suboxic
sub-OK-sik
Definition
Describing a state or zone in an environment where oxygen levels are extremely low but not entirely absent.
Etymology
Derived from the Latin prefix 'sub-' meaning 'under' or 'below,' combined with 'oxy-' from the Greek 'oxys' meaning 'sharp' or 'acidic' (the basis for the name oxygen). It describes conditions that fall just below the threshold of normal oxygenation.
In the news
In the article, the suboxic zone refers to a specific layer in the Black Sea's water column where oxygen levels are intermediate, sitting between the oxygenated surface and the deep anoxic, oxygen-free water.
At the bottom of the Black Sea, below about 150 metres, the water contains no oxygen at all, and shipwrecks preserved in that dead zone include a 2,400-year-old Greek merchant vessel found in 2018 with its mast, rudder and rowing benches still intact on the
Read the full article ↗ScienceBlog.com