Devoted To The Ocean

The world’s oceans are possibly the planet’s biggest and most valuable natural resource. They serve various critical functions, most of which are taken for granted. At the very least these oceans provide us with a vast playground where we can relax, swim, and cruise about. But recreation aside, oceans help to control the climate and distribute the planet’s heat throughout the globe. The tiny planktons on the ocean’s vast surface in turn help to churn out about half of the planet’s oxygen. At the top of the chart, oceans provide massive amounts of food for humans and other animals in terms of fish and other varieties of seafood.

Why our oceans are in danger?

But, these oceans are now in grave danger from various hazards. The biggest of them all is humans who have heaped garbage, especially plastics, into the ocean and drained toxic chemicals that have polluted these waters. Humans have also caused global warming, marine dredging, and oil spillage. All these are risks that continue to kill, main, and destabilize ocean eco systems every single day.

The oceans and how they make up the globe

In total, the planet has five oceans. These are the Atlantic Ocean, the Pacific Ocean, the Indian Ocean, the Arctic Ocean, and the Southern Ocean. Together, these 5 oceans take up about 71% of the planet’s space, account for about 97% of the planet’s water, and span to almost 140 million square miles. And the deepest part of the oceans known to man is the Mariana Trench located in the Pacific Ocean which drops to a whopping 35, 827 feet.

Meet the world’s oceans

The Pacific Ocean

This is the largest ocean of the five and takes up about half the entire global ocean space. It spans an area measuring over 64 million square miles, making it larger than all the planets combined in terms of square area. In terms of geography, the Pacific Ocean is situated to the east of Asia and Australia and to the west of the Americas (North and South).

The Atlantic Ocean

This is the second-largest ocean of the five. It spans an area covering about 32 million square miles which makes it about half the size of the Pacific Ocean and almost 25% of the total ocean space. Geographically the Atlantic Ocean is located to the East of the Americas and to the West of Africa.

The Indian Ocean

The Indian Ocean is the third largest of the 5 oceans. It spans an area measuring 28 million square miles which makes up about 20% of all ocean cover. It is geographically situated to the East of Africa and to the West of India and Australia.

The Southern Ocean

This is the fourth largest body of water on Earth. Up until the year 2000, however, the Southern Ocean did not exist and the world only had 4 oceans. But then the International Hydrographic Organization (IHO) designated this mass of water to the South Pole as the Southern Ocean (hence the name). This water mass spans an area measuring about 8.4 million square miles. Geographically, the Southern Ocean is located around Antarctica.

The Arctic Ocean

This is the smallest of the 5 oceans. It spans an area measuring approximately 5 million square miles and is partially covered in ice due to the climatic conditions around the North Pole. Geographically, the Arctic Ocean is located to the north of Europe, Asia, and Greenland.