real-time climatological network which
records air temperature, precipitation, and wind velocity.
Crust
The outer shell of solid Earth. The lower limit is usually considered to
be the Mohorovicic discontinuity (top of the atmosphere). Thickness ranges
from about 6 km beneath the oceans to 30 to 40 km beneath the continents.*
Crustaceans
Animals of a Subphylum (Crustacea) of the Phylum Arthropoda that have paired
jointed appendages and hard outer skeletons. Includes barnacles, copepods,
lobsters, crabs, and shrimp.*
Abbreviation for conductivity, temperature, and depth. Refers to an instrument
package that measures these parameters continuously while being lowered and
raised through the water column.*
Ctenophores
Phylum (Ctenophora) of transparent planktonic animals that are spherical
or cylindrical in shape with rows of cilia. Include comb jellies.*
Cum Sole
To the left in the Northern hemisphere and the right in the Southern hemisphere.
Means, "with the sun."*
Insecticide widely used in the United States in the 1950s and 1960s. Caused
major damage to birds and marine mammal populations. Now banned in mant countries
but still widely used in the tropics.*
Declination
A measure of the sun's (or moon's) apparent north-south seasonal movement.
The angle between a line from the Earth's center to the sun (or moon) and
the plane of the equator.*
Decomposers
Heterotrophic microogranisms (mostly bacteria and fungi) that break down
nonliving matter to obtain energy. During decomposition nutrients are released
to solution and become available for reuse by autotrophs.*
Deep water wave
Ocean wave that is traveling in water depth greater than one half its wave
length.*
Delta
A low-lying deposit of riverborne sediment at the mouth of a river. Usually
triangular in shape.*
Density
The mass per unit volume of a substance. Usually expressed as grams per
cubic centimeter.*
Deposit feeders
Organisms that feed by ingesting particles of sediment and metabolizing
organic matter in or on the particles.*
Depositional
Pertaining to locations where sediment has a tendency to accumulate.*
Detritus
Any loose material, but generally applies to decomposed, broken, and dead
organisms.*
Pertaining to chemical or mineralogical changes that take place in a sediment
or sedimentary rock after its formation.*
Diatoms
Microscopic unicellular algae of the Phylum Chrysophyta that have an external
skeleton of silica.*
Diffusion
Diffusion (vb. Diffuse)
Movement of substance (or property such as temperature) by randome molecular
motions from a refion of higher concentration to a region of lower concentration
(along a concentration gradient).*
Dinoflagellate
Single-celled microscopic organism that may have chlorophyll, be autotrophic,
and be a member of the plant Phylum Pyrrophyta or may be heterotrophic and
belong to the animal Phylum Protozoa. Often has characteristics of both plants
and animals.*
Dip angle
The angle to the horizontal of the direction of the magnetic field in rock.
This angle is approximately equal to the latitude at which the rock formed.*
Diurnal tide
A tide with one high water and one low water during a tidal day.*
Divergence
Divergence (vb Diverge)
Horizontal flow of a fluid away from a common center. The fluid I replaced
by upwelling if the divergence is at the surgace of the fluid and by downwelling
is it is at the bottom.*
Divergent Margins
Boundaries between lithospheric plates that mare pulling apart from each
other.*
Diversity
Diversity (adjj. Diverse)
Relates to the presence of variety or variation within an ecosystem. May be
applied to a variety of species, variety of genes within a spcies, variety
of habitat, etc.*
DNA
Deoxyriboneucleic acid. A complex organic molecule that contains the genetic
code.*
Downwelling (adj. Downwelled.)
Vertical movement of a fluid downward due to density differences or where
two fluid masses converge, displacing dluid downward. In the ocean, often
refers to where Ekman transport causes surface waters to converge or impinge
on the coast.*
Drift nets
Nets hung vertically like drapes that may extend for many kilometers. They
indiscriminantly catch anything that swims into the net.*
Dynamic height
The height of the water column above a depth below which no currents are
assumed to be present.*
Eastern boundary current
The surface layer current that flows toward the equator on the eastern side
of a subtropical gyre. Slow, wide, and shallow.*
Ebb
The period of a tidal cycle when the tidal current is flowing seaward or
when the tide level is falling.*
Echinoderms
Phylum of animals that have bilateral symmetry in larval forms and usually
a five-sided radil symmetry as adults. Benthic with rigid or articulating
external skeletons of calcium carbonate with spines. Includes sea stars, brittlestars,
and sea urchins.*
Echolocation
Use of sound by some marine animal to locate and identify underwater objects
from their echoes.*
Ecology
Ecology (adj ecological)
The study of relationships between species and between the species and their
environment.*
Ecosystem
The organisms in a community and the nonliving environment with which they
interact.*
Net wind-driven transport of surface water at an angle cum sole to the wind
direction as a result of the Coriolus effect.*
El Nino
An episodic movement of warm surface water south along the coast of Peru
associated with the cessation of upwelling in this region. Often used to refer
to a complex episodic sequence of events in the ocean and atmosphere, "El
Nino Southern Oscillation."*
Electrical Conductivity
A measure of a substance's ability to conduct an electric current. In seawater,
it is related to (and used to measure) salinity.*
Electromagnetic radiation
Energy that travels at the speed of light as waves. Wavelengths range from
very long (up to 10 km) to very short (10 to the negative 12th m) cosmic rays.*
Electrostatic
Electrostatic (adv. Electrostatically)
Pertaining to the attractive or repulsive force between two bodies that are
electrically charged and where no electrical current flows.*
Wavelengths at which warm bodies emit electromagnetic energy. Plotted as
relative intensity of emission versus wavelength. Vary with object's temperature.*
Encrust
Encrust (adj. Encrusting)
To grow on the surface of and form a crust on a solid substrate.*
Environment
The physical and chemical characteristics of a location or area.*
Enzyme
An organic substance that is synthesized by organisms and behaves as a catalyst
for biochemical reactions.*
Epifauna
Animals that live on the surface of the seafloor or other substrate, either
moving freely or attached.*
Epipelagic Zone
The upper region of the oceanic province. The water column from the surface
to a depth of 200 m.*
Equinoxes
The times when the sun is directly overhead at the equator. About March
21 and September 21 each year.*
Erosion
Erosion (vb. Erode adj. Erosional)
A process of being gradually worn away. Usually the action of winds and currents
on rocks and sediments.*
Estuary
Estuary (adj. Estuarine)
Any region where freshwater and seawater mix.*
Euphausiids
An order of shrimp-like planktonic animals of the Subphylum Crustacea, Phylum
Arthropoda.*
Eustatic
Eustatic (adv. Eustatically)
Refers to a change of sea level that takes place worldwide as distinct from
locally.*
Eutrophication
Pyhsical and biological changes that occur when excessive nutrients are
released into an aquatic environment. May lead to blooms and anoxia.*
Evaporite
A mineral deposit formed by evaporation of seawater.*
Exclusive Economic Zone
Zone in which the coastal state has ownership of resources including fish
and seafloor minerals. Generally 200 nautical miles (370 km) wide.*
Excretions
Excretions (vb. Excrete)
Substances that are released to the external environment from the tissues
of a living organism. Generally waste products.*
Excurrent
In animals that feed by pumping or passing water through the body (e.g.,
tunicates) refers to the opening through which the ingested water is expelled
from the organism.*
Exotic terrances
