Salinity (/səˈlɪnɪti/) is the saltiness or amount of salt dissolved in a body of water, called saline water (see also soil salinity). This is usually measured in (note that this is technically dimensionless). Salinity is an important factor in determining many aspects of the chemistryof natural waters and of biological processes within it, and is a thermodynamic state variable that, along with temperature and pressure, governs physical characteristics like the density and heat capacity of the water. A contour line of constant salinity is called an isohaline, or sometimes isohale.