Question 1

How much of the Earth's surface is covered by the deep ocean basins?

Accepted Answer

A)  15% 
B)  65% 
C)  30% 
D)  50% 
A)  15% 
B)  65% 
C)  30% 
D)  50%

Question 2

What sedimentation rates typify the red or brown clays of the abyssal plains?

Accepted Answer

A)  1- 5 centimetres per year 
B)  1 centimetre per 500 years 
C)  1 centimetre per 5,000 to 50,000 years 
D)  > 5 metres per year 
A)  1- 5 centimetres per year 
B)  1 centimetre per 500 years 
C)  1 centimetre per 5,000 to 50,000 years 
D)  > 5 metres per year

Question 3

What sedimentary process is mainly responsible for the accumulation of up to 9 kilometres of sediment in deep ocean trenches?

Accepted Answer

A)  pelagic, biogenous ooze slowly settling from the top of the water column 
B)  sunken or subsided coral reefs 
C)  offshore dumping of unending bargeloads of garbage from major cities 
D)  turbidity currents and submarine landslides from the continental slope and trench walls 
A)  pelagic, biogenous ooze slowly settling from the top of the water column 
B)  sunken or subsided coral reefs 
C)  offshore dumping of unending bargeloads of garbage from major cities 
D)  turbidity currents and submarine landslides from the continental slope and trench walls

Question 4

If you are sailing across the continental shelf in Queen Charlotte Sound and your echo sounder reported the bottom at 200 milliseconds (0.200 sec) at the maximum depth crossing the axis of Mitchell Trough, how deep is the seabed in the middle of this drowned submarine valley? Use the equation: depth (m) = 0.5 * (1500 m/s * total 2- way travel time in sec)

Accepted Answer

A)  1500 m 
B)  50 0 m 
C)  15 m 
D)  150 m 
A)  1500 m 
B)  50 0 m 
C)  15 m 
D)  150 m

Question 5

Oceanic ridges are elevated compared to the surrounding ocean floor because _________.

Accepted Answer

A)  of the shield volcanoes that develop due to seafloor spreading 
B)  the mantle is pushing up the lithosphere along the ridge 
C)  newly formed lithosphere is hotter and therefore less dense than the surrounding rocks 
D)  the older, colder lithosphere is less dense and tends to rise 
A)  of the shield volcanoes that develop due to seafloor spreading 
B)  the mantle is pushing up the lithosphere along the ridge 
C)  newly formed lithosphere is hotter and therefore less dense than the surrounding rocks 
D)  the older, colder lithosphere is less dense and tends to rise

Question 6

How thick are the accumulations of shallow water sediments on passive continental margins like the Scotian Shelf?

Accepted Answer

A)  several hundred metres 
B)  several tens of metres 
C)  several kilometres 
D)  several metres 
A)  several hundred metres 
B)  several tens of metres 
C)  several kilometres 
D)  several metres

Question 7

Where are the greatest number of deep ocean trenches found?

Accepted Answer

A)  around the rim of the Arctic 
B)  along the western edge of the Pacific 
C)  along the eastern margins of the Atlantic 
D)  along the western edge of North America 
A)  around the rim of the Arctic 
B)  along the western edge of the Pacific 
C)  along the eastern margins of the Atlantic 
D)  along the western edge of North America

Question 8

The________ lies at the base of the continental slope.

Accepted Answer

A)  continental rift 
B)  continental rise 
C)  offshore shelf 
D)  off- slope reef 
A)  continental rift 
B)  continental rise 
C)  offshore shelf 
D)  off- slope reef

Question 9

How were water depths and seafloor bathymetry (submarine topography) determined by the Challenger surveys?

Accepted Answer

A)  by early deep sea divers 
B)  multi- beam, towed echo sounders 
C)  timing the descent of heavy bricks with sand glasses and listening for the echoes with early hydrophones 
D)  hand thrown and retrieved weighted lead- lines 
A)  by early deep sea divers 
B)  multi- beam, towed echo sounders 
C)  timing the descent of heavy bricks with sand glasses and listening for the echoes with early hydrophones 
D)  hand thrown and retrieved weighted lead- lines

Question 10

What was the original cause of the 1929 turbidity currents that cut submarine cables off of Newfoundland?

Accepted Answer

A)  a tsunami 
B)  a ML 7.2 earthquake 
C)  a submarine landslide 
D)  the grounding of a massive iceberg that caused the seafloor to fail 
A)  a tsunami 
B)  a ML 7.2 earthquake 
C)  a submarine landslide 
D)  the grounding of a massive iceberg that caused the seafloor to fail

Question 11

Which one of the following would most likely be covered with thick turbidite layers?

