What causes coastal upwelling?

Coastal upwelling is the process by which strong winds blow down the coasts of continents and, in conjunction with the earth’s rotation, cause the surface waters to be pushed offshore. Water from the ocean depths is then pulled up – or upwelled – to the surface to take its place.

Which event causes upwelling?

Answer: Wind blowing parallel to the shore causes upwelling of cool water. Thermohaline circulation is mainly due to winds causing circulation of ocean water warmer, less dense water sinking in the ocean and cold water replacing it.

What are the major factors that affect upwelling?

The three main drivers that work together to cause upwelling are wind, Coriolis effect, and Ekman transport.

Where is coastal upwelling?

Significant upwelling areas around the world are off the west coast of the United States (California Current), Peru/Chile (Humboldt Current), Portugal/NW Africa (Canary Current), and SW Africa (Benguela Current).

What makes upwellings and Downwellings occur?

A coastal upwelling and downwellings occurs when the wind blows offshore ore parallel to shore. Sometimes they occur when offshore wind creates a current that pushes the surface water out to sea.

What causes deep ocean currents?

These deep-ocean currents are driven by differences in the water’s density, which is controlled by temperature (thermo) and salinity (haline). This process is known as thermohaline circulation. In the Earth’s polar regions ocean water gets very cold, forming sea ice.

What causes ocean currents quizlet?

A directional movement of ocean water; surface currents result from steady winds over the ocean surface; deep ocean currents result from density variations due to temperature and salinity differences.

What are the two main factors that affect deep ocean currents?

Deep currents are driven by temperature and water density/salinity.

What causes wave?

Waves are most commonly caused by wind. Wind-driven waves, or surface waves, are created by the friction between wind and surface water. As wind blows across the surface of the ocean or a lake, the continual disturbance creates a wave crest.

What are the 3 causes of waves?

Waves are dependent on three major factors – wind speed, wind time and wind distance.

What are 4 causes of waves?

• What are waves? Water waves are a manifestation of energy moving through the ocean. …
• What causes waves? A disturbing force is necessary to create waves on. …
• j Gravitational Attraction of Moon and Sun. …
• j Earthquakes and Underwater Landslides. …
• j Wind Stress over the ocean generates. …
• Tidal Waves. …
• Tsunamis. …
• Wind Generated Waves.

What causes waves geography?

What causes waves? Waves are created by the action of the wind blowing over the sea or ocean. The friction from the wind causes the surface water to move in ripples which eventually form full waves. The stretch of ocean water over which the wind blows is called the FETCH.

What influences waves along the coast?

The shoreline is affected by waves (produced by wind at sea) and tides (produced by the gravitational effect of the moon and sun). Waves are caused by wind. Wave height in the open ocean is determined by three factors. The greater the wind speed the larger the waves.





What causes waves ks3?

Waves are created by wind blowing over the surface of the sea.

What are coastal waves?

Waves are a form of potential energy that can be transported across hundreds to thousands of kilometers of ocean to be released as kinetic energy when they shoal and break. Waves are defined by their height (H) (trough to crest), length (L) (crest to crest) and period (T) (time between successive crests).

How do waves cause coastal erosion?

Explanation: As waves reach shallow water near the ocean shore, they begin to break. As the breaking waves hit the shoreline, their force knocks fragments off existing rock formations. Another way waves causes erosion is by forcing water into cracks in the rocks at the shoreline.

What is the most common cause of the approaching waves?

Most common are surface waves, caused by wind blowing along the air-water interface, creating a disturbance that steadily builds as wind continues to blow and the wave crest rises. Surface waves occur constantly all over the globe, and are the waves you see at the beach under normal conditions.

Why do some beaches have no waves?

Beaches in bays are often sheltered and don’t get a lot of waves; this is why these types of bays make good natural harbors. There may be barrier islands, artificial breakwaters, or large reefs that break large waves before they reach the beach, so only small waves make it to the beach.





Why are waves bigger at some beaches?

There are lots of types of waves in the ocean, but the waves you usually see at a beach are created by the wind. When the wind blows over a smooth ocean, it creates little waves or ripples on the surface. If the wind continues to blow, the waves grow bigger.

Why is the ocean GREY?

This is due to the presence of algae and plant life. The ocean may appear gray under a cloudy sky or brown when the water contains a lot of sediment, as when a river empties into the sea or after the water has been stirred up by a storm.

What is the saltiest ocean on Earth?

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.

Which sea has no salt?

Dead Sea





Dead Sea
Primary outflows	None
Catchment area	41,650 km2 (16,080 sq mi)
Basin countries	Israel, Jordan, and Palestine
Max. length	50 km (31 mi) (northern basin only)

Can you drown in the Dead Sea?

Is it possible to drown in it? Although whoever enters the water immediately floats, you should keep in mind that it is still possible to drown in the Dead Sea. This happens when swimmers get caught in strong winds, flip over and swallowing the salty water.

How did Dead Sea get so salty?

In the arid low-lying desert, the water that collects in the Dead Sea evaporates more quickly than water in the open ocean, leaving vast quantities of salt behind, the MDSRC explains.

Why is the Red Sea called the Red Sea?

Its name is derived from the colour changes observed in its waters. Normally, the Red Sea is an intense blue-green; occasionally, however, it is populated by extensive blooms of the algae Trichodesmium erythraeum, which, upon dying off, turn the sea a reddish brown colour.

Why is it called the Black Sea?

Why is the Black Sea black? The sea was first named by the ancient Greeks who called it “Inhospitable Sea.” The sea got this reputation because it was difficult to navigate, and hostile tribes inhabited its shores.