Marine Science Help please!?
Think about the types of instruments that a marine scientist or geologist might use to gather evidence to support the theory of plate tectonics. What specific instruments were needed to gather each of the following types of data? (use the "Developing the Theory" section) http://pubs.usgs.gov/gip/dynamic/developing.html
(a) demonstration of the ruggedness and youth of the ocean floor
(b) confirmation of repeated reversals of the Earth’s magnetic field in the geologic past
(c) emergence of the seafloor-spreading hypothesis and associated recycling of oceanic crust
(d) precise documentation that the world’s earthquake and volcanic activity is concentrated along oceanic trenches and submarine mountain ranges
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3 comments
seattlesailor2000 on May 15, 2010 at 3:00 pm
for more info on marine plate tectonics go to this site
to study marine plate tectonics scientests need to sample the sea floor
The quickest and easiest method of sampling the seafloor from a ship is by coring using a long metal pipe weighted at the top. The pipe is attached to a long multipurpose cable and is allowed to "free-fall"
Several new types of marine research vehicles have been developed that are proving to be valuable tools for marine geologic studies. They allow scientists to descend beneath the water to observe and sample the seafloor. A small-sized deep submersible carries one navigator and one scientist, but some larger ones operate as much as 6,000 feet below the ocean’s surface and carry a five-person crew. The deepest oceanic trenches at depths exceeding 7 miles have been visited by these vessels. Most submersibles are equipped with cameras, lights, mechanical arms for collecting samples, and can accommodate specialized instruments for measuring shear strength, inclination of the sediment surface, and temperature of sediments. These research vehicles are also used to investigate the nature of bottom sediments, submarine canyons and seamounts, mineral deposits on the ocean floor, and submarine volcanoes.
In 1963, the National Science Foundation initiated a worldwide investigation of the seafloors called the Deep Sea Drilling Project (DSDP). Using technology developed by the petroleum industry, DSDP ships drilled and recovered extensive core sections, some over a mile long, from the ocean floor. In certain areas of the world, some of the oldest sedimentary rocks on the ocean floor record an uninterrupted rain of sediment for over 180 million years. These rocks are mostly the skeletons of countless microscopic plankton and claysized particles. If the history of the Earth is to be better known, it is essential to look to the sediments and sedimentary rocks in the oceans where the record is more complete. Information about the ancient climates of the Earth, oceanic current patterns, and variations in volcanic activity in the past can be found within these rocks.
Seismic recorders are used to identify the depth to the ocean floor and the configuration of its sediment and rock layers. In this graphic record, the ship has just transected a submarine canyon.
As in all scientific fields, computers are important tools for marine geologists All large research vessels carry banks of multipurpose computers. Magnetic and gravity data are recorded continuously on computer tape throughout the day and night. Another type of onboard computer system receives signals from navigation satellites and radio beacons and can locate a ship’s position to within 300 feet on the often featureless expanse of open ocean. Onshore computers perform statistical analyses, plot maps, and transform seismic data into a clearer form.
http://walrus.wr.usgs.gov/pubinfo/margeo.html
hope this helps
RoyalKnightsBooster on May 15, 2010 at 3:00 pm
Where I come from, you wouldn’t even call yourself a marine scientist unless you could do all that with a hammer and a slide rule.
KrissyH on June 14, 2010 at 7:31 pm
For RoyalKnights… It’s for a class that they have to know it and honestly I need to know too. This class gives us questions we can’t answer because we don’t have a book just the internet to help us, and in this case… it does not help.