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Water Density
  • Density = mass per unit volume, governed by temperature & salinity [kg/m-3 or g/cm-3]
  • Pure water at 3.98°C = 1.0 g/cm-3; avg salinity water = 1.0278 g/cm-3
  • In oceanography: sT (sigma-T)
    sT = 1000 x (1.0278 – 1)
    sT = 27.8 (!! without unit !!)
  • Density increases with depth because denser water is “heavier”
  • Water mass = body of water with specific temperature/salinity combination
  • Ice has a lower density than liquid water! Ice cubes float on top of drink as sea ice does on sea surface