whitings

views updated May 08 2018

whitings Extensive patches of white, turbid water consisting of a dense suspension of aragonite mud. These mud suspensions are seen from time to time in carbonate-dominated shallow seas, and are mainly due to the disturbance of the muddy sea floor by schools of fish, or by turbulence. It was suspected that some whitings were the result of direct precipitation of aragonite from hypersaline, carbonate-saturated waters, but recently this has been shown not to be the case.

whitings

views updated Jun 27 2018

whitings Extensive patches of white, turbid water consisting of a dense suspension of aragonite mud. These mud suspensions are seen from time to time in carbonate-dominated shallow seas, and are due mainly to the disturbance of the muddy sea floor by schools of fish or by turbulence. It was suspected that some whitings were the result of direct precipitation of aragonite from hypersaline, carbonate-saturated waters, but this has been shown not to be the case.