Scientific Glossary
Glossary of terms and abbreviations relevant to the International Seabed Authority and the documents it produces
Please note that this is a constantly evolving document.
Title |
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|---|---|
| Taxon |
A taxonomic group of any rank. The major taxon are Kingdom, Phylum, Class, Order, Family, Genus and Species where each group is a sub-division of the previous. |
| Taxonomic |
Pertaining to taxonomy. The major taxonomic groups are Kingdom, Phylum, Class, Order, Family, Genus and Species where each group is a sub-division of the previous. |
| Taxonomy |
Orderly classification of animals or plants according to their presumed natural relationship, grouping organisms into taxon based on shared characteristics. |
| Tectonic Plate |
A rigid plate, 100-150km thick, which is part of Earth's surface and moves slowly across the Earth's internal structure relative to other tectonic plates. |
| Temporal Scales |
Scales characteristic of dimensions in time. Also pertains to the temporal period of sampling. Compare to spatial scales |
| Thermocline |
A layer of water in which there is a rapid change of temperature with depth. Compare to halocline, nutricline and pycnocline. |
| Third-Level Impacts |
Synonymous with indirect impacts. |
| Tiburon |
American Remotely Operated Vehicle. |
| TN |
Total Nitrogen. |
| TOC |
Total Organic Carbon. |
| Transect |
The line traversed by a ship during a sampling regime (horizontal transect) or samples/sampling gear during sampling (vertical transect). Vertical transects can be through the water column, sediment, or both. |
| Transmissometer |
Device used to measure the attenuation of light through a medium such as of water. Data can be correlated to the amount of particles present. |
| Trench |
A depression in the seafloor lying below 6000m. |
| Triple Junction |
A point or area where three tectonic plates meet. |
| Trophic Level |
The position of an organism in a food chain or food web. For example primary producer (plants), primary consumer (herbivores) orsecondary consumer (carnivores ). Can also refer to the state of nutrients in a water body, for example eutrophic or oligotrophic. |
| Turbidity |
The measure of the total amount of particular matter in a volume of water. A measure of "cloudiness". |