Ocean Facts

The oceans are saline water bodies which cover 71% of the total area of Earth. There are a total of 5 oceans and 20 seas which together constitute the saline water reserves of earth. Names of the five oceans of the world are as follows: Pacific Ocean, Atlantic Ocean, Indian Ocean, Antarctic Ocean, and Arctic Ocean.

Depth of over 50% of the total ocean floor surface is more than 3000 meters. Oceans are an important part of the earth and the ocean biomes are largest of all biomes. These huge water bodies play an important role in water cycle and fulfill the requirements/necessities of marine species and human beings.

The estimated number of marine species (known to scientists) is 230,000. However, the total number could be far greater. Volume of all the oceans (water) together is 310 million cubic miles. The science of oceanography is used in studying oceans.

These ocean facts for preschoolers and kids, in general give some interesting information. A variety of topics ranging from depth, volume of water, ocean mountain ranges, deepest portion and related facts about the ocean are covered here.

• The total seawater that is present on earth amounts to 328,000,000 cubic miles.
• The size of 'Antarctic Ice Sheet' is double the entire surface area of USA.
• The coastline of Canada accounts for 15% of the total of all the countries on earth. Length of Canada's coastline is 56,453 miles.

• It is in the oceans that 90% of earth's volcanic activities take place. The sea floor of the South Pacific region is known to have maximum number of occurrences of such activities.
• Bay of Fundy is the region where one can find highest tides in the world. Nova Scotia and New Brunswick are the areas divided by this region.

• Oceans contribute to 0.022% of the total weight of the earth.
• The Longest mountain range on the earth is found in the oceans. This mountain range circles the region from Arctic to Atlantic ocean and touches the continents of Asia, Africa and Australia. The total length of this mountain range is 31,250 miles.

• The deepest ocean floor is 'Challenger Deep' situated in the Mariana Trench; this point is 10,911 m deep.
• The average temperatures of all the oceans together is 39 °F.

• The number of icebergs created in the Arctic ocean annually range from 10,000-50,000.
• The problem of wastes being dumped in the oceans is increasing day-by-day. The total wastes dumped in oceans on an annual basis weigh greater than that of fish being caught.

• The Challenger Deep is one of the deepest features on the oceanic floor. The height of Mt. Everest is about a mile shorter than the Challenger Deep.
• The least absorbed color of the oceans is the color blue.

• The total amount of trade that is carried on the seas and oceans is more than 90%.
• Some areas are high alert regions for overfishing. For instance, The Grand Banks is one of the most famous areas for fishing, but in the present times, it is shut.

• About 60-65% of the total reefs of the earth are subject to be destroyed in the near future due to several problems.
• The sea and ocean waters in the Southern hemisphere are still the most unexplored parts of the total ocean areas.

• The rise in the level of the sea water has shot up by about 25cm.
• The density of the ocean waters increases with the rise in temperatures.

✦ To the North and South of this ocean lie the Arctic and Antarctic regions respectively.

✦ The continents of North and South America are on the Eastern side of this ocean, while Australia and Asia to the West.

✦ Los Angeles, San Francisco, Guangzhou, Tokyo-Yokohama, Seattle, Manila, Shanghai and Sydney are the important ports situated on this ocean.

✦ The ocean is divided into two distinct parts, namely the North Pacific Ocean, and the South Pacific Ocean. This is caused by the equator.

✦ The name Pacific Ocean means 'Peaceful Sea.'

✦ Approximately, there are more than 25,000 islands found on the Pacific Ocean.

✦ The ocean is also very dense in coral islands, which in turn are surrounded by lagoons.

✦ A large part of the the fishes that are supplied worldwide, are caught in the Pacific Ocean.

✦ The Ring of Fire is situated on the Pacific Ocean, and it happens to be the most active areas of volcanic activity.

✦ Oil, polymetallic nodules, gas fields, placer deposits, gravel aggregates, precious stones, etc., are the natural resources found in the Atlantic ocean. The important checkpoints of the Atlantic ocean are - Dardanelles, Strait of Dover, Strait of Gibraltar, Mona Passage, Windward Passage, Straits of Florida and The Sound.

✦ The name Atlantic is derived from the word, 'Atlas.'

✦ The ocean covers 21% of the earth's surface.

✦ The Bermuda Triangle is located in this ocean.

✦ The waters of the Atlantic Ocean contains the highest amount of salt.

✦ The Atlantic Ocean is also divided into the North Atlantic and the South Atlantic basins.

✦ The traffic on this sea is very high.

✦ The ocean came into existence in the Jurassic period, and happens to be the youngest of all the oceans.

✦ The deepest point in this ocean is the Puerto Rico Trench.

✦ Greenland is the largest island on the ocean.

✦ The Indian ocean is the third largest of all the oceans and covers a total area of 28,350,000 sq m.

✦ All the major routes that connect East Asia, Africa and Middle East with the continents of America and Europe pass through the Indian ocean.

✦ Out of the total offshore oil being extracted, 40% comes from the Indian ocean. Hydrocarbon reserves on a large-scale have been discovered in the offshore regions of Iran, Saudi Arabia, Western Australia and India.

✦ Major checkpoints of the Indian ocean are the Bab el Mandeb, Lombok Strait, Strait of Malacca and Strait of Hormuz.

✦ The ocean makes up for around 20% of the total ocean area of the world.

✦ The average depth of the Indian Ocean floor is about 3,400m.

✦ The three major divisions of the ocean are the African, Antardis, and Australasian. The division is caused by The Mid-Oceanic Ridge.

✦ The deepest point in the Indian Ocean is the Sunda Deep of the Java Trench.

✦ It has the least number of trenches.

✦ The infamous tsunami that hit in the year 2004 happened on the Indian Ocean.

✦ The Antarctic ocean is also known as Southern ocean. This ocean/region circles the South pole and its ice cover varies from 1 million sq m (March) to 7.2 million sq m (September).

✦ The average depth of this ocean ranges from 4000 m to 5000 m.

✦ The radiation of ultraviolet rays has raised concerns about the environmental balance of this region. These radiations have reduced the productivity of phytoplankton.

✦ Rothera Station, Villa Las Estrellas. Palmer Station, Mawson Station, Esperanza Base and McMurdo Stations are the operational ports of Southern ocean.

✦ One interesting feature of the areas near the Antarctic Ocean is that the seasons are a total opposite to the seasons that are prevalent in other parts of the world.

✦ The Antarctic Ocean flows in the Eastern direction.

✦ Unique life forms such as penguins reside on the ice floors of this ocean.

✦ Features like the Roaring Forties are an important feature of this ocean.

✦ The Arctic ocean is the smallest ocean of all, and spans across 400,000 sq m. Canada, Greenland, Norway and Russia form the border of this ocean, which is almost entirely landlocked.

✦ The Alpha Ridge, Arctic Mid-Oceanic Ridge and Lomonosov Ridge are three submarine ridges which divide the area of this ocean.

✦ Until the Amundsen-Ellsworth flight which took place in 1926, the Arctic region remained unexplored to a great extent. The Western and central parts of the Arctic ocean are covered by 6 m thick layers of ice for most of the time in the year.

Most of the ocean facts for kids enlisted here provide interesting information about these large water bodies. The oceans being huge water masses, there is a lot that humans are yet to discover and find out about them. The post is therefore, a snapshot of the information about these water bodies.