Oceanography

Oceanography

The scientific studies of the ocean.

Industry: Earth science

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Oceanography

Diurnal tide

Earth science; Oceanography

A tide in which there is only one high water and one low water each lunar day .

Solitary wave

Earth science; Oceanography

A hump-shaped wave of permanent form. Solitary waves are well known for their tendency to travel long distances without dispersion and, despite being large amplitude (so that linear superposition ...

Latent heat

Earth science; Oceanography

1. Energy transferred from Earth's surface to the atmosphere through the evaporation and condensation processes. 2. If a change of state occurs from gas to liquid or liquid to solid, internal ...

Boussinesq approximation

Earth science; Oceanography

An approximation to the dynamical equations of motion whereby density is assumed to be constant except in the buoyancy term, -g\rho', of the vertical velocity equation. The approximation is ...

Ice shelf

Earth science; Oceanography

A thick ice formation with a fairly level surface, formed along a polar coast and in shallow bays and inlets, where it is fastened to the shore and often reaches bottom. It may grow hundreds of ...

Eddy viscosity

Earth science; Oceanography

An approximation to turbulent flow whereby the net effect of molecular diffusion enhanced by strain flows between eddies is parametrized by an eddy viscosity acting on large scale motion. Eddy ...