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1. When seawater undergoes evaporation, what is the first mineral to precipitate out is:
a.
CaCO3 (calcite)
b.
CaSO4 (gypsum and anhydrite varieties)
c.
NaCl (salt or [halite])
d. KCl (sylvite)
2. A steep temperature gradient in a body of water marked by a layer above and below which the water is at different temperatures is called:
a. a thermocline.
b. a halocline.
c. a pycnocline.
d. solar heating.
3. The Coriolis effect is caused by the rotation of the Earth on its polar axis. As a result:
a. moving water is deflected to the right in the Northern Hemisphere.
b. low atmospheric pressure systems (like hurricanes) rotate counter-clockwise in the Northern Hemisphere.
c. maximum Coriolis effect is at the poles and does not occur at the equator.
d. all of choices are correct.
4. Warm, moist air rises in the Inter-tropical Convergence Zone, creating a region dominated by rainy weather along the equator. These rising air masses near the equator move north and south of the equatorial region where the winds descend as dry air in the Subtropical High Zones. From the Subtropical High Zones some of the wind move back toward the equator. This cycle of air movement is called the Hadley Cells (air circulation cells). Winds moving back toward the equator picks up moisture at the surface at it migrate back toward the Inter-tropical Convergence Zone. Because of the Coriolis effect, these winds are deflected to the west, resulting in:
a. polar cell winds.
b. Ferrel cell winds.
c. Tropical Easterlies (Trade Winds)
d. Prevailing Westerlies.
5. Solar heating combined with the rotation of the Earth result in the development stable wind belts around the globe. As the wind belts move over the oceans they do what of the following?
a.
Winds move surface currents around the oceans in 5 large gyres.
b. Easterlie (trade) winds move ocean currents westward in tropical regions.
c.
Westerlie winds move storm systems eastward across mid latitude regions.
d. all of the above.
6. A western boundary current that flows along the East Coast of North America until it is deflected to the right by westerlie winds in the North Atlantic is called the:
a) Gulf Stream.
b) North Atlantic Drift.
c) North Equatorial Current.
d) Florida Current.
7. The Coriolis effect can affect near-shore currents as well as those in the deep ocean. From these graphics above, we can see or infer each of the following EXCEPT:
a) winds from the south will bring cold, nutrient-rich waters to the surface.
b) surface currents are deflected to the left of the direction the wind blows.
c) winds from the north create surface currents directed away from the shore.
d) erosion of the shoreline is likely greatest when winds blow from the east.
8. Based on historical data, how does El Niño conditions generally impact Southern California?
a) ocean water temperatures are higher (impacting sea life), and there is typically increased rainfall in the rainy season.
b) ocean water temperatures are lower (impacting sea life), and there is typically increased rainfall in the rainy season.
c) ocean water temperatures are higher (impacting sea life), and there is typically less rainfall in the rainy season.
d) ocean water temperatures are lower (impacting sea life), and there is typically less rainfall in the rainy season.
9. The time it takes for one full wave cycle to pass a fixed position, such as a post in the water, is called:
a) wave period.
b) wave height.
c) wave fetch.
d) wavelength.
10. The vertical distance between the trough of a wave and the crest of a wave is called:
a) wave height.
b) wave period.
c) fetch.
d) wavelength.
11. The wavelength, height, and wave period of a wave depend on:
a. the length of time the wind has blown.
b. wind speed.
c. the distance (fetch) the wind has traveled over open water.
d. all the above.
12. An area over open water where wind waves are generated is called:
a. swell.
b. sea.
c. fetch.
d. wave period.
13. A water molecule in an open ocean wave illustrates what type of motion.
a. horizontal movement perpendicular to the direction of wave motion.
b. movement in a straight line, parallel to the direction of wave motion.
c. vertical movement perpendicular to the direction of wave motion.
d. movement in a circle parallel to the direction that a wave is moving.
14. In deep water in the open ocean, how deep in water do surface waves cause particle motion?
a) Half the wave height.
b) Exactly twice the wave height.
c) Twice the wavelength.
d) About half the wavelength.
15. In proximity to shorelines, sea-swell waves break and transform into what type of waves?
a. waves of oscillation
b. waves of refraction
c. waves of reflection
d. waves of translation
16. What is surf?
a) Fully-developed waves generated by strong winds.
b) Waves moving out of the generating area.
c) Where waves steepen and build up near shore.
d) Waves moving into shallow water as turbulent front that moves onto the beach.
17. Surfer like spilling breakers the most. They tend to form where the seabed and shoreline have:
a. gentle slopes.
b. moderate slopes.
c. steep slopes.
d. rocky cliff shorelines.
18. Unusual wave interactions that sometime form rare, large waves that can have catastrophic impacts on ships and unsuspecting people not paying attention to wave action along the shore. These waves are called:
a.
chop.
b. reflective waves.
c. destructive waves.
d.
rouge waves.
19. The bending of waves so that they are more parallel to the shore is called:
a. diffraction.
b. reflection.
c. refraction.
d. translation.
20. When waves approach the beach at an angle, beach sediments move along the coastline in a process called:
a. tides.
b. longshore drift.
c. turbidity currents.
d. translation.
e. accumulation.
21. What is the relative tidal force of the Sun's and Moon's pull on the Earth?
a) The Sun and Moon exert equal tidal forces on the Earth.
b) The Sun exerts about twice the tidal force of the Moon.
c) The Sun exerts three times the tidal force of the Moon.
d) The Moon exerts about twice the tidal force of the Sun.
22. During a full moon, the gravitational forces of the Sun and Moon are maximized, producing:
a. very large ranges of tidal highs and low tides called spring tides.
b. very small ranges of tidal highs and low tides called neap tides.
c. low tides only.
d. high tides only.
23. When the Moon is closest to the earth is called:
a. apogee.
b. perigee.
c. aphelion.
d. perihelion.
24. The zone on a beach profile that is associated with the typically vegetation free splash or spray zone above the high water line on a beach is called:
a.
the intertidal zone.
b. the subtidal zone.
c. the supratidal zone.
d. a wrackline.
25. Both terrestrial processes and marine processes that are working to shape coastlines. What kind of primary coastline is associated with drowned river valleys caused by a rise in sea level?
a. Ria coasts
b. Glacial coasts
c. Deltaic coasts
d. Volcanic coasts
e. Fault/tectonic coasts
26. Large rocky outcrops that have resisted wave erosion and stand offshore as the beach and sea cliff continues to erode landward are called:
a. headlands.
b. wave-cut benches.
c. sea stacks.
d. sea arches.
27. Over time, sea level has risen and fallen many times in the past during the ice ages. Along emergent coastlines, such as along many parts of California's coastline, the interactions of these gradual sea level changes and a slowly rising coastline has resulted in the formation of:
a. marine terraces.
b. spits.
c. bay mouth bars.
d. barrier islands.
28. Low ridges of sand that parallel coastlines and rise above sea level are called:
a. barrier islands.
b. marine terraces.
c. wracklines.
d. tidal deltas.
29. Walls built as barriers perpendicular to the beach in an attempt to stabilize shorelines by trapping sand migrating along the shore by longshore drift are called:
a. spits.
b. breakwaters.
c. hooks.
d. groins.
30. What of the following is a significant cause of coastal erosion, requiring expensive efforts to restore beaches along coastal California?
a. Dams trap sandy sediments that would otherwise be carried by floodwaters to coastline beaches.
b. Lack of a supply of sand to a beach allows wave energy to erode sea cliffs.
c. Construction of jetties to protect harbors traps sediments that would otherwise migrate along the coast by longshore drift.
d. all of the above.
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