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Below this mixed layer, at depths of 200–300 m in the open ocean, the temperature begins to decrease rapidly down to about 1000 m. The water layer within which the temperature gradient is steepest is known as the permanent thermocline. [5] The temperature difference through this layer may be as large as 20°C, depending on latitude.
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.
The ocean plays a key role in the water cycle as it is the source of 86% of global evaporation. [2] The water cycle involves the exchange of energy, which leads to temperature changes. When water evaporates, it takes up energy from its surroundings and cools the environment. When it condenses, it releases energy and warms the environment.
The volcanoes at mid-ocean ridges alone are estimated to account for 75% of the magma output on Earth. [1] Although most submarine volcanoes are located in the depths of seas and oceans, some also exist in shallow water, and these can discharge material into the atmosphere during an eruption.
World map with the middle latitudes highlighted in red Extratropical cyclone formation areas. The middle latitudes, also called the mid-latitudes (sometimes spelled midlatitudes) or moderate latitudes, are spatial regions on either hemisphere of Earth, located between the Tropic of Cancer (latitude 23°26′09.7″) and the Arctic Circle (66°33′50.3″) in the northern hemisphere and ...
The following outline is provided as an overview of and introduction to Oceanography.. Thermohaline circulation. Oceanography (from Ancient Greek ὠκεανός (ōkeanós) 'ocean' and γραφή (graphḗ) 'writing'), also known as oceanology, sea science, ocean science, and marine science, is the scientific study of the ocean, including its physics, chemistry, biology, and geology.
Water carried into the mantle eventually returns to the surface in eruptions at mid-ocean ridges and hotspots. [8] This circulation of water into the mantle and back is known as the deep water cycle or the geologic water cycle. [9] [10] [11] [5] Estimates of the amount of water in the mantle range from 1 ⁄ 4 to 4 times the water in the ocean ...
Water that upwells at lower, ice-free latitudes moves further northward due to Ekman transport and is committed to the upper cell. The warm water in the upper cell is responsible for the return flow to the North Atlantic, which occurs mainly around the coast of Africa [clarification needed] and through the Indonesian archipelago. Once this ...