C2 · 50 words
Oceanography in Spanish
Layers, currents, the sea floor and life in the deep — the words of the science of the sea.
La columna de agua is the water column, and la columna is one of those Spanish words English has to unfold. It is the pillar holding up a roof — una columna dórica. It is the column of figures on a page, and the column a journalist writes every week. And la columna vertebral is the spine, which English hardly ever calls a column at all: « spinal column » is the anatomist's phrase and nobody else's. One word standing upright in four places, and English keeps a different one for each.
The words
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Phrase (41)
la columna de aguathe sea taken as everything between the surface and the bottomPhraseC2
La columna de agua se mide desde la superficie al fondo.The water column is measured from the surface to the bottom.
la capa de mezclathe top of that sea, kept stirred and even by the windPhraseC2
La capa de mezcla se profundiza en invierno.The mixed layer deepens in winter.
la estratificación del océanothe sea lying in layers that will not mixPhraseC2
La estratificación del océano se refuerza al calentarse la superficie.Ocean stratification strengthens as the surface warms.
el afloramiento costerothe cold water pulled up along a coast, and the food it brings with itPhraseC2
El afloramiento costero trae nutrientes del fondo.Coastal upwelling brings nutrients up from the bottom.
el hundimiento de agua densathe water that got heavy enough to fall, which happens in few placesPhraseC2
El hundimiento de agua densa ocurre en pocos lugares.Dense water sinking happens in only a few places.
la masa de aguaa body of water known by its warmth and saltiness wherever it goesPhraseC2
La masa de agua se identifica por temperatura y salinidad.A water mass is identified by temperature and salinity.
la corriente geostróficathe current that stands still between pressure and the turning earthPhraseC2
La corriente geostrófica equilibra presión y rotación.The geostrophic current balances pressure against rotation.
la espiral de Ekmanthe turning of the drift with depth, further round the deeper it goesPhraseC2
La espiral de Ekman gira el transporte con la profundidad.The Ekman spiral turns the transport with depth.
el giro oceánicothe slow ring of current that fills a whole ocean basinPhraseC2
El giro oceánico ocupa una cuenca entera.The ocean gyre fills a whole basin.
la corriente de borde occidentalthe narrow fast current that runs up the western side of that ringPhraseC2
La corriente de borde occidental es estrecha y rápida.The western boundary current is narrow and fast.
el remolino de mesoescalathe eddy of current a hundred kilometres across that breaks off and travelsPhraseC2
El remolino de mesoescala mide cien kilómetros.The mesoscale eddy measures a hundred kilometres.
la marea sicigiathe tide at its biggest, when sun and moon pull in linePhraseC2
La marea sicigia coincide con luna nueva y llena.The spring tide coincides with the new and the full moon.
la marea muertathe tide at its smallest, when they pull across each otherPhraseC2
La marea muerta tiene el rango más pequeño.The neap tide has the smallest range.
la carrera de mareathe distance between high tide and low, which one bay takes to twelve metresPhraseC2
La carrera de marea alcanza doce metros en esa bahía.The tidal range reaches twelve metres in that bay.
la onda de tormentathe sea pushed up the coast by wind and low pressure togetherPhraseC2
La onda de tormenta suma viento y presión baja.The storm surge adds wind to low pressure.
el oleaje de fondothe long smooth wave train that outlived the storm that made itPhraseC2
El oleaje de fondo llega de una tormenta lejana.The ground swell comes from a distant storm.
la altura significativa de olathe wave height a report means when it gives one numberPhraseC2
La altura significativa de ola era de cuatro metros.The significant wave height was four metres.
la plataforma continental sumergidathe shallow floor that belongs to the land and slopes gently awayPhraseC2
La plataforma continental sumergida baja suavemente.The continental shelf slopes away gently.
el talud continentalthe floor that stops sloping gently and dropsPhraseC2
El talud continental cae de golpe.The continental slope drops all at once.
la llanura abisalthe floor at the bottom of that, the flattest surface on the planetPhraseC2
La llanura abisal es la superficie más plana del planeta.The abyssal plain is the flattest surface on the planet.
la expansión del fondo oceánicothe floor being made new in the middle and pushed outwardsPhraseC2
La expansión del fondo oceánico produce corteza nueva.Sea-floor spreading makes new crust.
la fosa oceánicathe floor folded down past ten thousand metresPhraseC2
La fosa oceánica supera los diez mil metros.The ocean trench goes past ten thousand metres.
la fuente hidrotermalthe hot vent on that floor, feeding life with no sunlight at allPhraseC2
La fuente hidrotermal alimenta vida sin luz solar.The hydrothermal vent feeds life without sunlight.
la zona fóticathe depth down to which there is still light enough to growPhraseC2
La zona fótica termina donde ya no hay fotosíntesis.The photic zone ends where photosynthesis stops.
la zona batialthe depth below that, where it is dark at every hourPhraseC2
La zona batial está siempre a oscuras.The bathyal zone is always in the dark.
