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4 Branches of Oceanography

Physical oceanography is the study


of physical conditions and physical
processes within the ocean, especially
the motions and physical properties of
ocean waters.
Physical oceanography is one of several
sub-domains into which oceanography is
divided. Others
include biological, chemicaland geologica
l oceanography.
Physical oceanography may be
subdivided
into descriptive and dynamical physical oceanography.[1]
Descriptive physical oceanography seeks to research the ocean through observations and complex
numerical models, which describe the fluid motions as precise as possible.
Dynamical physical oceanography focuses primarily upon the processes that govern the motion of
fluids with emphasis upon theoretical research and numerical models. These are part of the large
field of Geophysical Fluid Dynamics (GFD) that is shared together with meteorology.

Chemical oceanography is the study of ocean


chemistry: the behavior of the chemical
elements within the Earth's oceans. The ocean
is unique in that it contains - in greater or lesser
quantities - nearly every naturally
occurring element in the periodic table.
Much of chemical oceanography describes
the cycling of these elements both within the
ocean and with the other spheres of the Earth
system (see biogeochemical cycle). These
cycles are usually characterised as
quantitative fluxes between
constituent reservoirs defined within the ocean
system and as residence times within the
ocean. Of particular global and climatic significance are the cycles of the biologically active elements
such as carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus as well as those of some important trace elements such
as iron.
Another important area of study in chemical oceanography is the behaviour of isotopes (see isotope
geochemistry) and how they can be used as tracers of past and present oceanographic and climatic
processes. For example, the incidence of 18O (the heavy isotope of oxygen) can be used as an
indicator of polar ice sheet extent, and boron isotopes are key indicators of the pH and CO2content
of oceans in the geologic past.
Marine geology or geological oceanography is the
study of the history and structure of the ocean floor. It
involves geophysical, geochemical, sedimentological and
paleontological investigations of the ocean
floor and coastal zone. Marine geology has strong ties
to geophysics and to physical oceanography.
Marine geological studies were of extreme importance in
providing the critical evidence for sea floor
spreading and plate tectonics in the years following World
War II. The deep ocean floor is the last essentially
unexplored frontier and detailed mapping in support of
both military (submarine) objectives and economic
(petroleum and metal mining) objectives drives the
research.

Marine Ecology is the scientific study of


marine-life habitat, populations, and
interactions among organisms and the
surrounding environment including their abiotic
(non-living physical and chemical factors that
affect the ability of organisms to survive and
reproduce) and biotic factors (living things or
the materials that directly or indirectly affect an
organism in its environment).

Marine ecology is a subset of the study of


marine biology and includes observations at
the biochemical, cellular, individual, and
community levels as well as the study of
marine ecosystems and the biosphere.

The study of marine ecology also includes the influence of geology, geography,
meteorology, pedology, chemistry, and physics on marine environments. The impact of
human activity such as medical research, development, agriculture, fisheries, and forestry
is also studied under marine ecology. In some ways, marine ecology is more complex than
the relatively straightforward study of a particular organism or environment because of the
numerous interconnections, symbiotic relationships, and influence of many factors on a
particular environment.

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