Chapter 1
Ocean Exploration
Why Study It?
 Ocean extreme quiz?
 Ocean issues quiz?
Why Study It?
 1. The history of oceanography is
connected to the world’s overall history.
 2. Oceanography’s past helps us
understand why and how people apply
marine sciences today.
 3. It is interesting.
 Top ten facts about the ocean
Oceanography – the science of recording
and describing the ocean’s contents and
processes.
 There are four main branches of oceanography.
 Biological oceanography –
studies life in the
ocean. (species, predation, symbiosis, behavior)
 Chemical oceanography –
studies the
chemistry of seawater. (pH, density, pollutants, salinity)
 Geological oceanography –
studies the
geology of the ocean. (underwater mountains, trenches, map
making, plate tectonics, )
 Physical oceanography –
studies the physics
within the marine environment. (waves, tides, earthquakes)
“For the execution of
the voyage to the Indies,
I did not make use of intelligence,
mathematics, or maps.”
Who do you think said this?
Knowing what we do about Columbus’s mistaken ideas
of land he discovered, why is this statement amusing?
Columbus knew he wanted to west from Spain, so he
used compasses. Why didn’t a compass direction help
Columbus realize he hadn’t landed in Asia?
How did sailors before Columbus find there way around
the ocean?????
It’s important to know where you in relation to other
things, as well as the direction you are heading—
This is why we use maps and globes…
…But how do we read a map or know where we are on a
globe?
Latitude/Longitude System
 The purpose of the latitude and longitude mapping system
is to identify specific locations on the Earth’s surface.
 Latitude Lines
 Also called parallels
 Run east-west
 0º parallel is also called the equator
 Longitude Lines
 Also called meridians
 Run north-south
 Prime Meridian is located on the longitude
of the Royal Naval Observatory in
Greenwich, England. 00 longitude
 Further Accuracy
 Degrees are subdivided into 60 minutes,
minutes are subdivided into 60 seconds.
http://olc.spsd.sk.ca/DE/k9mod/Mapskill/
mod3fl5.swf
The history of oceanography can
be divided into four stages:
 1. Ancient Seafaring
(5000 B.C. - 800 A.D.)
 2. The Middle Ages (800 - 1400)
 3. European Exploration (1400 - 1700)
 4. 20th Century Marine Science (1700 present)
1) Ancient Seafaring
 Three primary reasons for early civilization to interact
with the ocean:
 1. To obtain food.
 2. To discover new lands.
 3. As a means of trade.
 The earliest recorded sea voyage
appears to be 3200 B.C. under
the Egyptian Pharaoh Snefru.
Greeks
 The Greeks used references on shore to navigate.
This is called piloting.
 As seafaring advanced they learned to use the sun,
constellations, the North Star and sea conditions to
navigate in the open ocean.
 The Greeks knew the Earth was a sphere, not flat.
Greeks cont…
 Pytheas (314 B.C.) predicted tides in the
Atlantic based on the phases of the moon.
 He could determine how far North or South one was
from the North Star by measuring the angle between the
horizon and the North Star. This was a significant
improvement in navigation.
 Eratosthenes (264-194 B.C.) is credited with two
contributions:
 1. He calculated the Earth’s circumference (however,
incorrectly).
 2. He invented the first latitude/longitude system.
2) The Middle Ages
Viking Explorations and Discoveries
 The Vikings were the only people with significant
exploration taking place in Europe during the Dark
Ages:
 They discovered:



Iceland in 700 AD
Greenland in995 AD
Vineland (Nova Scotia) 1000 AD
Chinese Discoveries in the
Middle Ages
 Magnetic compass dating about 1000 A.D
 Chinese ships from that period had central rudders
and watertight compartments.
3) European Voyages of Discovery
 The period of 1400-1700 is called the Renaissance.
A new interest in long ocean expeditions and
travel in the 15th century was motivated by
economics, politics and religion.
 Prince Henry the Navigator of Portugal
established a center to study navigation. His
expeditions were the 1st European to use a
compass.
Europeans cont…
The New World
 Christopher Columbus took the first of his four
voyages to find a route to Asia in 1492. He believed he’d
found Asia when he landed on a Caribbean island.
 Between 1454-1512, Amerigo Vespucci is credited as the
first European to recognize that South America was a
new continent.
 In 1519, Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan led
the first expedition to circumnavigate the world. He had
five ships and about 260 men. Only 34 men survived the
journey, Magellan was not one of them. : (
st
1
Oceanography
 1770’s - The voyages of Captain
James Cook receive credit as the
first sea expeditions devoted to
methodical, scientific
oceanography.
