OCEANOGRAPHY CH. 1-4 EXAM QUESTIONS ANSWERED CORRECTLY LATEST UPDATE 2026
Pacific Ocean - Answers Deepest and largest ocean
Atlantic Ocean - Answers Second largest ocean; separates the Old World from the New World
Indian Ocean - Answers Slightly smaller than the atlantic ocean but has the same average depth;
mostly in the southern hemisphere
Arctic Ocean - Answers Smallest and shallowest ocean; has a permanent layer of sea ice
Antarctic or Southern Ocean - Answers Ocean that connects the pacific, atlantic and indian oceans;
south of about 50 degrees south latitude
Ocean versus Sea - Answers Smaller and shallower than oceans, salt water, enclosed by land
Phoenicians - Answers The first Mediterranean people known to have developed the art of navigation
Eratosthenes - Answers Determined the Earth's circumference in 200 B.C.
Ptolemy - Answers Produced a map of the world in about 150 a.d. that represented the extent of
Roman knowledge at that time (first world map)
Ptolemy - Answers Overestimated the size of Asia which later caused Christopher Columbus to
believe he has encountered parts of Asia rather than a new world
Oceanography - Answers Literally the description of the marine environment; the scientific study of
all aspects of the marine environment; also called marine science
Geological oceanography - Answers The study of the structure of the sea floor and how the sea floor
has changed through time; the creation of the sea floor features; and the history of sediments
deposited on it
Chemical oceanography - Answers The study of the chemical composition and properties of
seawater, how to extract certain chemicals from seawater, and the effects of pollutants
Physical oceanography - Answers The study of waves, tides and currents, the ocean-atmosphere
relationship that influences weather and climate, and the transmission of light and sound in the
oceans
Biological oceanography - Answers The study of the various oceanic life-forms and their relationships
to one another, their adaptations to the marine environment and developing sustainable methods of
harvesting seafood
Scientific Method - Answers Observation, hypothesis, testing and modification of hypothesis, theory
The Nebular hypothesis - Answers States that all bodies in the solar system formed from an
enormous cloud composed mostly of hydrogen and helium, with only a small percentage of heavy
elements
Universe - Answers The huge space which contains all of the matter and energy in existence
Galaxy - Answers One of billions of systems, each a giant collection of gas, dust and billions of stars
Stars and suns - Answers High temperature bodies; one has planetary systems and the other does not
Proto-earth - Answers Looked very different from Earth today
It was larger, there were no oceans and no life
Thought to be homogenous, which means that it had a uniform composition throughout
It changed as its heavier constitutions sank toward the center to form a heavy core
Fusion - Answers Contracted masses reach high temperatures causing hydrogen to combine in the
sun
Thermonuclear fusion - Answers Occurs when temperatures reach tens of millions of degrees and
hydrogen atoms combines to form helium atoms, releasing enormous amounts of energy
Solar Wind - Answers Electrical particles emanating from the sun; blows light elements away from the
inner planets; caused planets to contract
Radioactive heat - Answers Internal warming of each planet
Density - Answers Mass per unit volume; measure of how heavy something is for its size
Density stratification - Answers Elements segregated according to their densities (layered earth); high
density materials move to the center (core), lower density materials move to the surface
How long ago did solid Earth form? - Answers 4.6 billion years ago
Chemical composition - Answers Crust, mantle and core
Crust - Answers Extends from the surface to an average depth of about 30 kilometers (20 miles)
It is composed of relatively low density rock, consisting mostly of various silicate minerals (common
rock forming minerals with silicon and oxygen)
Mantle - Answers Immediately below the crust and occupies the largest volume of the 3 layers and
extends to a depth of about 2885 kilometers (1800 miles)
, It is composed of relatively high density iron and magnesium silicate rock
Core - Answers Forms a large mass from 2885 kilometers (1800 miles) to the center of Earth at 6371
kilometers (3960 miles)
It is composed of even higher density iron and nickel
Physical properties - Answers Earth is composed of five layer: the inner core, the outer core, the
mesosphere, the asthenosphere, and the lithosphere
Lithosphere - Answers Earths cool, rigid, outermost later
It extends from the surface to an average depth of about 100 kilometers (62 miles) and includes the
crust plus the topmost portion of the mantle
Covers entire Earth surface (on land and under the ocean)
"floats" on top of the asthenosphere
It is brittle, meaning it will fracture when force is applied to it (a physical property of earth)
Asthenosphere - Answers Plastic, meaning that it will flow when a gradual force is applied to it
It extends from about 100 kilometers to 700 kilometers (430 miles) below the surface, which is the
base of the upper mantle
At these depths it is hot enough to partially melt portions of most rocks (a physical property of earth)
Mesosphere - Answers Extends to a depth of about 2885 kilometers (1800 miles) which corresponds
to the middle and lower mantle;
rigid because of the increased pressure at these depths
(a physical property of earth)
Inner core - Answers Liquid and capable of flow (a physical property of earth)
