The Many Names of the Ocean
• The Antarctic, Arctic, Atlantic, Indian
and the Pacific oceans
OR
• The Black, Caspian and World Oceans
(world ocean separated into five better
known oceans)
Need-to-know Facts
• In total the oceans cover about 71% of the Earth’s surface.
• The world’s oceans hold 97% of the world’s water. Another 1% is
freshwater and the other 2-3% is stuck in glaciers and icebergs.
• At the deepest point in the ocean the pressure is 8 tons per sq.
in. which is equal to a man trying to carry 50 jumbo jets!
• The Ocean is the largest known space in our universe to have
99% life
• Humans have invented ways to travel underwater for more then
just holding your breath; from the S.C.U.B.A suit to the remotecontrolled bathyscaph that is capable of diving to depths of over
35,000 ft!
Topography facts
• Two hundred million years of recorded geologic and
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biologic history of the Earth are found in the
ocean’s floor or sediment
By studying that sediment scientists can learn
about ancient climate, how it changed over the
years and how to better predict our future
If you sucked up all the water in the ocean the
bottom would look a little like the surface of the
Moon
The world’s longest mountain range is the MidOcean Ridge which is four times longer then the
Andes, Rockies and the Himalayas combined!!!
Topography facts
• If all the oceans in the world were dried up, the
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remaining salt would cover all the continents to a
depth of 500 feet
If Hawaii’s Mauna Kea were to be measured from
it’s base under water it would be taller than Mt.
Everest!
Canada has the longest coastline of any country
with a coastline of 56,453 miles, about fifteen
percent of the worlds 372,384 miles of coastline.
The Antarctic ice sheet is twice the size of the
U.S.
The Seven Seas
The Medieval Europeans often referred to the
seven seas, those seas meant these bodies of
water:
•Persian/Arabian Gulf
•The Black Sea
•The Caspian Sea
•The Red Sea
•The Mediterranean Sea
•The Adriatic Sea
•The Arabian Sea
The Antarctic Ocean
• The Antarctic Ocean combines the
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southernmost parts of the Atlantic, Indian,
and Pacific oceans
Due to the West Wind Drift the Antarctic
Ocean is constantly in an eastward current
It is the fourth largest ocean in the world
with an area of approximately 7,848,000
sq. mi.
The Arctic Ocean
• The Arctic Ocean is the smallest ocean in the
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world with an area of 5,541,000 sq. mi.
It is also the shallowest ocean with its deepest
point being the Eurasian Basin at a depth of
17,900 ft.
The surface is mostly covered with ice year round
and the cold air in the Arctic moves towards the
equator
There is lots of marine life towards the southern
parts of the Arctic Ocean
The Atlantic Ocean
• The Atlantic Ocean is the world’s second
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largest ocean with an area of about
31,800,000 sq. mi.
At its deepest point it is 28,232 ft. deep
It is also the choppiest ocean in the world
The Indian Ocean
• The Indian Ocean is bordered by Africa,
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Asia, Indonesia, and Australia
It is the third largest ocean in the world
with an area of 28,400,000 sq. mi. and
the warmest ocean
It is an important transit route between
Asia and Africa
The Pacific Ocean
• The Pacific Ocean is the largest ocean at 65.3
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million sq. mi. in area and covers more of Earth
than all the land masses combined!
It is also the deepest ocean and holds the deepest
place on Earth, the Mariana Trench, at about
35,800 ft. deep!!
The Pacific is shrinking in size due to the fact
that North & South America are moving towards
Asia, also causing the Atlantic to become bigger
Although the name may mean peaceful, it really
can be violent, with cyclones, volcanic eruptions, &
destructive tsunamis
Facts About Currents
• The Gulf Stream is the current that brings us
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warm weather
Even though some currents move fast it takes
1,000 or more years for one drop of water to
travel through the world’s oceans!
Animal Related Facts
• Hard-shelled algae remains are used to make pet
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litter, cosmetics, pool filters and tooth polish
Coral has been used to replace bone grafts
Fish is the biggest source of wild or domestic
protein in the world
A mineral in kelp is used in lipstick, toothpaste,
dyes and ice creams
One study showed that a cruise ship’s anchor that
had been left in a coral reef destroyed half a
football fields worth of reef
Fun Facts
• If all the oceans gold were mined each person in
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the world would get 9 pounds of gold!
There are many myths and legends relating to the
ocean, some of the most famous ones are about
the Bermuda Triangle, Moby Dick, Atlantis and the
Kraken
The world’s highest tides are in Canada’s Bay of
Fundy; the difference between tides is 53’ 6” as
tall as a five story building!!
The world’s tallest iceberg was measured of the
west coast of Greenland at 550 ft tall
Fun Facts
• The Moon and Pacific Ocean have the same volume
• The largest known area of active volcanoes in the
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world is on the sea floor of the south Pacific. The
area is the size of New York State and it holds
1,133 volcanic cones and sea mounts. Two or three
could erupt at any moment!
The largest recorded tsunami was 210 ft high.
The top 10 ft. of ocean hold the same thermal
energy as exists in the entire atmosphere.
I hope you know more
about the oceans!!!!
Bibliography
Websites:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seven_seas
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ocean
http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/oce
an
http://seawifs.gsfc.nasa.gov/OCEAN_PLANET/H
TML/education_oceanographic_facts.html
http://seawifs.gsfc.nasa.gov/OCEAN_PLANET/H
TML/oceanography_currents_1.html
http://see-the-sea.org/facts/facts-body.htm
Books:
Kids Discover: Oceans