 He discovered Australia, New
Zealand, many islands in the
South Pacific, the Hawaiian
Islands, charted the Great barrier
Reef and took notes on human,
animal and plant life.
A major contribution to
Cook’s voyages was the
invention of the
chronometer. In 1735,
John Harrison invented a
clock that runs accurately
at sea. This made it
possible to determine
longitude accurately.
U.S. Exploring Expedition -1838
 Commanded Lt. Charles Wilkes aboard USS
Vincinnes.
 Proved the existence of Antarctica.
 Returned with 19 volumes on new maps, descriptions,
and illustrations. 1st time scientist were PAID to
explore the oceans
The Father of Physical Oceanography
Matthew Maury
 Between 1842-1855, Matthew Maury earned global
acclaim for his study on ocean currents.
 In 1855, he published The Physical Geography of the
Sea, which is now considered the first textbook on
modern oceanography.
Charles Wilkes
Matthew Maury
The HMS Challenger Expedition
(1872-1876)
 Recognized as the first worldwide oceanographic
expedition. Expedition devoted entirely to marine study.
 Scottish professor Sir Charles Wyville Thomson and
British naturalist Sir John Murray.
 Among its discoveries, the expedition:
 Deepest soundings taken to date – 8,200 meters
(26,900 feet) in the Marianas Trench.
 Discovered marine organisms in the deepest
parts of the ocean, contrary to popular belief
at the time.
 Compiled the first systematic plots of currents
and ocean temperatures.
 Cataloged and identified 4,717 new species.
 Read pgs 18-20. You do not need to write the questions.
Answer in complete sentences.
1) How did European explorers find latitude at sea?
2) How do you find longitude with a clock?
3) Why was it hard to find longitude at sea?
4) What happens to clocks at sea?
5) What did the British government do in 1714?
Whatlongitude
were the requirements
for the
prize?
Read6)“the
problem” pgs
18-20
so that
Who
solved the
you 7)
may
answer
theproblem?
following questions.
8) What was his invention called?
9) Why didn’t he get paid after winning the prize?
10) When did he finally get paid?
11) What event allowed him to get paid?
12) Where are his 4 inventions located today?
13) Why is that site significant?
4)
th
20
Century Marine Science
 The Industrial Revolution spearheaded the
growth and expansion of marine sciences. This
included:
 Better ships made of iron with steam engines.
 Improvements in the design and building of
research equipment.
 The advent of the submarine.
 Global conflict helping to accelerate
research in science and technology.
Three
th
20
Century Expeditions
 The German Meteor Expedition (1925)
 Mapped the Atlantic seafloor with echo-sounding
technology.
 The U.S. Atlantis Expedition – 1931
 The first ship specifically designed and built for ocean
studies.
 Confirmed the existence of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge and
mapped it.
 The H.M.S. Challenger II Expedition – 1951
 Found the deepest known part of the ocean. At 10,838
meters (35,558 feet) deep, still the deepest known place in the
world.
 This spot, located in the Marianas Trench, was named
Challenger Deep in honor of the first Challenger expedition.
Use Table 1.1 on pg. 32 to create a timeline. Include the
events that occurred on the following dates. Color code and
label the 4 oceanographic stages.
100 yrs = 1 cm
 300 BC
 230 BC
 127 BC
 500 AD
70 YRS = .7 cm
103 YRS = 1.0 cm
627 YRS = 6.3 cm
 1768
 1831
 1855
 1872
 780 AD
 1911
 1492
 1943
 1522
 1977
 1760
 1985
Modern Oceanography
 Newer devices for scientists
 Echo sounder that bounces sound waves off the
ocean floor are used to study depth and shape of
the seafloor
 Satellites in space help relay information and
track location with GPS
 Remote submersibles go to deep ocean to
explore without the need for humans
Oceanic Institutions
 Early laboratory in Naples, Italy allowed study of the
ocean without being in the ocean
 1912 - Scripps Institute was created in La Jolla, CA
 1930 - Woods Hole Institute was created on Cape Cod
of Massachusetts
 Our local marine lab is Grice Marine Laboratory
Located at Ft. Johnson on James island. Operated by
the College of Charleston.
Famous Modern Oceanographers
 In 1943, Jacques Cousteau introduced the
first practical scuba.
 Robert Ballard found the Titanic(1985) and
other wrecks.
Lee Spence discovered of the Civil War
submarine H.L. Hunley in 1970.