Fragments of continental crust or sometimes oceanic crust and sediments
that have been accreted (attached) to other continents.*
Extratropical cyclones
Cyclonic storms formed in high latitudes at the polar fronts. Resemble and
can be as strong as hurricanes.*
Family
A level of taxonomic classification of species that is between the levels
Order and Genus.*
Fault
A fracture in the Earth's crust in which one side has been displaced in
relation to the other.*
The remains of an organism, or its imprint that has been preserved in rocks.*
Fossil Fuel
Fuel that is fossil material, including oil, natural gas, coal, and peat.*
Foul
Foul (adj Fouling)
To attach to or lie on the surface of an underwater object. Applies especially
to barnacles and other marine organisms that grow on vessel hulls and other
human-made structures.*
Fracture zones
Linear zones of steep-sided irregular seafloor topography. Most are inactive
remnants of transform faults.*
Frequency
The number of periodic events that occur within a specified interval. For
waves, the number of crests (or troughs) that pass a given point per unit
time; the inverse of wave period.*
Friction
The retarding force that resists the motion of two objects (or an object
and a fluid, or two fluids -- see shear stress) that are moving in relations
to each other and whose surfaces are in contact.*
Fringing reef
Reef that is attached to the shore of an island of continent with no open
water lagoon between the reef and the shore.*
Front
A well-defined boundary between two air masses or two water masses of different
density.*
NOAA Forescast Systems Laboratory
FSL conducts applied meteorological research and development to improve and
create short-term warning and weather forecast systems, models, and observing
technology. http://www.fsl.noaa.gov/
Fundamental niche
The range of environmental variables within which a species can both survive
and successfully reproduce.*
Fungi
Members of the Kingdom Fungi, organisms that reproduce by means of spores.
Marine fungi are mostly microscopic benthic decomposers.*
Genetic
Pertaining to the genes of an organism. Refers to the information (genetic
code) encoded in DNA and other substances that descrives the characteristics
of an organism and that can be passed on to the offspring during reproduction.*
Genus
A level of taxonomic classification of species that is between the levels
Species and Family.*
Geostrophic
Refers to cyclonic fluid motions that are mainatined as a result of a near
balance between a gravity-induced horizontal pressure gradient and the Coriolus
effect.*
Gills
Thin walled organs of marine animals used for respiration.*
Glacial
Pertaining to glaciers. Usually refers to a feature created by the action
of a glacier.*
Glaciation
The extent to which glaciers are developed in a given area or at a given
time.*
Glaciers
Large masses of ice that form on land by the recrystalization of old compacted
snow. They flow from the area where the are formed downhill to an area where
ice is removed by melting or calving (breaking off) into a body of water.*
Gobies
A family of small bony fishes (Class Ostreichthyes, Subphylum Vertebrata,
Phylum Chordata). Many species have pelvic fins modified to form a suction
disk.*
GoMOOS
Gulf of Maine Ocean Observing System
A national pilot program designed to bring hourly oceanographic data from
the Guilf of Maine to all those who need it. http://www.gomoos.org/
GOOS
Global Ocean Observing System
GOOS is a permanent global system for observations, modelling and analysis
of marine and ocean variables to support operational ocean services worldwide. http://ioc.unesco.org/goos/
Graded bed
A vertical sequence of sediments or sedimentary rock in which each layer
comprises particles of smaller grain size from bottom to top.*
The attractive force between any two bodies in the universe.*
Grazers
Grazers (vb. Graze)
Strictly, animals that eat plants, but the term applies more generally ro
animals that eat detritus (or other animals) that cover the surface of a substrate.*
Greenhouse effect
The tendency of the atmosphere or greenhouse glass to be transparent to
incoming solar radiation while absorbing (or reflecting) longer wavelength
heat radiation from the Earth.*
Groins
Artificial structures that project into the ocean from the shore. They block
longshore transportation of sediment and usually are intended to trap sand
and prevent its loss from a beach.*
Groundwater
Water beneath the ground surface that has seeped through the soil and rock
from above.*
GSOS
GPS Surface Observing System
GSOS is a real-time meteorological observing network which records air temperature,
relative humidity, station pressure, and surface pressure at many GPS-IPW
stations.
Guyot
A conical volcano-shaped feature on the ocean floor whose top has been eroded
to form a flat top.*
Gyre
A circular motion. Generally refers to a circular current system centered
in the subtropical high-pressure region of a major ocean basin.*
Habitat
The palce where a particular plant or animal lives.*
Hadal zone
The deepest environment of the oceans. Restricted to ocean trenches deeper
than 6 km.*
Half-life
The time required for half the atoms of a radioactive isotope sample to
decay to atoms of another element.*
Halocine
A depth range in the water column in which there is a gradient of salinity
in the vertical demension.*
Hard parts
The rigid structural material of plants and algae and the shells and skeletons
of animals. Usually siliceous or calcareous.*
Harmonics
The component simple waves that are added together to make up the complex
waveform observed as a result of the interference of waves of different frequencies
and/or from different directions.*
Heat Capacity
The amount of heat required to raise the temperature of 1 g of a substance
1 degree C.*
Herbicides
Chemicals that are used to kill or inhibit the growth of plants.*
Herbivores
Herbivores (adj. herbivorous)
Animals that rely primarily or solely on plants for their food.*
Hermatypic corals
Reef-building corals that have symbiotic algae in their tissues and that
cannot grow successfully below the photic zone.*
Hermit crab
Any number of species of crabs of the Suborder Repantia, Order Decapoda,
Subphylum Crustacea, Phylum Anthropoda that have no shell of their own. They
live in shells of dead gastropod mollusks and move to larger shells as they
grow.*
Herring
A family of small planktonivorous bony fishes (Class ostreichthytes, Subphylum
Vertebrata, Phylum Chordata) that have only tissues and are extremely abundant
in some areas. Includes sardines, achovies.*
Heterotrophs
Animals or bacteria that do not photosynthesize or chemosynthesize and therefore
depend for food and energy on organiz compounds produced by other species.*
High seas
These are of the world oceans that is outside the territorial control of
any nation.*
High tide line
The highest point on the shore that is covered by water at high tide.*
High tide zone
The zone of the shore that is mostly exposed and lies between the lowest
(neap) high tide line and highest (spring) tide line.*
Holoplankton
Organisms that spend their entire life as members of the plankton.*
Surface expression of a persistent convection plume of molten mantle material
rising from the Earth's surface.*
Humidity
The amount of water vapor in the air. Measured as relative humidity, the
ratio of thw water vapor concentration to the saturation concentration at
the same temperature and pressure expressed as a percentage.*
Hurricane
A tropical cyclone storm with winds that have velocity greater than 120
km per hour. Applies to such storsm in the North Atlantic Ocean,eastern North
Pacific Ocean, Caribbean Sea, and Gulf of Mexico.*
Hydrated
Hydrated (n. hydration)
Chemically combined with water, or loss surrounded by water molecules in a
weak electrostatic association.*
Hydrogen bond
A bond between molecules that forms because of the diploar nature of the
molecules. Present in water and a few other compounds.*
Hydrogenous
Pertaining to solid material formed by chemical precipitation from solution.
