Learning Objectives
- Understand the processes involved in the hydrological cycle, including evaporation, condensation, precipitation, and runoff, and their significance in the earth's hydrosphere.
- Analyze the major and minor oceanic relief features, such as continental shelves, slopes, deep sea plains, ridges, seamounts, and trenches, and their formation processes.
- Examine the factors affecting temperature distribution in oceans, including latitude, land-water distribution, winds, and ocean currents, and understand the concept of the thermocline.
- Investigate the factors influencing the salinity of ocean waters, its horizontal and vertical distribution, and the interrelationship between salinity, temperature, and water density.