Oceans, the Lithosphere, & Atmosphere

Name:______________________________________________ Period:_______________

Oceans, the Lithosphere, & Atmosphere

Online Introduction Activity

For the following questions, go to http://www.extremescience.com/zoom/index.php/oceanography to answer. You will be going through the different page titles.

1. Click “Studying the Oceans” for the following questions.

a. How much of the Earth’s surface is covered by oceans and seas?

b. What drives the weather machine in our atmosphere?

2. Click “Geography of the Sea” from the main page or at the bottom of the last page.

a. What does the word “topography” refer to when talking about the sea floor?

b. How does an echo sounder reveal what the ocean floor looks like?

3. Click on “Continental Shelf” from the map, under related items or from the main page.

a. Describe what the continental shelf is.

b. What happens at the outermost edges of the shelves?

c. What do Scientists believe about the continental shelves?

4. Click “Submarine Canyons” from the map, under related items or from the main page.

a. What is a submarine canyon and what is the most prominent theory about how they formed? Explain how the theory actually works

b. What determines the depth of a submarine canyon?

c. Click on the map at the top of the page. Zoom out once or twice and tell where this submarine canyon is in relation to the US. When you are done go back to the Submarine Canyon page.

5. Click “Coral Reefs” from the map, under related items or from the main page.

a. Where are coral reefs usually found and where do they typically invade?

6. Click “Sea Mounts” from the map, under related items or from the main page

a. What is the name of the newly formed sea mount south of the big island of Hawaii?

b. How long do scientists expect this new sea mount to break the surface and become a new island in the Hawaiian island chain?

c. How much longer is the Mid-Ocean Ridge than the longest mountain range on land?

7. Click “Abyssal Plain” from the map, under related items or from the main page.

a. What is the average depth of the abyssal plains and how much of the seafloor, worldwide, do the abyssal plains cover?

b. What makes up the top layer of sediment found on the surface of the abyssal plains?

8. Click “Deep Ocean Trenches” from the map, under related items or from the main page.

a. How many pounds of pressure are there per square inch in the deep sea trenches?

b. What causes the deep sea trenches to occur?

c. What are some examples of deep sea trenches?

d. Copy this link to look at the deepest ocean trench: http://www.extremescience.com/zoom/index.php/maps/140-map-of-the-challenger-deep Describe where this trench is located geographically? (You will probably have to zoom out).

9. Go back to the main page “Oceanography,” and click “Deepest Ocean.”

a. How can you use Mount Everest to imagine the depth of the deepest ocean.

b. What is hydrostatic pressure?

c. What is the deepest measurement of the Challenger Deep currently available?

10. Using the words below (and any website to help) label the diagram of the ocean floor including all of the following terms.

Continental Shelf Shoreline Guyot Volcanic Island

Seamounts Trench Abyssal Plain Continental Slope