Which ocean layer has the highest salinity?
Of the five ocean basins, the Atlantic Ocean is the saltiest. On average, there is a distinct decrease of salinity near the equator and at both poles, although for different reasons. Near the equator, the tropics receive the most rain on a consistent basis.
Which of the following processes causes an increase in ocean salinity?
Evaporation of ocean water and formation of sea ice both increase the salinity of the ocean.
Where is the salinity of ocean water highest quizlet?
Places with the highest salinities are near 30 degrees latitude (high pressure) and the middle of ocean basins.
In which of the following environments does the salinity tend to be higher?
The salinity of ocean water tends to be higher in deep-ocean waters. Surface ocean water in colder regions will usually dissolve larger amounts of gases than will surface water in tropical regions.
Which body of water would have the highest salinity quizlet?
Therefore, tropical waters have a higher salinity at the surface than polar waters do. Salinity also decreases as depth increases. Over most of the surface of the ocean, salinity ranges from 33‰ to 36‰.
What increases salinity quizlet?
Evaporation and the freezing of surface water increase salinity.
Is salinity higher in deep water?
Typically, the salinity decreases from the surface ocean to deep waters is very small, from about 36 g/L (ppt) at the surface to 35 g/L (ppt) in the deep water, thus there is a very small density decrease with depth given a constant temperature.
What causes salinity?
Salinity occurs when the water table rises, bringing natural salts to the surface; in sufficient quantity, these salts become toxic to most plants. Salinity has been caused by extensive land clearing in Australia, predominantly for agricultural purposes.
What factors affect salinity of ocean water?
Salinity of seawater is affected by evaporation, precipitation, ice formation, and ice melting. Evaporation increases the salinity of seawater because when seawater evaporates, the salts are left behind, thus increasing their concentration.
Where evaporation is high salinity levels on the ocean surface will be quizlet?
Higher levels of evaporation from the ocean will increase sea surface salinity. Higher levels of precipitation and runoff will decrease sea surface salinity.
What determines the salinity of ocean water quizlet?
Ocean salinity refers to the amount of dissolved salt in the water. In areas that have a high evaporation rate, such as near the equator, the salinity of sea water is high because as water evaporates, it leaves the salt behind. Freezing is another process that affects salinity.
What causes salinity in water?
Conditions that lead to salinity Primary salinity is produced by natural processes such as weathering of rocks or wind and rain depositing salt over thousands of years.
What are the factors affecting salinity?
The salinity of water in the surface layer of oceans depend mainly on evaporation and precipitation. Surface salinity is greatly influenced in coastal regions by the freshwater flow from rivers, and in polar regions by the processes of freezing and thawing of ice.
Which phrase best describes the salinity of ocean water?
Salinity means the saltiness or the dissolved salt component in the water body . It is defined as mass (in gram) of the dissolved matter in the water bodies . For example : world's oceans salinity is 3.5% parts per thousand (g/L) .
What happens when water salinity increases?
The density of water increases as the salinity increases. The density of seawater (salinity greater than 24.7) increases as temperature decreases at all temperatures above the freezing point. The density of seawater is increased by increasing pressure.
What factors affect salinity quizlet?
The salinity of seawater is determined by how much freshwater enters the ocean in the form of precipitation, melting sea ice, and runoff from rivers, and how much exits through evaporation. Salinity is higher in the temperate and tropical areas where evaporation rates are higher than in polar regions.
What increases because of salinity?
The density of water increases as the salinity increases. The density of seawater (salinity greater than 24.7) increases as temperature decreases at all temperatures above the freezing point.
Is salinity higher in cold water?
Salinity, Density, and Temperature When the water molecules of the ocean become heated, they expand. Extra space is created by this expansion into which salt and other molecules (e.g., calcium) can fit. Since warmer water thus can hold more salt and other molecules than cold water; it can have a higher salinity.
What is high salinity?
Slightly saline water – From 1,000 ppm to 3,000 ppm. Moderately saline water – From 3,000 ppm to 10,000 ppm. Highly saline water – From 10,000 ppm to 35,000 ppm.
What does high salinity in water mean?
High levels of salinity in water and soil may cause: corrosion of machinery and infrastructure such as fences, roads and bridges. poor health or death of native vegetation, leading to a decline in biodiversity through dominance of salt-resistant species, potentially altering ecosystem structures.
Is there relatively high or low seawater salinity in the high latitudes?
What combination of factors explains the salinity at high latitudes? Compared to high latitudes there is higher salinity due to higher evaporation but the salinity is slightly lower close to the equator due to an increase in runoff there.
What causes rising salinity?
River salinity is caused by saline discharges from dryland, irrigation and urban salinity into creeks and rivers. Over time, as salinity within catchments worsens, the quality of river water declines, becoming more and more saline.
Which of the following factors affect ocean salinity?
The correct option is B 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 only. Explanation: Factors affecting ocean salinity are mentioned below: The salinity of water in the surface layer of oceans depend mainly on evaporation and precipitation.
What causes water to have a high density?
The more salt there is dissolved in the water, the greater its salinity. When comparing two samples of water with the same volume, the water sample with higher salinity will have greater mass, and it will therefore be more dense.
In which area does salinity of seawater increase?
At approximately 30°–35° N and 30°–35° S, the subtropical zones called the horse latitudes are belts of high evaporation that produce major deserts and grasslands on the continents and cause the surface salinity to rise.
Why is salinity higher in the Atlantic ocean?
The Atlantic Ocean is known to have higher sea surface salinity than the Pacific Ocean at all latitudes. This is thought to be associated with the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation and deep water formation in the high latitude North Atlantic – a phenomenon not present anywhere in the Pacific.
Does higher salinity mean higher temperature?
With increasing temperature, salinity decreases….and conversely, with decreasing temperature, salinity increases.
What causes salinity to be higher in the tropics than at the pole quizlet?
Compared to high latitudes, there is higher salinity due to higher evaporation, but the salinity is slightly lower close to the equator due to an increase in runoff there.
What are factors affecting the salinity?
Surface salinity is greatly influenced in coastal regions by the freshwater flow from rivers, and in polar regions by the processes of freezing and thawing of ice. Wind also influences the salinity of an area by transferring water to other areas. The ocean currents contribute to the salinity variations.
Does warm water have higher salinity?
Salinity, Density, and Temperature When the water molecules of the ocean become heated, they expand. Extra space is created by this expansion into which salt and other molecules (e.g., calcium) can fit. Since warmer water thus can hold more salt and other molecules than cold water; it can have a higher salinity.