| A | B |
|---|
| oceanographer | a scientist who studies the ocean |
| benthos | organisms that live only on the ocean floor |
| continental shelf | relatively flat part of a continental margin covered by shallow ocean water |
| crest | highest point of a wave |
| low tide | lowest level of the ocean that occurs between the two high tides |
| high tide | bulge in the ocean on the side of the earth facing the moon and on the opposite side |
| midocean ridge | large system of underwater mountains |
| nekton | forms of ocean life that swim |
| neap tide | lower high tide than normal that occurs during the first- and last- quarter phases of the moon |
| plankton | small organisms that float at or near the ocean's surface |
| oceanography | study of the earth's oceans, including their physical features, life forms, and natural resources |
| salinity | amount of dissolved salt in ocean water |
| spring tide | higher high tide that occurs during the full- and new-moon phases |
| surface current | ocean current caused mainly by the wind patterns |
| tide | rise and fall of the oceans caused by the moon's gravitational pull on the earth |
| tsunami | giant ocean wave caused by an earthquake |
| upwelling | rising of deep cold curents to the ocean surface |
| trough | lowest point of a wave |
| wavelength | horizontal distance between two consecutive crests or troughs |
| trench | deep V-shaped valley along the ocean floor |