la migración vertical diariathe rising by night and sinking by day, the biggest move of living matter there isPhraseC2
La migración vertical diaria es el mayor movimiento de biomasa.Daily vertical migration is the largest movement of biomass.
la producción primaria marinathe growing that all the rest of the sea eventually eatsPhraseC2
La producción primaria marina depende del nutriente limitante.Marine primary production depends on the limiting nutrient.
el nutriente limitantethe one nutrient that runs out first and so limits the growingPhraseC2
El nutriente limitante suele ser el hierro o el nitrógeno.The limiting nutrient is usually iron or nitrogen.
la bomba biológica de carbonothe carrying of carbon to the bottom by matter that lived and sankPhraseC2
La bomba biológica de carbono lleva materia al fondo.The biological carbon pump carries matter to the bottom.
la nieve marinathe slow fall of that dead matter, going on for weeksPhraseC2
La nieve marina cae durante semanas.Marine snow falls for weeks.
la zona de mínimo de oxígenothe depth where the oxygen runs lowest, and which is wideningPhraseC2
La zona de mínimo de oxígeno se está expandiendo.The oxygen minimum zone is expanding.
la eutrofización costerathe feeding of a coast until its water has no oxygen leftPhraseC2
La eutrofización costera acaba en falta de oxígeno.Coastal eutrophication ends in a lack of oxygen.
la marea rojathe bloom of algae that closes the shellfish bedsPhraseC2
La marea roja obliga a cerrar el marisqueo.The red tide forces the shellfish beds to close.
el blanqueamiento del coralthe coral throwing out what fed it, after a summer too warmPhraseC2
El blanqueamiento del coral sigue a un verano cálido.Coral bleaching follows a warm summer.
el arrecife de coralthe coral structure that houses a quarter of everything in the seaPhraseC2
El arrecife de coral alberga una cuarta parte de las especies marinas.The coral reef houses a quarter of the marine species.
la pradera marinathe underwater meadow that holds the sediment and the carbon downPhraseC2
La pradera marina fija sedimento y carbono.The seagrass meadow holds sediment and carbon down.
el sedimento marinothe sediment settling on the floor, keeping the weather of millions of yearsPhraseC2
El sedimento marino guarda el clima de millones de años.Marine sediment keeps the climate of millions of years.
el testigo de sedimentothe cylinder of that sediment, pulled up in a tubePhraseC2
El testigo de sedimento se extrae con un tubo.The sediment core is pulled up with a tube.
la boya oceanográficathe instrument moored at the surface, reporting every hourPhraseC2
La boya oceanográfica transmite cada hora.The oceanographic buoy transmits every hour.
el perfilador autónomothe instrument that sinks and rises on its own every ten daysPhraseC2
El perfilador autónomo sube y baja cada diez días.The autonomous float sinks and rises every ten days.
la campaña oceanográficathe weeks at sea during which all of this is collectedPhraseC2
La campaña oceanográfica duró seis semanas.The oceanographic cruise lasted six weeks.
Noun (f) (7)
la oceanografíathe study of the sea where physics, chemistry and life are one subjectNoun (f)C2
La oceanografía combina física, química y biología.Oceanography combines physics, chemistry and biology.
la termoclinathe depth at which the warmth stops, in a step rather than a slopeNoun (f)C2
La termoclina separa el agua tibia del agua fría.The thermocline separates the warm water from the cold.
la haloclinathe depth at which the saltiness stops, in the same sort of stepNoun (f)C2
La haloclina aparece donde entra agua dulce.The halocline appears where fresh water comes in.
la picnoclinathe depth at which the weight of the water stops, and the one that sealsNoun (f)C2
La picnoclina bloquea el intercambio vertical.The pycnocline blocks the vertical exchange.
la salinidadhow much salt the water holds, in grams to the kiloNoun (f)C2
La salinidad media ronda los treinta y cinco gramos por kilo.Mean salinity is around thirty-five grams to the kilo.
la quimiosíntesisthe making of food out of chemistry instead of out of lightNoun (f)C2
La quimiosíntesis usa energía química en vez de luz.Chemosynthesis uses chemical energy instead of light.
la batimetríathe measuring of how deep it is, which is still far from finishedNoun (f)C2
La batimetría del fondo sigue siendo incompleta.Bathymetry of the sea floor is still incomplete.
Noun (m) (2)
el fitoplanctonthe drifting plants that make a good part of the air we breatheNoun (m)C2
El fitoplancton produce buena parte del oxígeno.Phytoplankton produces a good part of the oxygen.
el zooplanctonthe drifting animals that eat themNoun (m)C2
El zooplancton sube de noche y baja de día.Zooplankton rises by night and sinks by day.
This list belongs to Nature and natural sciences — 31 lists and 1550 words that can also be practised as a whole.
Practise this list
From these 50 words, as many per round as you like — up to all of them: first what is due today, then new ones. First you choose, then you fill the gap, then you write it yourself. Mistakes come back again shortly.