Chemical and Physical Oceanography: Program Overview, Universities, Careers & Salaries

Program Overview

Chemical and Physical Oceanography is an advanced interdisciplinary field dedicated to understanding the complex dynamics of ocean systems through the lens of chemistry and physics. This program explores how marine environments function at both microscopic and global scales, emphasizing the interactions between seawater, sediments, the atmosphere, and Earth’s surface processes.

• Chemical and biochemical transformations in marine systems: Examines the processes by which elements and compounds change form and reactivity within ocean waters, including nutrient cycling and microbial influences on chemical composition.
• Inorganic and organic ocean chemistry: Focuses on the distribution, behavior, and reactions of non-living (inorganic) and living-derived (organic) substances in seawater, such as carbon, nitrogen, and dissolved organic matter.
• Seawater properties: Investigates fundamental physical and chemical characteristics of ocean water, including salinity, temperature, density, and dissolved gas concentrations, which govern ocean behavior.
• Material inputs and outputs: Studies the sources and sinks of substances entering and leaving marine systems, including riverine discharge, atmospheric deposition, and hydrothermal vent contributions.
• Equilibria studies: Analyzes chemical equilibrium states in marine environments, such as carbonate system dynamics, which are critical to understanding ocean acidification and calcification processes.
• Oceanographic processes: Covers broad physical and chemical mechanisms that shape ocean structure and function, including upwelling, downwelling, and thermohaline circulation.
• Currents, circulation, and mixing: Explores the movement of water masses across ocean basins, including large-scale gyres, boundary currents, and turbulent mixing at various spatial scales.
• Tidal movements and wave properties: Investigates the physics of tides and surface waves, including their generation, propagation, and impact on coastal and deep-sea environments.
• Sediment transport and zone processes: Addresses how particles are eroded, transported, and deposited in marine settings, with attention to distinct oceanic zones such as continental shelves, slopes, and abyssal plains.