OCEANS ON EARTH

OCEANS ON EARTH

HOW WERE THE OCEANS FORMED?

The oceans were formed over vast periods of time.Billions of years ago, the Earth was incredibly hot, and covered with volcanoes.

Volcanoes spit out a lot of chemicals when they erupt, and they get those chemicals from deep inside the Earth. 

2 of those chemicals are hydrogen and oxygen.When those combine, they make water. The Earth also got water from comets. Many comets are actually made of ice, which becomes water when it melts! 

Over billions of years, erupting volcanoes and crashing comets caused water to form on Earth. But because the Earth was so hot, the water was in the form of water vapor.
As the Earth gradually cooled, the atmosphere also became cooler, and the water vapor began to condense to form clouds.As the cooling continued, the clouds turned to rain. This rain fell continuously - not for days, weeks, months or years, but for centuries!
The water that fell on the ground did not fly off the surface, because of the force of gravity. As a result, this water began to accumulate in the hollows of the Earth's surface, and the oceans were formed.

HOW MANY OCEANS ARE THERE?

Our planet contains more water than land in fact, 71% of the Earth is covered by oceans. There are 5 oceans - the PACIFIC, ATLANTIC, INDIAN, ARCTIC, and SOUTHERN Oceans. 

The biggest of these is the Pacific Ocean, followed by the Atlantic Ocean. The Indian Ocean is between Asia and Africa, while the Arctic Ocean is in Arctic Circle, and the Southern Ocean is located around the South pole across the Antarctic circle. 

Actually, all the oceans run into one another to form one immense body of water, but scientists have divided them into different oceans and given them different names. Great ocean currents swirl around the Earth, some of them hundreds of kilometers long.

Winds cause the waves on the ocean's surface, while tides are caused by the gravitational pull of the Moon. The oceans provide a home for thousands of plants and animals, and they also regulate the Earth's weather and temperature.

 THE PACIFIC OCEAN

The Pacific is the biggest ocean on Earth, and covers more than 30 percent of the Earth's surface.

It is located between the Americas to the East and the Asian and Australian continents to the West. The Pacific is not only the biggest,but also the deepest ocean with the deepest trenches. The Challenger deep in the Marina Trench is the deepest point in the Pacific Ocean. It is 10,898 meters deep, and the lowest part of the Earth's crust.

The Pacific Ocean is home to 75% of the world's volcanoes. These volcanoes form a ring around the ocean basin and are known as 'The Ring of Fire'.

Most of the islands in the world are found in the Pacific Ocean. Some of these are islands made of coral, and are called atolls. In fact, the Pacific Ocean is famous for its coral reefs. The Great Barrier Reef in Australia is the largest reef in the world, stretching over more than 2,300 km.

A Spanish explorer named Balboa is believed to be the first European to discover the Pacific Ocean, on September 25th, 1513.

ATLANTIC OCEAN

The Atlantic Ocean is the world's second largest ocean.

The Atlantic is the second youngest among all the 5 oceans, and was formed when the super continent Pangea broke up. 

The Atlantic Ocean covers approximately 1/5th of the surface of the Earth, and covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface.

There is an underwater mountain in the range in the North Atlantic Ocean called the Mid Atlantic Ridge. It is twice as wide as the Andes Mountain range and runs approximately 16093 kilometers south from Iceland.

The Atlantic Ocean is home to the second largest barrier reef in the world, the Belize barrier reef. Its natural resources include oil, fish, sand and gravel, natural gas, and precious stones.

Creatures living in the Atlantic Ocean include the manatee, humpback whale, sea lion and the grey Atlantic seal, as well as various shark and fish species. 

INDIAN OCEAN

The Indian Ocean is the world's third largest ocean. It covers 1/5th of the Earth's surface, connecting 18 Asian countries, 16 African countries, and 57 island groups.

The Kerguelen Plateau is a continent of volcanic origins that lies beneath of the surface of the Indian Ocean. The lowest part of this ocean is about 7,258 meters deep, lying on the Java Trench of the Sunda Shelf while its highest point is at the sea level.

The Indian Ocean is the warmest of the world's oceans, and is the source of approximately 40% of the world's oil.

The Indian Ocean is important for its ports that belong to different continents. Chennai, Mumbai, and Kolkata are the Indian ports of this ocean, while Colombo in Sri Lanka, and Durban in South Africa, Jakarta in Indonesia , and Melbourne in Australia are the other important ports of this ocean.

ARCTIC OCEAN

The Arctic Ocean is the smallest of all the oceans, and also the shallowest. It is connected to the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans through small gaps in the continents. It is a very cold ocean since it lies in the Arctic Circle.

Much of it is covered with a frozen ice cap. Three types of ice cover the Arctic Ocean including polar ice, fast ice, and pack ice. The ice located at the edge of the polar ice is called pack ice, which only freezes completely in the winter. Fast ice is the ice that forms during the winter around the pack ice, and on land around the Arctic Ocean . There is a wide variety of marine life living in the Arctic Ocean, including whales, fish , seals, and walruses. 

SOUTHERN OCEAN

The Southern Ocean is sometimes called the Antarctic Ocean. It surrounds Antarctica, and is the fourth largest of the 5 ocean of the world. Some scientists believe that the waters of the Southern Ocean are extensions of the India, Pacific, and Atlantic Oceans. 

The deepest part of the Southern Ocean is the southern end of the South Sandwich Trench that is 7235 meters deep. 

During winter, half of the Southern Ocean is covered in icebergs. Some of the ice and icebergs break off and float in the waters of the Southern Ocean. The world's largest penguin species the emperor penguin lives on the ice of the Southern Ocean and on the Antarctic continent. 

It is believed that if the ice sheets in the Southern Ocean were to melt the oceans around the world would rise by as much as 65 meters!!

THANKS FOR READING !!!

Want to know about the Super Continent On Earth? Click Here

Want To Know About The Different Types Of Clouds? Click Here