Oceans of the World

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Oceans of the World
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Ocean Facts

• 97 of the Earths water is in the Ocean!!
• The ocean is made up of 322 million cubic miles
  of water!!
• If we filled in ocean basins, all the water would
  be 1.5 miles deep- all over the world!!

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• Average depth- 2.3 miles
• Ocean water contains 3.5 dissolved salts 35
  salinity
• Vast majority of ocean water is extremely cold
  (less than 39F or 4C)
• Vast majority of the ocean is dark only tropical
  surface water (upper 300) is warm.

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Distinguishing Characteristics of Oceans
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1. Size

• Must be quite large

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• 2. Features that set it apart from neighboring
  oceans, since the major bodies of water are
  interconnected

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3. Characteristics of each ocean must include

• Currents
• Water Masses
• Submarine Ridges
• Some definable Land Boundaries

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• Using these features, oceanographers consider the
  earth to have 5 oceans!

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The PacificAverage Depth 14,500 ft.
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2. The AtlanticAverage Depth 12,500 ft
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3. The IndianAverage Depth 13,000 ft
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4. The ArcticAverage Depth 3500 ft.
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• 5. The Southern Ocean
• Average depth 13,100 ft.

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Land and Ocean

• The ocean accounts for 71 of the earths surface
• Land accounts for the remaining 29
• Most of it is in the northern hemisphere

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Pacific Ocean

• Water Features
• Dominates the earths surface
• Holds 52 of the earths ocean water
• Deepest and largest basin occupying more than 33
  of the earths surface.

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• Land Features
• Mountain building dominates the Pacific basin
  margins
• Pacific is less affected by continents
• Islands are abundant in the pacific, especially
  in the southern and western portions
• Most of the islands are volcanoes

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The Ring of Fire

• an area of frequent earthquakes and volcanic
  eruptions encircling the basin of the Pacific
  Ocean
• 90 of worlds earthquakes, and 81 of the
  worlds largest earthquakes occur along the ring
  of fire.

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The Mariana Trench

• Deepest known submarine trench, with a maximum
  depth of about 11 km (6.8 mi), and the deepest
  location on the surface of the Earth's crust
• It is located in the floor of the western North
  Pacific Ocean, to the east and south of the
  Mariana Islands, near Guam

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Atlantic Ocean

• Water Features
• The Atlantic Ocean is a relatively narrow basin
  connecting the Artic and Antarctic oceans.
• The Atlantic accounts for 26 of the ocean waters
• Relatively shallow, averaging 3310 meters deep
• Several shallow marginal seas

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• Land Features
• Large continental margins
• Mid-Atlantic Ridge
• Few islands in the Atlantic
• The Atlantic receives large amounts of water and
  sediment from rivers

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The Gulf Stream

• A powerful, warm, and swift current that
  originates in the Gulf of Mexico, exits through
  the Strait of Florida, and follows the eastern
  coastlines of the United States and Newfoundland
  before crossing the Atlantic Ocean
• First charted by Benjamin Franklin in 1786

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Mid-Atlantic Ridge

• Mostly underwater mountain range of the Atlantic
  Ocean and Arctic Ocean.
• The highest peaks of this mountain range extend
  above the water mark, to form islands

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Gulf Coast Features

• Land along the Gulf Coast tends to be low and
  flat, and much of it is (or was) marshland
• The western portions of the Gulf Coast include
  many barrier islands and peninsulas, including
  the 130 mile (210 km) Padre Island and Galveston
  Island
• These landforms protect numerous bays and inlets
• Because of its proximity to the subtropical
  waters of the Gulf of Mexico, the Gulf Coast area
  is vulnerable to hurricanes

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Barrier Islands

• Barrier islands are long, narrow, offshore
  deposits of sand or sediments that parallel the
  coast line.
• Some barrier islands can extend for 100 miles
  (160 km) or more.
• 130 mile (210 km) Padre Island and Galveston
  Island
• The islands are separated from the main land by a
  shallow sound, bay or lagoon.
• Barrier islands are often found in chains along
  the coast line and are separated from each other
  by narrow tidal inlets

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• Barrier islands serve two main functions.
• First, they protect the coastlines from severe
  storm damage.
• Second, they harbor several habitats that are
  refuges for wildlife.

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Indian Ocean

• Water Features
• The Indian is the smallest of the three major
  ocean basins (Pacific, Atlantic, Indian)
• Indian Ocean accounts for 20 of the worlds
  ocean water
• Primarily in the southern hemisphere

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• Northern region has an abundance of both fresh
  water and sediment
• Three of the worlds largest rivers (Ganges,
  Brahmaputra, Indus) discharge into the northern
  Indian Ocean
• Northern Indian Ocean has two major sources of
  warm saline waters
• The Red Sea
• The Arabian Gulf

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Arctic Ocean

• Water Features
• The Artic Ocean accounts for 2 of the worlds
  ocean water
• Circular in shape
• Almost completely surrounded by land
• Considerably shallower than the other oceans
• During most of the year, sea ice covers its
  surface
• Is not considered by some as a separate ocean,
  but rather a land locked arm of the Atlantic

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Southern Ocean

• Also known as the Antarctic Ocean or South Polar
  Ocean, is the oceanic division completely in
  Earth's southern hemisphere encircling Antarctica
  
• It is the fourth largest of the five principal
  ocean divisions and the latest to be defined,
  having been accepted by a decision of the
  International Hydrographic Organization (IHO) in
  2000, though the term has long been traditional
  among mariners

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• Sea temperatures vary from about -2 to 10 C (28
  to 50 F).
• The Southern Ocean is geologically the youngest
  of the oceans
• 30 million years ago
• The water of the Southern Ocean is different from
  the water in the other oceans because of its
  circumpolar current.