Usually applies to the component particles or coatings of sediments that are
precipitated from seawater.*
Hydrographic
Pertaining to the mapping of the oceans and their depth.*
Hydroids
A group of animal species of the Class Hydrozoa, Phylum Cnidaria. Polypoid
forms attach to the substrate, most are colonial, many with a branching form
resembling a feather or fern on which individual polyps are arranged.*
The gaseous, liquid, and solid water of the Earth's upper crust, ocean,
and atmosphere. Includes lakes, groundwater, snow, ice, and water vapor.*
Hydrostatic pressure
The pressure that results from the weight of the water column that overlies
the depth at which the pressure is measured.*
Hydrothermal minerals
Predominantly fine-grained particles that are precipitated from the water
discharged at hydrothermal vents.*
Hydrothermal vents
Locations where heated water is vented through the seafloor. This water
is sea water that has percolated down through fractures in recently formed
ocean floor and has bee heated by underlying magma. Mostly near the central
axis of oceanic ridges/rises.*
Ice age
Period during which the Earth's average climatic temperature was colder,
glaciers more extensive, and sea level lower. Several such periods have occurred
in the past million years, each lasting several thousand years.*
Ice exclusion
The process whereby salts are excluded from the ice formd as seawater freezes,
resulting in a higher salinity in the remaining liquid water.*
The maintainance of eggs or embryos in a favorable environment for hatching
and development.*
Incurrent
In animals that feed by pumping or passing water through the body (e.g.,
truncates) refers to the opening through which the ingested water is taken
into the organism.*
Infauna
Animals that live buried in soft sediments (sand or mud).*
Intermediate waves
Surface water waves with wavelengths between those of deep water waves and
shallow water waves. Waves in water depths between one half and one twentieth
of the wavelength.*
Internal waves
A wave that develops below the surface of a fluid at a pycnocline and travels
along this boundary.*
Intertidal zone
Also called the "littoral zone" of "foreshore." The zone covered by the
highest normal tides and exposed by the lowest normal tides and any tide pools
within this zone.*
Intertropical convergence
Zone where northeast trade winds and southeast trade winds converge.*
An atom that becomes electrically charged by gaining or losing one or more
electrons to produce a negatively charged anion or a positively charged cations,
respectively.*
Ionic bond
Chemical bond that is formed by the electrical attraction between cations
and anions.*
IOOS
Integrated Ocean Observing System
Isobars
Isobars (isobaric chart)
Lines that connect values of equal pressure on a map or graph.*
Isopods
Anmials with flattened bodies belonging to an order of the Phylum Crustacea.
Mostly scavengers or parasites on other crustaceans or fish.*
Isostasy
Isostasy (adv. Isostastically)
An equilibrium, comparabl to buoyancy, in which the rigid lithospheric plates
float on the underlying mantle.*
Isostatic leveling
The tendency of lithospheric plates to rise or fall to an equilibrium level
with respect to the level at which they float on the asthenosphere after their
density or mass has changed.*
Isostope
Isotope (adj. Isotopic)
Atoms of an element that have a different number of neutrons, and therefore
a different atomic mass, than other atoms, or isotopes, of the element.*
Lines that connect points of equal temperature on a graph or map.*
Jet streams
Easterly moving air masses at an altitude of about 10 km that have have
speeds exceeding 300 km per hour. They follow a meandering path in the mid
latitudes and influence how far polar air masses extend into lower latitudes.*
Jetties
Structures built from the shore into a body of water to protect a harbor
or a navigable passage from acumulation of sand transported by longshore drift.*
Joule
A unit of energy equal to the energy expended in one second by an electrical
current of one ampere with a potential difference of one volt.*
JVODS
National Virtual Ocean Data System
Kelp
Various species of large brown algae (Phaeophyta).*
Kinetic energy
The energy of an object in motion. Increases as the mass of the object or
the speed of the object in motion increases.*
Krill
Common name applied toeuphasiids; members of an order of the Subphylum Crustacea,
Phylum Artropoda.*
Lagoon
A shallow estuary or area of ocean adjacent to the shore but partly or completely
separated from the open ocean by an elongated, narrow strip of land such as
a reef or barrier island.*
Langmuir circulation
Cellular water circulation set up by strong winds that blow consistently
in one direction. Arranged in alternating clockwise and counterclockwise helical
spirals laigned parallel to the wind direction.*
Larvae
Embryos of animal species that live free from their parents before they
assume the adult form.*
Laser
Abbreviation for "light amplification by the stimulated emission of radiation."
An instrument that generates a very intense, extremely narrow beam of light
of a single wavelength.*
Latent heat of fusion
For 1 g of a substance at its melting point temperature, the quantity of
heat energy that must be added to convert it from solid to liquid (or that
must be removed to convert the liquid to solid) without changing the temperature.*
Latitude
Partial expression of a location on the Earth's surface expressed as the
angular distance north or south of the equator. The equator is 0, the North
Pole is 90N, and the South Pole is 90s.*
Lava
Fluid magma that emerges from an opening in the Earth's surface, or the
same material after it cools and solidifies.*
Leaching
Leaching (vb. Leach)
Dissolving constituents of solids by passing (filtering) a fluid (usually
water) through cracks or pores in the solid or sediment.*
Leeward
Direction toward which the wind is blowing or the waves are moving. Usually
applies to the sheltered downwind or downcurrent side of a barrier or landmass.*
Levees
Low ridges that form the sides of a river channel. May be humanmade or natural
(created by sediment deposition during flooding).*
Lichens
Organisms that involve a mutualistic relationship between an alga and a
fungus. The alga is protected by the fungus which depends on the alga to produce
food by photosynthesis.*
Limestone
Sedimentary rock composed of at least 50 percent calcium or magnesium carbonate.