Outer core - Answers Rigid and does not flow(a physical property of earth)
Oceanic crust - Answers Crust that underlies the ocean basins and is composed of the ingenious rock
basalt, which is dark colored and has a relatively high density of about 3 grams per cubic centimeter
Continental crust - Answers Crust that is composed mostly of the lower density and lighter colored
igneous rock granite
Isostatic adjustment - Answers The vertical movement of crust and is the result of the buoyancy of
earth's lithosphere as it floats on the denser, plastic like asthenosphere below (ex: heavier ships sink
deeper in water)
Archimedes' Principle - Answers A floating body displaces a volume of water equal to its own weight
Stanley Miller's Experiment - Answers Suggested that life most likely originated in the oceans
Theory of evolution - Answers Groups of organisms adapt and change with the passage of time,
causing descendants to differ morphologically and physiologically from their ancestors
Heterotrophs - Answers Earliest forms of life, require an external food supply, which was abundantly
available in the form of nonliving organic matter on the ocean around them
Autotrophs - Answers Can manufacture their own food supply (photosynthesis), evolved later (after
heterotrophs)
Anaerobic bacteria - Answers Live without atmospheric oxygen
They may have been able to derive energy from inorganic compounds at deep water hydrothermal
vents using a process called chemosynthesis (after autotrophs)
Photosynthesis - Answers Plant and algae cells capture energy from sunlight and store it as sugars,
releasing oxygen gas as a by product
Cellular respiration - Answers Animals who consume the sugars produced by photosynthesis combine
them with oxygen, releasing the stored energy of the sugars to carry on cellular tasks important for
various life processes
The great oxidation event - Answers Earth's atmosphere became oxygen rich about 2.45 billion years
ago and fundamentally changed Earth's ability to support life; most anaerobes died out
Half-life - Answers The time required for one-half of the atoms in a sample to decay to other atoms
The geologic time scale - Answers Lists the names of the geologic tim periods as well as important
advances in the development of life forms on earth
Alfred Wegener - Answers The first person to advance the idea of mobile continents in 1912
Sir Edward Bullard - Answers Used a computer program to fit the continents together; he achieved
the best fit by using a depth of 2000 meters below sea level
Paleomagnetism - Answers The study of earths ancient magnetic field
The mid-ocean ridge - Answers A continuous underwater mountain range that winds through every
ocean basin in the world and resembles the seam on a baseball;
results from sea floor spreading along the divergent plate boundaries
Pacific Ocean - Answers Deepest and largest ocean
Atlantic Ocean - Answers Second largest ocean; separates the Old World from the New World
Indian Ocean - Answers Slightly smaller than the atlantic ocean but has the same average depth;
mostly in the southern hemisphere
Arctic Ocean - Answers Smallest and shallowest ocean; has a permanent layer of sea ice
Antarctic or Southern Ocean - Answers Ocean that connects the pacific, atlantic and indian oceans;
south of about 50 degrees south latitude
Ocean versus Sea - Answers Smaller and shallower than oceans, salt water, enclosed by land
Phoenicians - Answers The first Mediterranean people known to have developed the art of navigation
Eratosthenes - Answers Determined the Earth's circumference in 200 B.C.
Ptolemy - Answers Produced a map of the world in about 150 a.d. that represented the extent of
Roman knowledge at that time (first world map)
Ptolemy - Answers Overestimated the size of Asia which later caused Christopher Columbus to
believe he has encountered parts of Asia rather than a new world
Oceanography - Answers Literally the description of the marine environment; the scientific study of
all aspects of the marine environment; also called marine science
Geological oceanography - Answers The study of the structure of the sea floor and how the sea floor
has changed through time; the creation of the sea floor features; and the history of sediments
deposited on it
Chemical oceanography - Answers The study of the chemical composition and properties of
seawater, how to extract certain chemicals from seawater, and the effects of pollutants
Physical oceanography - Answers The study of waves, tides and currents, the ocean-atmosphere
relationship that influences weather and climate, and the transmission of light and sound in the
oceans
Biological oceanography - Answers The study of the various oceanic life-forms and their relationships
to one another, their adaptations to the marine environment and developing sustainable methods of
harvesting seafood
Scientific Method - Answers Observation, hypothesis, testing and modification of hypothesis, theory
The Nebular hypothesis - Answers States that all bodies in the solar system formed from an
enormous cloud composed mostly of hydrogen and helium, with only a small percentage of heavy
elements
Universe - Answers The huge space which contains all of the matter and energy in existence
Galaxy - Answers One of billions of systems, each a giant collection of gas, dust and billions of stars
Stars and suns - Answers High temperature bodies; one has planetary systems and the other does not
Proto-earth - Answers Looked very different from Earth today
It was larger, there were no oceans and no life
Thought to be homogenous, which means that it had a uniform composition throughout
