SOE Exam 2 Questions with Correct Answers Latest Update 2025/2026
Thermocline - Answers the boundary between warmer surface waters and cooler waters below
(warm is less dense and sits at top)
positive feedback - Answers an interaction that amplifies the response of the system in which it
is incorporated, "snowballs out of control" or "vicious cycle," can be good or bad
negative feedback - Answers tends to stabilize when it undergoes perturbation
La Nina - Answers "Normal" year, easterly trade winds and ocean currents pool warm water in
the western Pacific, allowing upwelling of nutrient rich water off the West coast of South
America (same thing as normal but more)
global effects of el nino - Answers teleconnections lead to changes globally with some areas
wetter or drier, warmer of cooler, etc.
how do we monitor for el nino events and do these happen on a regular schedule - Answers -
Numerical models simulate the onset, evolution, and decay of El Niño and La Niña events
- El Niño and La Niña do not follow a predictable pattern
- Every 2-7 years and typically last 12-18 months
- 57 TAO (Tropical Atmosphere/Ocean)/TRITON moored buoys span Pacific Ocean
- Satellites provide an early warning for warm and cold phases of ENSO
main driver of surface ocean circulation - Answers friction between wind and ocean surface,
generally follow earths wind belt patten
upwelling - Answers when ekman transport carries surface water away from the coast and is
replaced by water from underneath coastal upwellings are common along west coasts like Cali,
N.W Africa, Chile, Peru and SW Africa
downwelling - Answers when ekman transport carries surface water toward the coast and the
water piles up before sinking, occurs in the northern hemisphere along the west coast
cause of ekman transport - Answers when winds cause a frictional drag on surface water
pulling a shallow layer to the right in the northern hemisphere and to the left in the southern
hemisphere
what is a gyre? what causes them to form when they do? how do gyres influence the elevation
of water in the area of the gyre? - Answers Gyres are large-scale circular surface current
systems in the ocean basins - Main ones are Subtropical gyres are centered near 30° latitude in
the North and South Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, and 30° S latitude in the Indian Ocean
, Subtropical gyres in the Northern and Southern Hemispheres are similar except that they rotate
in opposite directions
Northern Hemisphere rotates clockwise
Southern Hemisphere rotates counterclockwise
In subtropical gyres:
Surface waters move toward each other.
Water piles up.
Low biological productivity
What are the differences between surface ocean currents on the western and eastern sides of
an ocean basin? What causes these differences? - Answers Surface ocean currents are faster,
narrower, and deeper on the western side of an ocean basin. These are known as western
boundary currents. Note that the vertical scale is greatly exaggerated.
What are the main drivers of deep ocean circulation? - Answers Deep ocean circulation driven by
variations in density called thermohaline circulation
And what is another name for this deep ocean circulation? Which types of water specifically
have a higher density? - Answers Thermo meaning heat
- Warmer water is less dense
- Colder water is more dense
- In general, we get colder waters generated toward the poles where it's colder!
Haline referring to salinity
- Salty water is more dense
- Fresher water is less dense
- Saltiness can change through evaporation (remaining water becomes saltier), or by salt
exclusion as ice forms like at the poles (water that's not frozen into ice becomes saltier)
2 main sites for deep water formation - Answers north atlantic deep water (NADW), Antartic
bottom water (AABW)
Equation for depth of deep water waves, transitional waves, and shallow water waves - Answers
Deep water waves: d>L/2
Thermocline - Answers the boundary between warmer surface waters and cooler waters below
(warm is less dense and sits at top)
positive feedback - Answers an interaction that amplifies the response of the system in which it
is incorporated, "snowballs out of control" or "vicious cycle," can be good or bad
negative feedback - Answers tends to stabilize when it undergoes perturbation
La Nina - Answers "Normal" year, easterly trade winds and ocean currents pool warm water in
the western Pacific, allowing upwelling of nutrient rich water off the West coast of South
America (same thing as normal but more)
global effects of el nino - Answers teleconnections lead to changes globally with some areas
wetter or drier, warmer of cooler, etc.
how do we monitor for el nino events and do these happen on a regular schedule - Answers -
Numerical models simulate the onset, evolution, and decay of El Niño and La Niña events
- El Niño and La Niña do not follow a predictable pattern
- Every 2-7 years and typically last 12-18 months
- 57 TAO (Tropical Atmosphere/Ocean)/TRITON moored buoys span Pacific Ocean
- Satellites provide an early warning for warm and cold phases of ENSO
main driver of surface ocean circulation - Answers friction between wind and ocean surface,
generally follow earths wind belt patten
upwelling - Answers when ekman transport carries surface water away from the coast and is
replaced by water from underneath coastal upwellings are common along west coasts like Cali,
N.W Africa, Chile, Peru and SW Africa
downwelling - Answers when ekman transport carries surface water toward the coast and the
water piles up before sinking, occurs in the northern hemisphere along the west coast
cause of ekman transport - Answers when winds cause a frictional drag on surface water
pulling a shallow layer to the right in the northern hemisphere and to the left in the southern
hemisphere
what is a gyre? what causes them to form when they do? how do gyres influence the elevation
of water in the area of the gyre? - Answers Gyres are large-scale circular surface current
systems in the ocean basins - Main ones are Subtropical gyres are centered near 30° latitude in
the North and South Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, and 30° S latitude in the Indian Ocean
, Subtropical gyres in the Northern and Southern Hemispheres are similar except that they rotate
in opposite directions
Northern Hemisphere rotates clockwise
Southern Hemisphere rotates counterclockwise
In subtropical gyres:
Surface waters move toward each other.
Water piles up.
Low biological productivity
What are the differences between surface ocean currents on the western and eastern sides of
an ocean basin? What causes these differences? - Answers Surface ocean currents are faster,
narrower, and deeper on the western side of an ocean basin. These are known as western
boundary currents. Note that the vertical scale is greatly exaggerated.
What are the main drivers of deep ocean circulation? - Answers Deep ocean circulation driven by
variations in density called thermohaline circulation
And what is another name for this deep ocean circulation? Which types of water specifically
have a higher density? - Answers Thermo meaning heat
- Warmer water is less dense
- Colder water is more dense
- In general, we get colder waters generated toward the poles where it's colder!
Haline referring to salinity
- Salty water is more dense
- Fresher water is less dense
- Saltiness can change through evaporation (remaining water becomes saltier), or by salt
exclusion as ice forms like at the poles (water that's not frozen into ice becomes saltier)
2 main sites for deep water formation - Answers north atlantic deep water (NADW), Antartic
bottom water (AABW)
Equation for depth of deep water waves, transitional waves, and shallow water waves - Answers
Deep water waves: d>L/2
