UNIVERSITY OF MADRAS
B.Sc. DEGREE COURSE IN MARINE SCIENCE
SEMESTER SYSTEM WITH CREDITS
(Effective from the Academic Year 2003-2004)

SYLLABUS

Semester V - Paper IX - Physical Oceanography

Duration of Examination: 3 hrs
Maximum Marks: 100
Credits: 4

Unit I

Characteristics of Ocean Water - major wind systems - Air-Sea Interaction - ocean-atmosphere coupling - marine weather and climate - evaporation and precipitation processes in the ocean environment.

Unit II

El Nino/La Nina - global change - storms and hurricanes - methods arid measurements - contributors - Ocean currents including wind driven systems - eddies - rings - geostrophic currents - upwelling and downwelling processes - tidal waves (Tsunami).

Unit III

Waves and their properties - wave generation by wind - deep-water and shallow water waves - effects of waves on sediment and coastal structures - wave refraction and diffraction - impact on beaches - marine structures to mitigate wave effects - surfing.

Unit IV

Tides and tidal currents in open and coastal oceans - Tide generating forces and Equilibrium tides - characteristics and distribution of tides and currents in estuaries - role of estuaries - contaminants out of estuaries.

Unit V

Physical properties of seawater - vertical and horizontal distributions of salinity and temperature - Identification and significance of water masses.

Books Recommended

Principles of Physical Oceanography by Allen, J.R.L published, Allen and Unwin

Introduction to Physical Oceanography by Knauss, J.A., Prentice-Hall

The waters of the sea by P. Groen., Van Nostrand

Wind waves: Their generation and propagation on the Ocean Surface by Kinsman, B., Prentice-Hall.