Accepted Answer

A)  axial rift zone of an active mid- ocean spreading centre 
B)  deep- sea fan at the base of a continental slope 
C)  upper flanks of a steep, narrow, submarine canyon 
D)  lagoon floor inside an atoll 
A)  axial rift zone of an active mid- ocean spreading centre 
B)  deep- sea fan at the base of a continental slope 
C)  upper flanks of a steep, narrow, submarine canyon 
D)  lagoon floor inside an atoll

Question 12

What is the most readily observable change in the seafloor as it moves away from the position of the mid- ocean ridges?

Accepted Answer

A)  It gets deeper and smoother as it cools off, contracts, and gets buried by sediments. 
B)  The rugged ridge topography is eroded smooth by strong, deep ocean currents. 
C)  It gets covered by deep water biologic communities to make seafloor reef systems. 
D)  Violent large earthquakes cause the ridge system to collapse upon itself generating large tsunamis. 
A)  It gets deeper and smoother as it cools off, contracts, and gets buried by sediments. 
B)  The rugged ridge topography is eroded smooth by strong, deep ocean currents. 
C)  It gets covered by deep water biologic communities to make seafloor reef systems. 
D)  Violent large earthquakes cause the ridge system to collapse upon itself generating large tsunamis.

Question 13

Which ocean floor sediment type includes turbidity currents?

Accepted Answer

A)  hydrogenous 
B)  terrigenous 
C)  orogenous 
D)  biogenous 
A)  hydrogenous 
B)  terrigenous 
C)  orogenous 
D)  biogenous

Question 14

What is meant by graded bedding?

Accepted Answer

A)  Thin, laminated, storm- beds slope gently back towards the land. 
B)  Strata have the same thicknesses and bedding contacts are smooth and flat. 
C)  Particle sizes in a single, sedimentary bed change from pebbles and coarse sands at the base to silt and mud at the top. 
D)  Muddy and silty strata grade upward into sandy and pebbly strata. 
A)  Thin, laminated, storm- beds slope gently back towards the land. 
B)  Strata have the same thicknesses and bedding contacts are smooth and flat. 
C)  Particle sizes in a single, sedimentary bed change from pebbles and coarse sands at the base to silt and mud at the top. 
D)  Muddy and silty strata grade upward into sandy and pebbly strata.

Question 15

Pieces of the complete cross section of ocean crust that have been added to continents are called_______

Accepted Answer

A)  gabbro plutons 
B)  lithosphere 
C)  ophiolites 
D)  pillow lavas 
A)  gabbro plutons 
B)  lithosphere 
C)  ophiolites 
D)  pillow lavas

Question 16

Which one of the following is not typical of sandy turbidite deposits?

Accepted Answer

A)  Within a depositional layer, they show graded bedding but little stratification. 
B)  They form very gently sloping deep- sea fans at the mouths of submarine canyons. 
C)  They occur on the continental shelf in cross- stratified dunes with very low silt and clay contents. 
D)  They contain land- derived and shallow- water fossil materials, even deposited in deep waters. 
A)  Within a depositional layer, they show graded bedding but little stratification. 
B)  They form very gently sloping deep- sea fans at the mouths of submarine canyons. 
C)  They occur on the continental shelf in cross- stratified dunes with very low silt and clay contents. 
D)  They contain land- derived and shallow- water fossil materials, even deposited in deep waters.

Question 17

Which one of the following did not accompany the 1929 Newfoundland ML 7.2 earthquake?

Accepted Answer

A)  A tsunami struck the Burin Peninsula of Newfoundland. 
B)  Turbidity currents moved down the continental rise to the edges of the North Atlantic abyssal plain. 
C)  Submarine telegraph cables were broken on the floor of the North Atlantic. 
D)  Explosive volcanic eruption of pillow basalts occurred on the west edge of the Grand Banks. 
A)  A tsunami struck the Burin Peninsula of Newfoundland. 
B)  Turbidity currents moved down the continental rise to the edges of the North Atlantic abyssal plain. 
C)  Submarine telegraph cables were broken on the floor of the North Atlantic. 
D)  Explosive volcanic eruption of pillow basalts occurred on the west edge of the Grand Banks.