Limestone may be either biogeneous or hydrogeneous.*
Limiting nutrient
A nutrient present at such a low concentration that its lack of availability
reduces the rate of growth or prevents the growth of phytoplankton (or other
primary producers).*
Limpets
Mollusks of the Class Gastropoda, Phylum Arthropoda that have a low conical
shell and adhere to a substrate where they are covered by this shell.*
Lipids
Fats. Among the principal structural components of living cells.*
LIShore
Long Island Shore Observing Network
LIShore provides information on sea and shoreline conditions for Long Island,
New York. http://www.lishore.org/
Lithogenous
Pertaining to material derived from the rock of continents and islands and
transported to the ocean by winds or running water. Usually applied to sediments
that have a high proportion of mineral grains of terrestrial origin.*
Lithosphere
The outer layer of the Earth. Includes the crust and the part of the upper
mantle that is fised to the crust. The layer that is broken into the lithospheric
plates.*
Lithospheric plates.
Sections of the Earth's lithosphere that are separated from each other by
margins at which the adjacent sections move in relation to each other.*
To biological oceanographers, the benthic zone between the highest and lowest
normal water marks reached by high tide. To geological oceanographers, the
zone between the seward boundary of land vegetation and the point where the
seafloor reaches a depth at which sediment is no longer disturbed by waves.*
Longitude
Partial expression of a location on the Earth's surface expressed as the
angular distance east or west of the Greenwhich Meridian (0 longitude). I80
longitude is the International Date Line.*
Longshore bar
A sand mound that extends generally parallel to the shoreline a short distance
offshore. The bar may be submerged or exposed, especially at low tide, and
is created by sand accumulated by wave action.*
Longshore current
A current that flows in the surf zone and parallel to the shore. Created
by breaking waves.*
Longshore drift
Sediment transport along the beach within the region from the breaker zone
to the top of the swash line. Associated with the longshore current.*
Low tide line
The lowest point on the shore that is not covered by water at low tide.*
Low tide terrace
The flat section of the foreshore that lies seaward of any scarp and on
which most wave energy is dissipated.*
Low tide zone
Zone of the shore that is mostly covered with water. It lies between the
highest (neap) low tide line and the lowest (spring) low tide line.*
LUMCON
Louisiana Universities Marine Consortium
Provides coastal laboratory facilities to Louiana universities, and conducts
research and educational programs in the marine sciences. http://www.lumcon.edu/
Lunar month
Interval between successive times when the moon and sun are both directly
overhead at a specific line of longitude at a specific time of day. The times
interval between two successive full moons (or new moon). Approximately 29
1/2 days.*
Macroalgae
Algae that have massive forms, easily seen by the naked eye. Generally attached
to the substrate.*
The line of volcanic islands formed on the nonsubducting plate parallel
to and near and oceanic convergent margin.*
Magnetic anomoly
Local variation of the Earth's magnetic field caused by variable magnetization
of minerals in the Earth's crust.*
Manganese nodules
Lumps of hydrogenous mineral consisting primarily of oxides of iron and
manganese that are scattered in groups over some parts of the ocean floor.*
Mangrove
A group of trpoical plant species that grow in low marshy areas at latitudes
below about 30. the have extensive root systems and produce much organis detritus
to create a unique coastal environment for marine life.*
Mantle
The layer of the Earth between the core and crust. In certain mollusks including
clams, mussels, and oysters, the part of the animal's body that secretes shell
materials.*
Marginal sea
A semienclosed body of water adjacent to a continent.*
Marine mammal
A member of the Class Mammalia, Subphylum Vertebrata, Phylum Chordata that
lives some or all of its life in the ocean. A warm blooded animal that has
mammary glands and hair and bears live young.*
Maximum sustainable yield
The maximum quantity of fish that can be harvested annually while still
allowing the population to be sustained by reproduction.*
MBARI
Monterey Bay Aquarium research Institute
Founded in 1987. Development of better instruments, systems, and methods for
scientific research in the deep waters of the ocean. http://www.mbari.org
Meanders
Meanders (adj. Meandering)
The sinuous curves or turns int a current (of any fluid such as air, river
water, ocean water, or magma).*
Meroplankton
The planktonic larval forms of organisms that become members of the benthos
or nekton when they become adult.*
Metamorphosis
Metamorphosis (vb. Metamorphose)
A change of form of an organism, usually as it passes from one life stage
to another. Similar to the caterpillar to butterfly change. Also a change
in mineral composition of rocks after their initial formation.*
Microalgae
Algae that are sufficiently small that they cannot be seen easily by the
naked eye unless present in high concentrations. Mostly single-celled. May
be benthic or planktonic.*
Micronutrient
An element or compound, including certain trace metals and vitamins, that
is essential to the life processes of some species of organisms and that is
present in seawater at concentrations substantially lower than nitrogen and
phosphorous compounds.*
Middle tide zone
The zone between the high tide zone and the low tide zone. Usually covered
by water but exposed to the atmosphere duting all or most low tides.*
The surface layer of ocean water that is mixed by wave and tide motions
to produce relatively isothermal and isohaline conditions.*
Mixed tides
Tides that have two high and two low tides each tidal day, with the two
highs and/or the two lows being markedly different in height.*
MMAP
NOAA Marine Modleing and Analysis Programs
Marine Modeling and Analysis Programs (MMAP) develop, improve and apply analytical
methods and numerical techniques for the analysis, simulation and real-time
forecasting. http://chartmaker.ncd.noaa.gov/csdl/op/welcome.html
Mollusk
A member of a phylum (Molluska) of sot unsegmented animals that usually
are protected by a calcareous shell and use a muscular foot for locomotion.