It changed as its heavier constitutions sank toward the center to form a heavy core
Fusion - Answers Contracted masses reach high temperatures causing hydrogen to combine in the
sun
Thermonuclear fusion - Answers Occurs when temperatures reach tens of millions of degrees and
hydrogen atoms combines to form helium atoms, releasing enormous amounts of energy
Solar Wind - Answers Electrical particles emanating from the sun; blows light elements away from the
inner planets; caused planets to contract
Radioactive heat - Answers Internal warming of each planet
Density - Answers Mass per unit volume; measure of how heavy something is for its size
Density stratification - Answers Elements segregated according to their densities (layered earth); high
density materials move to the center (core), lower density materials move to the surface
How long ago did solid Earth form? - Answers 4.6 billion years ago
Chemical composition - Answers Crust, mantle and core
Crust - Answers Extends from the surface to an average depth of about 30 kilometers (20 miles)
It is composed of relatively low density rock, consisting mostly of various silicate minerals (common
rock forming minerals with silicon and oxygen)
Mantle - Answers Immediately below the crust and occupies the largest volume of the 3 layers and
extends to a depth of about 2885 kilometers (1800 miles)
, It is composed of relatively high density iron and magnesium silicate rock
Core - Answers Forms a large mass from 2885 kilometers (1800 miles) to the center of Earth at 6371
kilometers (3960 miles)
It is composed of even higher density iron and nickel
Physical properties - Answers Earth is composed of five layer: the inner core, the outer core, the
mesosphere, the asthenosphere, and the lithosphere
Lithosphere - Answers Earths cool, rigid, outermost later
It extends from the surface to an average depth of about 100 kilometers (62 miles) and includes the
crust plus the topmost portion of the mantle
Covers entire Earth surface (on land and under the ocean)
"floats" on top of the asthenosphere
It is brittle, meaning it will fracture when force is applied to it (a physical property of earth)
Asthenosphere - Answers Plastic, meaning that it will flow when a gradual force is applied to it
It extends from about 100 kilometers to 700 kilometers (430 miles) below the surface, which is the
base of the upper mantle
At these depths it is hot enough to partially melt portions of most rocks (a physical property of earth)
Mesosphere - Answers Extends to a depth of about 2885 kilometers (1800 miles) which corresponds
to the middle and lower mantle;
rigid because of the increased pressure at these depths
(a physical property of earth)
Inner core - Answers Liquid and capable of flow (a physical property of earth)
Outer core - Answers Rigid and does not flow(a physical property of earth)
Oceanic crust - Answers Crust that underlies the ocean basins and is composed of the ingenious rock
basalt, which is dark colored and has a relatively high density of about 3 grams per cubic centimeter
Continental crust - Answers Crust that is composed mostly of the lower density and lighter colored
igneous rock granite
Isostatic adjustment - Answers The vertical movement of crust and is the result of the buoyancy of
earth's lithosphere as it floats on the denser, plastic like asthenosphere below (ex: heavier ships sink
deeper in water)
Archimedes' Principle - Answers A floating body displaces a volume of water equal to its own weight
Stanley Miller's Experiment - Answers Suggested that life most likely originated in the oceans
Theory of evolution - Answers Groups of organisms adapt and change with the passage of time,
causing descendants to differ morphologically and physiologically from their ancestors
Heterotrophs - Answers Earliest forms of life, require an external food supply, which was abundantly
available in the form of nonliving organic matter on the ocean around them
Autotrophs - Answers Can manufacture their own food supply (photosynthesis), evolved later (after
heterotrophs)
Anaerobic bacteria - Answers Live without atmospheric oxygen
They may have been able to derive energy from inorganic compounds at deep water hydrothermal
vents using a process called chemosynthesis (after autotrophs)
Photosynthesis - Answers Plant and algae cells capture energy from sunlight and store it as sugars,
releasing oxygen gas as a by product
Cellular respiration - Answers Animals who consume the sugars produced by photosynthesis combine
them with oxygen, releasing the stored energy of the sugars to carry on cellular tasks important for
various life processes
The great oxidation event - Answers Earth's atmosphere became oxygen rich about 2.45 billion years
ago and fundamentally changed Earth's ability to support life; most anaerobes died out
Half-life - Answers The time required for one-half of the atoms in a sample to decay to other atoms
The geologic time scale - Answers Lists the names of the geologic tim periods as well as important
advances in the development of life forms on earth
Alfred Wegener - Answers The first person to advance the idea of mobile continents in 1912
Sir Edward Bullard - Answers Used a computer program to fit the continents together; he achieved
the best fit by using a depth of 2000 meters below sea level
Paleomagnetism - Answers The study of earths ancient magnetic field
The mid-ocean ridge - Answers A continuous underwater mountain range that winds through every
ocean basin in the world and resembles the seam on a baseball;
results from sea floor spreading along the divergent plate boundaries
