Heat Balance, Oceanic

an accounting of the heat received and dissipated by the ocean. The principal components of the oceanic heat balance are the radiation balance, the heat transferred between the ocean and the atmosphere by turbulence and convection, the heat lost through evaporation, and the heat transported by ocean currents.

The oceanic heat balance also takes into consideration the heat received and dissipated as a result of the following: the condensation of water vapor on the surface of the ocean, precipitation, river discharge, the formation and melting of ice, the entry of heat into the ocean from the earth’s interior through the ocean floor, chemical processes in the ocean, and the transformation of some of the kinetic energy of the water and air into heat. (See alsoOCEAN.)