Includes snails, mussels, clams, chitons, and octopuses.*
Monsoons
Seasonal reversing winds, especially those in the Indian Ocean and southern
Asia that blow from the southwest during the summer and the northeast during
winter. Derived from the Arabic word for season "mausim."*
Mutagens
Mutagens (adj. mutagenic)
Chemical compounds that can cause mutations in organisms that are exposed
to them.*
MVCO
Martha's Vineyard Coastal Observatory
A research observatory located at South Beach and in the ocean a mile off
the south shore of Martha's Vineyard. It provides real time and archived coastal
oceanographic and teorological data for researchers, students and the general
public. http://mvcodata.whoi.edu/cgi-bin/mvco/mvco.cgi
The North Carolina national Estuarine Research Reserve
A cooperative program between the NC Department of Environment and Natural
Resources/Division of coastal Mangement and the NOAA. http://www.ncnerr.org/
NDBC
National Data Buoy center
Part of NOAA, provides real-time data worldwide. http://www.ndbc.noaa.gov/
Neap tides
Tides that have the smallest range within a lunar month. They occur twice
during the month, when the moon is at its first and third quarters.*
Nekton
Pelagic animals that are active swimmers and thus can overcome currents
and determine their position in the ecosystem. Includes fish, marine mammals,
and squid.*
NEOCO
Network for Environmental Observations of the Coastal Ocean
NEOCO will establish a centralized, long-term repository of high-resolution
data obtained from the participating UC campus sites along the coast of California. http://www.es.ucsc.edu/~neoco/
NERR
National Estuarine Research Reserve
A network of 26 areas representing idfferent biogeographic regions of the
US that are protected for long-term research, water-quality monitoring, education
and coastal stewardship. http://cdmo.baruch.sc.edu/home.html
NESDIS
NOAA National Evironmental Satellite, Data, and Information
NESDIS is dedicated to providing timely access to global environmental data
from satellites and other sources to promote, protect, and enhance the Nation's
economy, security, environment, and quality of life. http://www.nesdis.noaa.gov/
Neuse River MDAP
Neuse River Remote Monitoring and Data Acquisition Project
NGLI
The Northern Gulf of Mexico Littoral Initiative
A multi-agency program established through a partnership between the Commander,
Naval Meteorology and Oceanography Command (COMNAVMETOCCOM) and the Environmental
Protection Agency's Gulf of Mexico Program Office. http://128.160.23.41/
Niche
The range of environmental characteristics within which a particular species
can survive and reproduce. Often used to include the function of the organism
itself in the ecosystem.*
The point on a standing wave where there is no (or minimal) vertical motion.*
Non-indigenous species
Species that are imported, accidentally or deliberately, to an ecosystem
in which they are not present naturally.*
Non-point sources
Sources of pollution other than discharge pipes of industry and sewage treatment
plants. Include storm drains, street runoff, runoff from agricultural land,
deposition of air pollutants, acid rain, and many other widely dispersed sources.*
NOPP
National Oceanographic Partnership Program
A collaboration of fourteen Federal agencies to provide leadership and coordination
of national oceanographic research and education programs. http://www.nopp.org/
Sea slugs. Members of the Class Gastropoda, Phylum Mollusca that have no
protective covering as an adult.*
Nutrient
Any organic or inorganic compound that is used by plants in primary production.
The most important ones include nitrogen and phosphorous compounds.*
NWLON
National Water Level Observation Network
A program provides basic tidal datums to determine U.S. coastal
marine boundaries and for nautical chart datums. http://www.co-ops.nos.noaa.gov/d_nwlop.html
National Office for interaged and sustained ocean observaitions. http://www.ocean.us/
Oceanic convergent margin
Where two lithospheric plates converge, each of which has oceanic crust
at the margin.*
Oceanic divergent margin
Where two lithospheric plates are parting at an oceanic ridge or rise.*
Oceanic plateaus
Small areas where the seafloor is raised a kilometer or more above the surrounding
oceanic crust. They are extinct volcanoes, old oceanic ridges, or fragments
of continents.*
Oceanic ridge
Linear undersea mountain range that extends through all the major oceans.*
OCS
NOS Office of Coast Survey
OCS is a component of NOS, shich is part of the NOAA. Today the Office of
Coast Survey is known for the useful and necessary navigational products which
are required for the safe and efficient maritime commerce in and out of our
Nation's ports http://chartmaker.ncd.noaa.gov/
OIT
Ocean Infromation Techonology
Omnivores
Animals that feed on both plants and other animals.*
Ooze
Sediment that containes at least 30 percent skeletal remains of marine organisms.
May be siliceous or calcareous, or may be diatom ooze, foramineral ooze, radiolarian
ooze, or pteropod ooze, depending on the organisms that are the major contributor.*
Orbital velocity
For an orbiting object (or particle within a wave), the speed of movement
(distance covered per unit time) in the orbital path.*
Osmoregulation
The ability of an organism to adjust its internal salt concenreation independently
of the external salinity.*
Osmosis
Passage of water molecules from a solution of lower solute concentration
into a solution of higher concentration through a semipermeable membrane that
separates the two solutions.*
Osmotic pressure
A measure of the tendency for osmosis to occur. The pressure that must be
applied to a solution to prevent water molecules from passing into it through
a semipermeable membrance that has pure water on the other side.*
OSRI
Oil Spill recovery Institute
The Oil Spill Recovery Institute (OSRI) was established by Congress in response
to the 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill. http://www.pws-osri.org/
Pipelines that extend from the shore across the seafloor. They carry lliquid
wastes some distance offshore where they are discharged from the submerged
end of the pipe.*
Overfishing
Overfishing (vb Overfish)
Harvesting a fish species at a rate exceeding the maximus harvest that would
still allow the population to be replaced by reproduction.*
Oviparous
Pertaining to animals that incubate eggs inside the reproductive tract (usually
the mother's) until they hatch.*
Oxygen demand
Oxygen demand (adj. Oxygen demanding)
The quantity of oxygen that is needed to decompose organic matter or oxidize
chemicals in an ecosystem. Waste materials often increase the natural oxygen
demand.*
Ozone layer
A region of the atmosphere between about 15 and 30 km altitude in which
there is a natural high concentration of ozone. Ozone in this layer absorbs
much of the ultraviolet radiation from the sun.*
Ozone
A form of oxygen in which the molecule has three oxygen atoms.*
Pertaining to the record of the past orientation of the Earth's magnetic
field incorporated in rocks during their formation.*
Parasites
Organisms that take their food and nutrients from the tisses of another
organism. They benefit from the host, but the host is disadvantaged.*
Parasitism
A symbiotic relationship in which the parasite harms the host from which
it takes nutrition.*
Partial tides
The harmonic components comprising the tide at any location. The periods
of the partial tides are derived from the various components of the periodic
motions of the Earth, sun, and moon in relation to one another.*
Partially mixed estuary
An estuary in which there is a distinct low salinity layer moving eastward
and a distinct higher salinity layer moving landward but with a vertical gradation
of salinity between the layers due to substantial vertical mixing.*
Passive margin
Margin of a continent that is not significantly deformed by tectonic processes
because it is located away from the edge of a lithospheric plate.*
Polychlorinated biphenyls. A group of industrial chemicals with a variety
of uses. Toxis and mutagenic. Not readily brodegraded and may be biomagnified.*
The organic compounds present in petroleum, consisting predominately of
carbon and hydrogen. Extremely large numbers of different compounds are present
in any petroleum sample.*
pH
A measurement of acidity or alkalinity. Measured on a logarithmic scale
of 1 to 14 in which lower values indicate higher hydrogen ion concentration
and therefore higher acidity.*
Phosphorite nodules
Lumps composed primarily of phosphate minerals that are scattered throughout
certain parts of the ocean floor.*
Photic zone
The upper part of the ocean in which solar radiation is detectable.*
Photosynthesize
Photosynthesize (adj. photoshynthetic)
To produce carbohydrate from carbon dioxide and water in the rpesence of chlorophyll
by using light energy and releasing oxygen as is done by plants.*
Members of a Suborder (Pinnipedia) of marine mammals that includes the sea
lions, seals, and walruses.*
Plankton
Organisms that drift passively or swim weakly and are dependent on currents
to determine their location. Mostly microscopic forms.*
Plate techtonics
Plate techtonics (adj. Plate techtonic)
Initially a theory that the lithosphere is divided into plates that are moving
relative to each other across the Earth's surface. Now refers to the processes
affecting plate motions and the effects of these motions.*
Pollution (adj. Polluted)
Addition of substances to or alteration of the ocean ecosystem in a way that
is deletarious t the ocean ecosystem and its resources.*
Polyaromatic hydrocarbons
Organic compounds present in organisms and petroleum, and created by burning
fossil fuels that have carbon atoms arranged in ring structures. Include the
more toxic and carcinogenic compounds in petroleum.*
Polyp
A single individual of a colony or a solitary attached cnidarian with a
central mouth fringed with many small tentacles.*
Pore water
The solution present between the mineral grains of a sediment or rock.*
PORTS
Physical Oceanogrphic Real-Time System
A program of the National ocean Service that supports safe and cost-efficiendnavigation
by proving real-time information requed to avoid grounding and collisions. http://www.co-ops.nos.noaa.gov/d_ports.html
Potential energy
Energy that is the result of the relative position of an object, such as
the energy of a compressed coil spring that is placed at the top of a slope.
