Facts about Seas & Oceans
Oceans and Seas have always been mesmerising, symbol of calmness, peace , vastness , depth and of of course beauty, the list is endless.
Here we will reveal all the possible facts about Seas and Oceans that you may not have read and that would definitely make you see the Sea again with a different perspective.
So let’s start with our facts about Seas and Oceans :
- Oceans & Seas cover 70% of the surface of the our Planet :
There is about 32 crore cubic miles of water on Earth which is a lot of water and out of this 96 % of water is held in the form of Oceans.
- Earth has majority of Aquatic Life
Earth has more, much more, much much much more Species living in the Oceans and Seas than on land. And that much much much more number is a whopping 94%. Yes, this means 94% of the total living species live in the Oceans and not land, Humans, animals, insects and all kinds of creatures that live on land are just 4% of the total Living Species on our Planet.
- We only know 5% of total Oceans and Seas
Earth consists of 70% water and it’s an insane amount of Water in Seas, Oceans, Rivers, Lakes and Ponds put together and 96% of this 70% is the water in the Oceans and so technically Oceans cover majority of Earth and so its like a Planet of Water. Humans, inspite of such advance race in terms of technology have not been able to explore more than 5% of Oceans & Seas. Compared to Oceans and Seas , we have better Maps and Knowledge of a Planet ‘Mars’ which is 57.6 million KMs away (when it is closest to Earth). So if are an adventurer and know that setting foot on Mars is too distant a dream then just hop into a Big Boat and the adventure is right here on Earth open for the you to explore.
- The longest Mountain Chain is beneath the Oceans
The longest chain of Mountains which spread across the distance of 65,000 Kms is under water called the Mid-Ocean Ridge. Like the Oceans, this is also open for the Explorers as it is still hardly studied. Mid-Ocean Ridge also called as MOR is system of mountains spread across the sea floor.
The Mid-Atlantic Ridge also called as MAR was the first discovered Mid-Ocean Ridge below the Atlantic Ocean. 2 most studied Mid Ocean Ridges are the Mid-Atlantic Ridge and the East Pacific Rise.
- Sea and Oceans are full of Treasures
There are more than 30 million (30 lacs) shipwrecks according to estimates and the value of the treasures inside these ships is estimated to be 60 billion dollars (approximately Rs.4, 55,000 crore) and that is lot of money, definitely a treasure. And this is also the reason why there are more Artefacts under Seas and Oceans than all the Museums out together on land. Now, there countries have started making underwater museums of these shipwrecks like the submerged Bronze Statue of Christ of the Abyss in the Mediterranean.
- Our Oxygen is dependent on the Seas and Oceans
70% of the Atmosphere’s Oxygen that we breathe is not produced on land, it is produced by the aquatic or marine plants. The Oxygen is generated by kelp , phyplankton and algal plankton which are all Algae.
- Pacific Ocean is far bigger than Moon
Pacific Ocean is the largest Ocean in the World. It has total area of 16,52,50,000 Square KM. Thats 16 crore 52 lacs 50 thousand square KM. To make it more fathomable in your imagination, it is 12300 miles in diameter which 5 times the diameter of Moon. This is more than total area of Land on Earth and is 46% of the Earth’s total Water Surface. Definitely the winner when it comes to its vastness compared to other Oceans. It lies between the continents of Asia and Australia on the West and North & South America on the East. It also contains the very famous Challenger Deep in the very famous Mariana Trench-the deepest point in Oceans. This deepest point on Earth under water is 11,034 meters or 36, 201 feet below the surface or to understand the magnitude of the depth it is 11 KM underwater. This is more than the height of Mount Everest which is 8.85Km or 29,029 ft above the sea level. Oceans do more than just surprising us with its depth, length, overall area and its magnitude.
- Oceans have enough Gold for every Human to own 10 pounds each
The vastness of Ocean makes it a winner in area, depth and its overall magnitude as compared to Land. Like our Solar system has which has Asteroids with extremely valuable Metals floating in the open sky, our Oceans have similar treasures settled below in the dark bottom where reaching is as difficult landing on the Asteroids. As per the estimates, there is around 20 million tons of Gold spread across the Oceans in such small parts that digging it out or mining it is simply not cost effective.
- Water Water everywhere and lot of it to drink
“This is just a tip of the Ice-Berg” is such a true phrase. Large Icebergs in Antarctica are so large in size that some of it contains 20 billion gallons Potable Water or Drinkable Water. This much water is enough to fulfil the drinking water needs of a million people for nothing less than 5 years. This is precisely the reason a company came up with something called as the Emirates Iceberg Project. According to this project, this company is planning to drag a giant Iceberg to UEA via the Indian Ocean which will take almost 1 year and it will lose approximately 30% of its Ice during the transit. Now one cannot say for Seas and Oceans “Water Water everywhere and not a drop to drink”
- The Mariana Trench : How deep it is
There are 12 Astronauts who have landed on the surface of Moon and only 3 have been to deepest point in the world – The Challenger Deep in the Mariana Trench. The depth of this point under the Pacifica Ocean is 36201 ft or 11034 meters. Deep enough for making is almost a near death proposition for any human to attempt going there. The pressure of water at this point is 8 tons per square inch which is equal to weight of holding 50 Jumbo Jets over your head. Only 3 people and one who went alone and managed to come back alive to tell the amazing experience is the dare devil and story teller James Cameron who is known for his famous movie ‘Titanic’.
- 99% of World’s Data is handled under the Oceans
Yes, 99% of the World Data is transferred by the Cables laid under the Ocean floors. These are laid by specialized boats called the Cable Layers.
- The Tallest Waterfall and the tallest Vertical Reef are underwater
Angle Falls in Venezuela is highest or say the tallest waterfalls. It falls from the height of 979 m or 3212 ft. But you will again be surprised to know that Ocean wins this race as well with the tallest waterfall between Greenland and Iceland in the Denmark Strait Cataract. It has drop of 11,500 ft. Not just this, the tallest vertical reef is 8530 ft which is called the Zhemchug Canyon. It is located in the middle of Bering Sea. Just to give you a perspective, the very famous Grand Canyon in Arizona-USA is 6093 ft deep at its deepest point from Top of the cliff.