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Water is the medium of the oceans, the medium which carries all the substances and elements involved in the marine biogeochemical cycles. Water as found in nature almost always includes dissolved substances, so water has been described as the "universal solvent" for its ability to dissolve so many substances.
Like inorganic carbon, there are two main forms of organic carbon found in the ocean (dissolved and particulate). Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) is defined operationally as any organic molecule that can pass through a 0.2 μm filter. DOC can be converted into particulate organic carbon through heterotrophy and it can also be converted back to ...
The exchange between the ocean and atmosphere can take centuries, and the weathering of rocks can take millions of years. Carbon in the ocean precipitates to the ocean floor where it can form sedimentary rock and be subducted into the Earth's mantle. Mountain building processes result in the return of this geologic carbon to the Earth's surface.
Dissolved gases, such as H 2, H 2 S, and CH 4, and metals, such as Fe and Mn, present at high concentrations in hydrothermal vent fluids relative to seawater may also be diagnostic of hydrothermal plumes and thus active venting; however, these components are reactive and are thus less suitable as tracers of hydrothermal activity. [21]
Thermohaline circulation (THC) is a part of the large-scale ocean circulation that is driven by global density gradients created by surface heat and freshwater fluxes. [1] [2] The adjective thermohaline derives from thermo-referring to temperature and -haline referring to salt content, factors which together determine the density of sea water.
The ocean is home to a variety of marine organisms known as extremophiles – organisms that thrive in extreme conditions of temperature, pressure, and light availability. Extremophiles inhabit many unique habitats in the ocean, such as hydrothermal vents, black smokers, cold seeps, hypersaline regions, and sea ice brine pockets. Some ...
The ocean heat content (OHC) has been increasing for decades as the ocean has been absorbing most of the excess heat resulting from greenhouse gas emissions from human activities. [1] The graph shows OHC calculated to a water depth of 700 and to 2000 meters. Ocean heat content (OHC) or ocean heat uptake (OHU) is the energy absorbed and stored ...
The ocean heat content (OHC) has been increasing for decades as the ocean has been absorbing most of the excess heat resulting from greenhouse gas emissions from human activities. [13] The graph shows OHC calculated to a water depth of 700 and to 2000 meters. Ocean heat content (OHC) or ocean heat uptake (OHU) is the energy absorbed and stored ...