In each case the potential energy can be released and converted to kinetic
energy.*
Pressure gradient
Pressure variation on a horizontal surface. A gradient can be straight or
curved. The steepness of the gradient is measured as the difference in pressure
per unit distance within the gradient.*
Primary production
Organic material synthesized by photosynthetic or chemosynthetic autotrophs.
Sometimes used to mean primary productivity.*
Primary productivity
The rate of production of organic matter by autotrophs. Measured as the
quantity (usually mass) of organic matter synthesized by organisms from inorganic
substances with a given volume of water or other habitat in a unit of time.*
Single-celled organisms with a nucleus that is confined within a membrane.*
Pteropods
An order of pelagic animals of the Class Gastropoda, Phylum Mollusca in
which the foot is modified for swimming and the shell may be absent.*
PWSN
Prince William Sound Network
The Prince William Sound Network is a project of the the Prince William Sound
Oil Spill Recovery Institute (OSRI). The network provides you with information
on hydrologic, meteorologic, and oceanographic data and information.*
Pycnocline
A depth range in the water column in which density changes rapidly in the
vertical dimension.*
Radioisotope
A radioactive isotope of an element that may also have non- radioactive
isotopes.*
Radiolarians
Planktonic and benthic protozoans of the Phylum Sarcodina that are protected
by shells that are usually siliceous.*
Refraction (vb refract)
The process by which part of a wave is slowed, causing the wave to bend as
it passes from one zone to another in which it travels at a different speed.
Occurs as a water wave enters shallow water.*
Relict sediments
Sediments deposited under a set of environmental conditions that have since
changed, but nor buried by more recent sediments.*
Reptiles
Species of the Class Reptilia, Subphylum Vertebrata, Phylum Chordata. Air
breathing and cold blooded. The few marine species include turtles and sea
snakes.*
Residence time
The average length of time a particle of any substance spends in a defined
part of the ocean.*
Residual current
The current that remains after the reversing tidal current components have
ben subtracted. Indicative of the mean drift after multiple tidal excursions.*
Respiration
The process by which organisms use organic materials (food) as a source
of energy. The process normally uses oxygen and produces carbon dioxide.*
Restoring force
A force that tends to restore a disturbed ocean surface to a flat configuration.*
Resuspend
To lift particles off the sediment surface (currents) or group (wind) on
which they have been temporarily deposited. Particles become suspended sediment
and air-borne dust in water and air, respectively.*
Rip currents
Fast, narrow surface or near surface currents that flow seaward through
the breaker zone at nearly right angles to the shore. They are the seaward
return flow of the water piled up on the shore by incoming waves.*
RNODC
Respongsible National Oceanographic Data Center.
Rocky intertidal
Refers to the zone of a rocky coastline between the high tide and
low tide lines.*
Runoff
Freshwater that is returned to the ocean or to a river after falling
on the land as rain or snow.*
SABSOON
South Atlantic Bight synoptic Offshore Observational Network
A real-time observational network with eight large offshore platforms, currently
operated by the US Navy for flight training. http://www.skio.peachnet.edu/research/sabsoon/
Salinity
A measure of the quantity of dissolved salts in ocean water.
Defined in terms of conductivity of a defined salt solution. Has
no units but is enarly equal to the weight in grams of dissolved
salts per kilogram of seawater.*
Salps
Genus of plagic tunicates (Subphylum Vertebrata) that are
cylindrical and transparent.*
Salt marshes
Relatively flat area of the shore where fine sediment is deposited
and salt-tolerant grasses grow.*
Salt wedge estuaries
Estuaries, normally deep, with a large volume of freshwater flow
separated by a sharp halocline from a lower wedge-shaped layer
of seawater that moves landward.*
Sand dune
Rounded mound or hill of sand on the backshore formed by
accumulations of wind-blown sand. May have rooted vegetation.*
Saturation pressure
The maximum amount of water that can remain in the vapor
phase in air at a particular pressure and temperature expressed
as a partial pressure of water vapor (the pressure if only the
water vapor were present).*
Saturation solubility
The concentration of a dissolved substance when no more of the
substance can be dissolved in the solvent.*
Scarp
A linear steep or nearly vertical topographic feature that
separates areas of gently sloping or flat surfaces.*
Scatter
Reflection of light or sound in random directions, generally by
particles suspended in a fluid.*
Southern California Coastal water Research Project Authority
SCCWRP is a joint powers agency focusing on marine environmental research. http://www.sccwrp.org/
Schools
Schools (adj. Schooling)
Aggregations of fish, squid, and crustaceans that are organized
to remain together as the organisms move.*
Scuba
Abbreviation for "self-contained underwater breathing apparatus."
