Ocean Zones Mini-Poster and Ocean Circulation Map
Ocean Zones Mini-Poster
The ocean is divided into different layers or zones based on density, temperature, salinity, and how much light can shine through. Each ocean zone is home to different types of marine organisms, and they all can only live in those certain zones because they have only adapted to live there, not in higher or lower density areas. For this assignment, we had to draw the different ocean zones, and then draw what organisms tend to live in each.
The different ocean zones are:
Pelagic Zone: The entirety of the open ocean.
Epipelagic Zone (Photic): The surface layer of the ocean. It goes 200 meters below the surface and sunlight is able to easily go through, making it a great zone for photosynthesis. This is where all primary production of the ocean is.
Mesopelagic & Bathypelagic (Twilight): 200 - 4000 meters. Twilight zone lets some light in, but not enough for photosynthesis, so there is no living plant life.
Abyssal Zone (Aphotic): 4000 - 6000 meters: The water temperature is near freezing and there is no sunlight here. This area is very unknown and very few species are known to live here.
Hadal Zone: 6000 meters - the bottom of the ocean. This area is most water trenches and canyons.
Benthic Zone: All of the ocean floor is part of this zone.
Intertidal Zone: This zone is only sometimes covered by the ocean water, depending on the tides.
Neretic Zone: This zone is part zone where the Continental Shelf is.
Ocean Circulation Map
Ocean circulation is cause by the rotation of the earth, and the unbalanced heat distribution at the equator. The warmer, less dense air moves towards the cooler, more dense air at the poles, and then sucks back the cold air in this cycle. Ocean circulation is important because it moves, slowly, water all across the world, and help regulate temperatures at the poles and in the tropics. For this assignment, we colored the important parts of how the ocean circulates.
Thermocline Circulation: The Great Ocean Conveyor Belt moves warm and cold water all across the ocean, and at different layers of the ocean. This is important because it helps keep the temperature of the ocean where is should be. On the map, the green lines are shallow, and the purple lines are deep.
Major Gyres: Gyres are what help circulate warm water from the equator to the poles, and the cold water from the poles to the equator. On my map, the red lines are warm and the blue lines are cold.
Upwelling Areas: Upwelling is when deep, cold water comes up and rises to the surface. Major upwelling zones are colored in order, around the coasts of continents.
The ocean is lightly color for the different temperatures it is at that part of the ocean at its surface. Red, around the equator, is the warmest, 25 C or more, then yellow, then green, then blue, which drops down to 9 C or less.
Reflection
I think that I put together clean and organized posters. I colored them both well, and made sure that I included all of the key components for each. For the ocean zones poster, I made sure to make the different layers as accurate as possible, and for the ocean circulation map, I think that my key was correct in the way that made the map make more sense.
One thing that I could have worked on making the posters more exciting to at. Adding brighter, or just different colors would have made it more fun to look at. I think I could have also included more details in my animal drawings, and maybe labeled them so that everyone knows what animals live on each layer.