Question 18

You are doing a hydrographic survey by the Sand Heads Light, off the mouth of the Fraser River in very silty green water. You lower a bar to check its reflection and calibrate your sounder. You find that the fresh river water has dropped the speed of sound to 1483 m/sec. If the bottom registers at 15 milliseconds (0.015 sec), how deep is the top of the Fraser delta? Use the equation: depth (m) =

Accepted Answer

A)  2250 m 
B)  11.12 m 
C)  22.25 m 
D)  11.25 m 
A)  2250 m 
B)  11.12 m 
C)  22.25 m 
D)  11.25 m

Question 19

Which ocean floor sediment type includes abyssal plain clay?

Accepted Answer

A)  orogenous 
B)  biogenous 
C)  terrigenous 
D)  hydrogenous 
A)  orogenous 
B)  biogenous 
C)  terrigenous 
D)  hydrogenous

Question 20

Which ocean floor sediment type includes calcareous ooze?

Accepted Answer

A)  hydrogenous 
B)  biogenous 
C)  terrigenous 
D)  orogenous 
A)  hydrogenous 
B)  biogenous 
C)  terrigenous 
D)  orogenous

How much of the Earth's surface is covered by the deep ocean basins?

What sedimentation rates typify the red or brown clays of the abyssal plains?

What sedimentary process is mainly responsible for the accumulation of up to 9 kilometres of sediment in deep ocean trenches?

Oceanic ridges are elevated compared to the surrounding ocean floor because _________.

How thick are the accumulations of shallow water sediments on passive continental margins like the Scotian Shelf?

Where are the greatest number of deep ocean trenches found?

The________ lies at the base of the continental slope.

How were water depths and seafloor bathymetry (submarine topography) determined by the Challenger surveys?

What was the original cause of the 1929 turbidity currents that cut submarine cables off of Newfoundland?

Which one of the following would most likely be covered with thick turbidite layers?

What is the most readily observable change in the seafloor as it moves away from the position of the mid- ocean ridges?

Which ocean floor sediment type includes turbidity currents?

What is meant by graded bedding?

Pieces of the complete cross section of ocean crust that have been added to continents are called_______

Which one of the following is not typical of sandy turbidite deposits?

Which one of the following did not accompany the 1929 Newfoundland ML 7.2 earthquake?

Which ocean floor sediment type includes abyssal plain clay?

Which ocean floor sediment type includes calcareous ooze?

An Introduction to Geology and Plate Tectonics

Igneous Rocks

Volcanoes and Volcanic Processes

Weathering and Soil

Sedimentary Rocks

Metamorphism and Metamorphic Rocks

Geologic Time

Crustal Deformation

Earthquakes and Earths Interior

The Ocean Floor

Plate Tectonics: the Framework for Modern Geology

Mountain Building and Continental Frameworks

Mass Wasting: the Work of Gravity

Running Water

Groundwater

Glaciers and Glaciation

Deserts and Winds

Shorelines

Mineral and Energy Resources

Filters

Exam 2: Minerals: the Building Blocks of Rocks

How much of the Earth's surface is covered by the deep ocean basins?

What sedimentation rates typify the red or brown clays of the abyssal plains?

What sedimentary process is mainly responsible for the accumulation of up to 9 kilometres of sediment in deep ocean trenches?

Oceanic ridges are elevated compared to the surrounding ocean floor because _________.

How thick are the accumulations of shallow water sediments on passive continental margins like the Scotian Shelf?

Where are the greatest number of deep ocean trenches found?

The________ lies at the base of the continental slope.

How were water depths and seafloor bathymetry (submarine topography) determined by the Challenger surveys?

What was the original cause of the 1929 turbidity currents that cut submarine cables off of Newfoundland?

Which one of the following would most likely be covered with thick turbidite layers?

What is the most readily observable change in the seafloor as it moves away from the position of the mid- ocean ridges?

Which ocean floor sediment type includes turbidity currents?

What is meant by graded bedding?

Pieces of the complete cross section of ocean crust that have been added to continents are called_______

Which one of the following is not typical of sandy turbidite deposits?

Which one of the following did not accompany the 1929 Newfoundland ML 7.2 earthquake?

Which ocean floor sediment type includes abyssal plain clay?

Which ocean floor sediment type includes calcareous ooze?

An Introduction to Geology and Plate Tectonics

Igneous Rocks

Volcanoes and Volcanic Processes

Weathering and Soil

Sedimentary Rocks

Metamorphism and Metamorphic Rocks

Geologic Time

Crustal Deformation

Earthquakes and Earths Interior

The Ocean Floor

Plate Tectonics: the Framework for Modern Geology

Mountain Building and Continental Frameworks

Mass Wasting: the Work of Gravity

Running Water

Groundwater

Glaciers and Glaciation

Deserts and Winds

Shorelines

Mineral and Energy Resources

Filters