refers to the means by which humans descend beneath the
sea surface carrying their own source of air to breathe.*
Sea cucumbers
A common name given to members of the Class Holothuroidea,
Phylum Echinodermata.*
Sea fan
A form of coral colony that grows out from a point of attachment
to the substrate in a form resembling an intricate fan.*
Sea stars
Animals of the Class Anthozoa, Phylum Cnidaria with a number
of radial arms, on the underside of which are numerous tube feet
to provide locomotion. The mouth is on the underside at the
center. Many are predators of mollusks.*
Sea urchins
Animals belonging to the Class Echinoidea, Phylum
Echinodermata. They have a fused test (external calcified
covering) and well-developed spines.*
Seafloor spreading
A process producing oceanic crust by upwelling of magma along
the axis of the oceanic ridges.*
Seagrasses
Any of several species of rooted plants of the Class
Angiosperma. Grow predominantly in marshes and shallow
water lagoons.*
SEAKEYS
SEAKEYS/C-MAN Project
Seamounts
Individual peaks of seafloor topography that rise more than 1,000
m above the ocean floor.*
Seawall
A wall built parallel to the shore to protect the shore from erosion
by waves.*
Sediment
Particles of organic or inorganic origin that accumulate in loose
form.*
Sedimentary arc
Chain of low sedimentary islands formed at some oceanic
convergent margins between the margins and the magmatic arc.*
Sedimentation
Accumulation of particles on the seafloor by progressive
deposition of particles from the suspended sediment to form
sediments.*
Sedimentation rate
The rate of accumulation of sediments, normally measured in
millimeters of sediment thickness per thousand years in the
open ocean.*
Seismographs
Instruments that detect and record earthquake waves that have
traveled through the Earth from an earthquake focus.*
Semidiurnal tides
Tides with two high and two low tides each tidal day, with the two
highs and the two lows being equal or almost equal to each
other in height.*
Sensible heat
Heat that when added to or removed from a substance changes
the substance's temperature.*
Sewage sludge
The solids or slurry remaining after sewage waste water has
been treated. Contains pathogens, trace metals, nutrients, and
other contaminants.*
SFOMC
South Florida Ocean Measurement Center
Laboratory funded by governement and academia. Located off shore in Dania. http://www.sfomc.org/
Shallow water wave
A wave whose wavelength is at least 20 times the depth of the
water beneath it.*
Shear stress
Resistance (friction) that develops at the interface between two
fluids that are moving in relation to each other.*
Shelf break
The depth at which the gradual seaward slope of the continental
shelf steepens appreciably, defining the boundary between the
continental shelf and continental rise.*
Shelf valley
Valley in the seafloor topography that cuts across the continental
shelf. Usualy a drowned river valley.*
Shellfish
Animals of the Phylum Crustacea or Mollusca that have hard
outer shells. The term generally is applied to species that are
valuable for human consumption.*
Shore
The zone between the highest level of wave action during storms
and the lowest tide line.*
Shoreline
The line that marks the intersection of the water surface with the
shore. It migrates up and down as the tide rises and falls.*
Siliceous
Pertaining to material containing abundant silica.*
Sill
A submarine ridge that separates the deeper parts of two
adjacent ocean basins. Often present at the mouths of fjords
and other coastal embayments or at the entrances to marginal
seas.*
Slack water
The time when the current speed is zero as a reversing tidal
current changes direction.*
Soft corals
Species of corals that do not secrete massive calcareous
skeletons and do not have zooxanthellae.*
Solstice
The time when the sun is directly over one of the tropics.
Occurs on June 21 or 22 when the sun is over the Tropic of
Cancer in the Northern Hemisphere and on December 21 or 22
when the sun is over the Tropic of Cancer in the Southern
Hemisphere.*
Solubility
The ability of a substance to be dissolved in a liquid.*
Sonar
An abbreviation of "sound navigation and ranging." A method by
which sound pulses can be used to measure the distance to
objects in the ocean.*
Sorted
Describes the range of grain sizes in a sediment. Well-sorted
sediment consistes of grains that have a restricted range of
grain sizes.*
To produce eggs, which may be laid in one location or dispersed
in the water.*
Species
A population of organisms whose members interbreed under
natural conditions and produce fertile offspring and that is
reproductively isolated from other such groups.*
Species succession
The sequence of dominance by different species of
phytoplankton during seasonal changes, especially in mid-
latitude marine ecosystems.*
Spit
A narrow strip of lanf, commonly consisting of sand deposited by
longshore currents, that has one end attached to the mainland
and the other terminating in open water.*
Sponges
Animals of the Phylum Porifera. Most are microscopic but build
massive colonies. Filter feeders.*
Spores
Small reproductive bodies that are highly resistant to
decomposition but capable of growing and metapmorphosing to
produce an adult form either immediately or after a prolonged
interval of dormancy.*
Spreading cycle
A period during which the continental crust on the Earth's
surface is broken into a number of pieces that move apart on
their lithospheric plates. Preceded and followed by a period
when the continents are brought together.*
Spring tides
Tides that have the greatest range within a lunar month. They
occur twice during the month, when the moon is new and when
it is full.*
Standing stock
The biomass of a population present at any given time.*
Standing wave
A wave form that oscillates vertically without progressive
movement.*
Steady state
A condition of equilibrium in a system where the inputs of a
substance or energy are equal to the outputs and the distribution
of the substance or energy within the system does not change
with time.*
Storm surge
When sea level is temporarily raised above its normal height as
a result of wind stress and reduced atmospheric pressure during
storms.*
Stratification
Stratidfication (adj. Stratified)
Layered according to density. Applies to fluids. Stable
stratification occurs when density decreases continuously (but
not necessarily uniformly) with distance from the Earth's center.*
Subduction
Subduction (vb Subduct)
The process by which one lithospheric plate descends beneath
another.*
Subduction zone
Area in which a lithospheric plate is descending into the
aesthenosphere.*
Sublittoral zone
The part of the benthic environment that extends from the low
tide line to a depth of 200 m.*
Submarine canyon
A steep V shaped canyon cut into the continental shelf or slope.*
Submersibles
Undersea vehicles with an enclosure that has an atmosphere in
which human passengers can be transported.*
Subtropical gyre
A circular current system centered in the subtropical high
pressure region of each major ocean basin, driven by the trade
winds and westerly winds. Rotates clockwise in the Northern
Hemisphere and counterclockwise in the Southern Hemisphere.*
Supersaturated
An unstable condition in which the concentration of a dissolved
substance (or of water vapor in air) is greater than the saturation
solubility. The substance (or water vapor) may not precipitate
unless provided with nuclei on which to deposit.*
Supralittoral zone
The splash or spray zone above the spring high tide shoreline.*
Surf
The turbulent foam produced by breaking waves. Also used to
mean surf zone.*
Surf zone
The region between the shoreline and offshore in which most
wave energy is released by breaking waves.*
Surface microlayer
A thin (about 0.1 mm thick) layer that covers the entire ocean
surface and has different properties than the underlying water.
