CHAPTER
2
PHYSICO-CHEMICAL
CHARACTERISTICS OF WATER BODIES
The
effect of light, temperature, season and latitude
- Light penetration
- Turbidity
- Effect of
temperature on water density
- Stratification
in oceans
- Stratification
and meromixis in lakes
- Ice cover
and evaporation from the water surface
- Water depth
and pressure
- Temperature
in streams and rivers
- Ice over the
substratum in streams and rivers
Tides
and waves
- Solar and
lunar influences on tidal cycles
- Meteorological
factors creating winds
- Wind fetch
and waves
- Tidal waves
Currents,
turbulence and other water movements
- Large-scale
water movements in the past
- Surface and
deep-sea ocean currents
- Gyres, whirlpools
and tidal races
- Surges, seiches
and the El Niño southern oscillation (ENSO)
- El Niño
and La Niña
- Drainage patterns
in rivers and their consequence
- Flooding and
wetlands
- Turbulence
in water, Langmuir circulation and bubbles
- Bubbles and
the air-water interface
Chemical
constituents of marine and fresh waters
- Water as a
solvent
- pH buffering
capacity
- Nutrients,
especially N, P and Si
- Organic matter
- Dissolved
gases