Oceanography and

Coastal Processes

Introduction to Physical Geography

GE 140: Topic Two

Wednesday, July 27, 2022 Introduction to Oceanography 1

 Intro. to Coastal Geography
 It is a study of the interface between the ocean
and land surface.
 It incorporates both the physical and human
geography of the coast.
 It involves an understanding of coastal weathering
processes, particularly wave action, sediment
movements and the ways in which human interact
with the coasts and coastal resources.
 It entails not only on the coastal landforms, but
also the causes and influences of sea level change.
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 Intro. to Coastal
Geography
 Facts about Coastal Geography:
 71% of earth’s surface is covered by water.
 97% of water in the globe is located in the oceans.
 Large masses of water have enormous energy
potential (i.e. dynamic system)
 More than 50% of the world's population live in
coastal regions.
 It is a place for the 2/3 of the world’s largest cities.
 It is a place of extremes-attracting both the most
wealthy and the poorest of the poor in the world.
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Intro. to Oceanography
and Coastal Processes
 Objectives of the Topic:
 This topic covers the key issues of Coastal
Geomorphology, Coastal Zones, Coastal
Processes and Coastal Landforms.
 It concentrates on how waves are developed,
travel and break in the interface of the costal
zones & shores, sediment transportation as
well as depositional and erosional coastal
landforms.

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Oceanography and
Coastal Processes
 Key - Minor Topics:
 Introduction to Oceans
 Ocean Floor Profile
 Ocean Floor Processes
 Coastal Processes
 Coastal Landforms

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Introduction to Oceans
 Objectives:
 Identify methods used by scientists to
study Earth’s oceans.
 Discuss the origin and composition of the
Earth’s oceans.
 Describe the distribution of Earth’s major
oceans; major and minor seas.

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The Oceans
 Oceanography is the scientific study of
Earth’s oceans.
 In the late 1800s, the British Challenger
expedition became the first research ship
to use relatively sophisticated measuring
devices to study the oceans.

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Modern Oceanography
 In the 1920s, the German research ship Meteor
used sonar for the first time to map the seafloor
features of the South Atlantic Ocean.
 Sonar, which stands for sound navigation and
ranging, uses the return time of an echo and the
known velocity of sound in water to determine
water depth.
 The velocity of sound in water is 1454 m/s.
 To calculate the distance to the ocean floor,
multiply the time by 1454 m/s, then divide by 2.
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Modern Oceanography
 Advanced Technology
 Satellites such as the Topex/Poseidon continually
monitor the ocean’s surface temperatures,
currents, and wave conditions.
 Submersibles, or underwater vessels, investigate
the deepest ocean trenches.
 Large portions of the seafloor have been mapped
using side-scan sonar.
 Side-scan sonar is a technique that directs sound
waves to the seafloor at an angle, so that the
sides of underwater hills and other topographic
features can be mapped.

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Origin of the Oceans
 Studies of radioactive isotopes indicate that
Earth is about 4.6 billion years old.
 Radioactive studies and lava flows offer
evidence that there has been abundant water
throughout Earth’s geologic history.

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Origin of the Oceans
 Where did the water come from?
 Scientists hypothesize that Earth’s water could
have originated from two sources.
 Comets occasionally collide with Earth and release
water on impact – possibly enough to have filled
the ocean basins over geologic time.
 Studies of meteorites indicate that they may
contain up to 0.5 percent water.
 If the early Earth contained the same percentage
of water, it would have been more than sufficient
to form the early oceans.
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Origin of the Oceans
 Volcanism
 Shortly after the formation of Earth, violent
volcanism released huge amounts of water
vapor, carbon dioxide, and other gases, which
combined to form Earth’s early atmosphere.
 As Earth’s crust cooled, the water vapor
gradually condensed into oceans.
 Volcanism still adds water to the hydrosphere,
but the process is balanced by the continuous
destruction of some water molecules by
ultraviolet radiation (URV) from the Sun.
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Distribution of Earth’s Water

 71% of earth’s surface is covered by water.

 The oceans contain 97 percent of the water
found on Earth.
 The remaining 3 percent is freshwater
located in the frozen ice caps of Greenland
and Antarctica and in rivers, lakes, and
underground sources.
 The percentage of ice has ranged from near
zero to as much as 10 percent of the
hydrosphere over geologic time.