Often called a "slick."*
Surface tension
The tendency for the surfaces of a liquid to contract because of
the attractive forces between its molecules.*
Survival niche
The range of environemental variables within which the
individuals of a species can survive.*
Suspended sediments
Small solid particles that sink slowly or are maintained in
suspension and distributed in the water column by turbulence.*
Suspension feeders
Animals that feed by capturing or filterign suspended particles
from the water column.*
Swash
The water that rushes up over exposed beach as waves break at
the shore.*
Swell
A smoothly undulating ocean wave that is a result of wave
dispersion and that is transported with little energy loss across
great stretches of ocean.*
Swim bladder
A gas-containing flexible organ in many fish that aids in attaining
neutral buoyancy.*
Symbiosis
Symbiosis (adj. symbiotic, adv. symbiotically)
An association between two species in which one or both
benefit. A species in such an association that does not benefit
may be harmed or may be unaffected by the association.*
Synoptic
Describes measurements made simultaneously at many
different locations.*
TABS
Texas Automated Buoy System
Provide real-time oceanographic data, supporting oil spill prevention and
response. http://tabs.gerg.tamu.edu/Tglo/
A 12 nautical mile wide strip of ocean adjacent to land within
which the coastal nation has control over the passage of ships.*
Thermohaline circulation
Vertical movements of ocean water masses caused by rapid
density differences that are due to variations in temperature and
salinity.*
Tidal range
The height difference between high and low tides. Can apply to
the tides of a single day or to the highest and lowest tide of a
specified period such as a month.*
Tide
Periodic rise and fall of the ocean surface caused by differences
in gravitational attraction due to the moon and sun on different
parts of the Earth.*
Tide pool
A depression in the intertidal zone that remains wet or filled with
water when the tide recedes below its level on the shore.*
Tomography
Method of mapping the internal parts of the Earth, ocean, or
other body by observing waves transmitted through the body as
they arrive at various points on its surface; produces a three-
dimensional view of internal variations of wave transmission
velocity.*
Tracers
Chemical constituents that have variable concentrations in
seawater that can be used to identify and follow the movement of
water masses.*
Trade winds
Air masses that move from subtropical high pressure belts
toward the equator. They are northeasterly in the Northern
Hemisphere and southeasterly in the Southern Hemisphere.*
Transform fault
A fault that offsets the boundary between the edges of two
lithospheric plates.*
Trench
A long, narrow, and deep depression on the ocean floor that has
relatively steep sides.*
Trophic level
With primary producers as the first level, the number of steps in
a food chain to a particular organism. Organisms that eat
primary producers are ar the second level, and organisms that
eat these organisms are on the third level, and so on.*
Troposphere
The zone of the atmosphere between the Earth's surface and an
altitude of about 12 km.*
Trough
The part of an ocean wave that is displaced below the still water
line.*
Tsunami
A long period gravity wave generated by a submarine earthquake
or volcanic event.*
Tubeworms
Many species of worms that live within a rigid tube that they
secrete, drill into the substrate, or construct with shell fragments
and sand. Usually filter feeders that extend feeding tentacles
from the tube to capture suspended particles.*
Tuned
Refers to a wave oscillation whose wavelength is such that
successive wave crests enter a basin or enclosure at the same
time that the crest of a preceding wave returns.*
Tunicate
Any of various species of the Subphylum Urochordata, Phylum
Chordata. Includes both benthic (sea squirts) and pelagic
(salps) species.*
Turbidite
A sediment deposit formed by turbidity currents. Has vertically
graded bedding.*
Turbidity
Reduction of the clarity of a fluid caused by the presence of
suspended matter.*
Turbidity currents
Episodic fast currents that resuspend sediments and carry them
down a submarine slope. May be initiated by some sudden
force such as an earthquake.*
Turbulence
Turbulence (adj. turbulent)
Flow of a liquid in which random velocity fluctuations distort and
confuse the flow lines of individual molecules.*
UCAR
University Corporation for Atmospheric Research
UCAR was formed in 1959 to enhance the computing and observational capabilities
of the universities, and to focus on scientific problems that are beyond the
scale of a single university. http://www.ucar.edu/ucar/about.html
Upwelling
Upwelling (vb. Upwell)
Vertical upward movement of a fluid due to density differences or
where tywo fluid masses converge, displaing fluid upward. In
the ocean, often refers to where Ekman transport causes
surface waters to diverge or move away from the coast.*
Animals of a Subphylum (Vertebrata) of the Phylum Chordata.
Includes species that have a well-developed brain and a skeleton
of bone or cartilage. Examples are fish, amphibians, reptiles,
birds, and mammals.*
Virus
An infective agent that can cause disease and can multiply when
associated with living cells. Viruses are complex protiens that
may be regarded as living organisms.*
Viscosity
The property of a substance that causes it to offer resistance to
flow. Internal friction.*
Viviparous
Pertaining to an animal that gives birth to living young.*
Water mass
A body of water identifiable and distinguishable from other water
bodies by its characteristic temperature, salinity, or chemical
content.*
WAVCIS
Wave-Current Information System
The objective is to provide wave informtaion. http://wavcis.csi.lsu.edu/
Wave dispersion
The separation of ocean waves by wavelength as they travel
away from their point of origin. Longer waves travel faster.*
Wave height
Vertical distance between a crest and the preceding trough.*
Wave interference
Combination of two or more simple waves of difference periods
or traveling in different directions to produce complex waveforms.*
Wave period
The time that elapses between the passage of two successive
wave crests past a fixed point.*
Wave rays
The path across the sea surface that is followed by a point on a
wave front as the wave travels and is refracted and reflected.*
Wave speed
The speed at which the wave form of a progressive wave
travels.*
The horizontal distance between corresponding points on
successive waves, such as from crest to crest.*
Weather
The temperature, humidity, cloud cover, wind velocity, and other
atmospheric conditions and their variations at a specific location
on a given day.*
Weathering
Weathering (adj. weathered)
A process by which rocks are broken down by chemical and
mechanical (winds, ice formation, etc.) means.*
Well-mixed estuaries
Estuaries in which vertical mixing by tides or wind is such that
there is no vertical stratification. Salinity increases progressively
toward the ocean.*
WERA
Wellen Radar
University of Hamburg's extension of CODAR (HR Radar) to allow simultanous
measurement of surface current fields (e.g., current and waves). http://ifmaxp1.ifm.uni-hamburg.de/WERA.shtml
Westerly
An air mass that moves away from a subtropical high pressure
belt toward higher latitudes. Westerlies blow from the southwest
in the North Hemisphere and from the northwest in the Southern
Hemisphere.*
Western boundary currents
Poleward-flowing warm surface layer currents that flow on the
western side of subtropical gyres. Fast, narrow, and deep.*
Wetlands
Low-lying flat areas that are covered by water or have water-
saturated soils for at least part of the year.*
WHOI
Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
WHOI's primary mission is to develop and effectively communicate a fundamental
understanding of the processes and characteristics governing how the oceans
function and how they interact with Earth as a whole http://www.whoi.edu/
Windward
The direction from which the wind is blowing. Usually applies to
the exposed side of a landmass or barrier facing the oncoming
wind.*
A form of algae that lives symbiotically in the tissue of corals and
other animals and provides some of the coral's food supply by
photosynthesis.*
* Glossary definitions marked with an asterisk were taken from: Douglas A. Segar,1998, Introduction
to Ocean Sciences, Wadsworth Publishing Company, Belmont, California.
