The ocean is a vast, mysterious world that is still largely unexplored. To better understand the ocean’s depths and its inhabitants, scientists use a variety of tools and instruments. One such instrument is the bathythermograph.
Definitions
A bathythermograph is a device used to measure the temperature and pressure of ocean water at different depths. It consists of a long, thin tube filled with a liquid that expands or contracts as the temperature changes. The tube is attached to a recording device that records the temperature and pressure readings.
Origin
The word “bathythermograph” comes from the Greek words “bathys,” meaning deep, and “thermos,” meaning heat. The device was first developed in the early 20th century by a Norwegian scientist named Bjorn Helland-Hansen.
Meaning in different dictionaries
According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, a bathythermograph is “an instrument for determining the temperature and density of ocean water at different depths.”
The Oxford English Dictionary defines a bathythermograph as “an instrument for measuring the temperature and pressure of ocean water at different depths, used in oceanography.”
Associations
The bathythermograph is commonly used in oceanography to study the physical properties of the ocean, such as temperature, pressure, and salinity. It is also used to study ocean currents and the behavior of marine organisms.
Synonyms
Other terms that are sometimes used to refer to a bathythermograph include a thermistor probe, a CTD (conductivity, temperature, and depth) sensor, and a rosette sampler.
Antonyms
There are no direct antonyms for bathythermograph, as it is a specific instrument with a unique purpose.
The same root words
The root words “bathys” and “thermos” are also found in other scientific terms related to the ocean and the study of temperature and pressure, such as bathyscaphe (a deep-sea diving vessel) and thermocline (a layer of water in the ocean where temperature changes rapidly).
Example Sentences
- The scientists used a bathythermograph to measure the temperature and pressure of the water at different depths.
- The bathythermograph revealed that the ocean temperature was warmer at the surface than at the bottom.
- The researchers deployed a rosette sampler equipped with a bathythermograph to collect water samples at various depths.