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Distribution of Earth’s Water

 Global sea level is the level of the oceans’

surfaces.
 Sea level has risen and fallen by hundreds
of meters in response to melting ice
during warm periods and expanding
glaciers during ice ages.
 Tectonic forces that lift or lower portions
of the seafloor has also affected sea level.

Wednesday, July 27, 2022 Introduction to Oceanography 14

Distribution of Earth’s Water

 The Blue Planet:

 Approximately 71 percent of Earth’s
surface is covered by oceans that have an
average depth of 3800 m. (3.8km)
61% Water 39% Land
 Because most landmasses are in the
northern
81% Waterhemisphere,
19% oceans
Land only cover
61 percent of the surface.
 Water covers 81 percent of the southern
hemisphere.

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Distribution of Earth’s Water

 Major Oceans
 There are three major oceans:
 The largest ocean, the Pacific, contains
roughly half of Earth’s seawater and is larger
than all of Earth’s landmasses combined.
 The second-largest ocean, the Atlantic,
extends from Antarctica to the Arctic Circle,
north of 70° north latitude which it is often
referred to as the Arctic Ocean.
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Distribution of Earth’s Water

 The third-largest ocean, the Indian, is

located mainly in the southern hemisphere.
 The water surrounding Antarctica, south of
50° south latitude, is known as the Antarctic
Ocean.

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Distribution of Earth’s Water

 Sea Ice
 The Arctic and Antarctic Oceans are covered
by vast expanses of sea ice, particularly
during the winter.
 An ice-crystal slush develops at the surface
of the water and eventually solidifies into
individual round pieces called pancake ice.

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Distribution of Earth’s Water

 The pieces of pancake ice thicken and

freeze into a continuous ice cover called
pack ice.
 Pack ice is generally several meters thick
and may cover an area more than 1000 km
wide.

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 Distribution of Earth’s Water

 Seas
 Seas are smaller than oceans and are partly or
mostly landlocked.
 The Mediterranean Sea is located between
Africa and Europe and was the first sea to be
explored and mapped by ancient peoples.
 Notable major seas in the northern hemisphere
include the Gulf of Mexico, the Caribbean Sea,
and the Bering Sea, which is located between
Alaska and Siberia.

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Distribution of Earth’s Water

 Other minor seas in the northern hemisphere

include the Red Sea, Arabian Sea, Black Sea,
Caspian Sea, North Sea, Baltic Sea, Barents
Sea, South China Sea, Yellow Sea, Sulu Sea,
Celebes Sea, East Siberian Sea as well as Sea
of Japan and Okhotsk.

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Distribution of Earth’s Water

 Notable seas in the southern hemisphere

include Java Sea, Banda Sea, Arafura Sea,
Timor Sea, Bismarck Sea, Solomon Sea and
Coral Sea both of which are minor seas
located between Indonesia, New Guinea
and Australia.
 All seas and oceans belong to one global
ocean whose waters are thoroughly mixed.

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Wednesday, July 27, 2022 Introduction to Oceanography 23
Section Assessment Q.1
 What is side-scan sonar?
 The Oceans Side-scan sonar is a technique
that directs sound waves to the seafloor at
an angle, so that the sides of underwater
hills and other topographic features can be
mapped.

Wednesday, July 27, 2022 Introduction to Oceanography 24

Section Assessment Q.2
 According to one hypothesis, how did
volcanism play a part in forming Earth’s
early oceans?
 The Oceans During a period of massive
volcanism that occurred shortly after
formation of the Earth, huge quantities of
water vapor, carbon dioxide, and other
gases were released. These gases formed
Earth’s early atmosphere. As Earth’s crust
cooled, the water vapor gradually
condensed into oceans.
Wednesday, July 27, 2022 Introduction to Oceanography 25
 Section Assessment Q.3
 Identify whether the following statements are true or
false.
 Oceans contain 97 percent of the water found on
true
Earth _____
 true
Oceans cover 71 percent of Earth’s surface _____
 The Earth’s major oceans are isolated from each
false
other by landmasses ______
 Presently, average global sea level is rising 1 to 2 cm
false
per year______

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 Thank You for Listening!!

Wednesday, July 27, 2022 Introduction to Oceanography 27