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Author Question: What is surface ocean circulation primarily driven by? What will be an ideal ... (Read 88 times)

jilianpiloj

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What is surface ocean circulation primarily driven by?
 
  What will be an ideal response?

Question 2

What effect does the formation of sea ice in polar regions have on the density of seawater?
 
  What will be an ideal response?



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macagn

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Answer to Question 1

Answer: The wind. As winds blow across the ocean, frictional forces set the surface water into motion. The Coriolis force and interface with the land act to modify the circulation, but the driving force is the wind.

Answer to Question 2

Answer: When seawater in polar regions freezes only the water freezes, the salt is left behind. The surrounding seawater experiences an increase in salinity, which brings an increase in density. The cold, denser, saltier seawater sinks, producing a pattern of vertical movement. Movement is also horizontal as cold dense water flows along the bottom to the deeper parts of the ocean floor.




macagn

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