Chapter 3

Part 2

Do Now

• 1) What is a thermocline

• 2) How does the graph look? (where are the axis and how are they labeled?)

• 3) What information do we get from a temperature profile?

Temperature profile

CTDs

• Conductivity, temperature and depth in the water column

• Used along with other instruments. – Bathythermographs – measure temp but not

salinity

Complications w/ samples

• What are some complications that scientists may face when collecting samples?

• Hmm..– Trying to get samples from multiple sites– Weather and climate variability

Solutions

• What are some solutions to these problems?

• Hmm…– Instruments could drift with the currents– Use multiple ships at once – Satellites

Dissolved Gases

• Gasses dissolved in sea water: O2, CO2, N2• Found in atmosphere – Gas exchange between ocean and atm.

• Gases dissolve better in cold water• Oxygen is not very soluble – 1L of seawater: 0-8mL dissolved O2– 1L of air: 210mL dissolved O2

• O2 in water is strongly affected by photosynthesis and respiration

Dissolved Gasses

• Most gasses produced by photosynthesis get released into the atm.

• Carbon dioxide is more soluble than oxygen – Makes up more than 80% of the dissolved gas in

the ocean.

Transparency

• One of the most important properties

• Not all the colors of light penetrate to all depths of the ocean

What do we notice?

What else affects transparency?

• Suspended and dissolved material• Plankton

• Through what process do plankton produce oxygen

• What is the “key” to these phytoplankton blooms happening?

• What are the mixing of ocean layers caused by?