What Percent Of The Ocean Has Been Explored – Although humans have explored and mapped large parts of the planet Mars and the Moon in space, only a small portion of the world’s oceans have been explored so far. It is said that humans have only been able to explore about 5% of the ocean floor. The remaining 95% of the ocean still remains a mystery. Why is the exploration of the deep sea such a challenging task that some experts consider more difficult than the exploration of objects in space? In fact, more people have stepped on the surface of the Moon than have dived into the depths of the Mariana Trench in the Pacific Ocean, one of the deepest parts of the world’s oceans.
Oceans occupy 70% of the total surface of the Earth and over 90% of the living space on the planet. In fact, all types of terrestrial fauna are exceptions in the world of ocean creatures. The oceans influence climate and weather phenomena on land, and the large amount of oceanic flora and fauna is an important source of food for humans. The oceans enable navigation between the continents and countries of the world, and about half of the world’s population lives in the coastal zone. Understanding the world’s oceans is therefore extremely important to our benefit. Changes in the Earth’s oceans will directly affect our life on land, so it is imperative that we detect such changes as soon as possible. to satisfy the curious human mind and our thirst for knowledge of the unknown.
What Percent Of The Ocean Has Been Explored
Scientists and explorers believe that there are still many mysteries to be discovered in the depths of the world’s oceans. For example, large underwater waterfalls in the ocean, often exceeding the height of the 3,212-foot Angel Falls, the tallest waterfall on Earth. Then there are lakes over 300 feet deep on the ocean floor. These lakes are believed to host species found in no other part of the ocean. The seabed is also very undulating in a number of places with mountain ranges and valleys. It is estimated that there are valleys on the sea floor that are deeper than that of the Grand Canyon. There is also an incredible variety of sea creatures that have yet to be discovered and classified. The amazing thing about marine life is the incredible biodiversity that the ocean ecosystem exhibits. This is evident in the fact that 297 new species of sea creatures have been discovered on a single volcanic rock column in the ocean.
The Ocean: Haven’t We Already Mapped It?
Deep sea exploration is a very demanding activity and requires sophisticated equipment, large budgets, brave and experienced personnel and permission from governments at national and international levels.
Deep-sea divers face a number of threats, such as adverse physiological effects of high water pressure, threats from strange and dangerous sea creatures, failure of diving equipment, etc. Temperatures at the bottom of the ocean also vary greatly. It can be close to freezing in one place, while the presence of hydrothermal vents in other places can raise the temperature of the ocean up to 400 degrees Celsius. Visibility in the great depths of the ocean is often poor and pitch black darkness prevails. These characteristics of the deep oceans expose divers and deep-sea submarines to extreme stress. Even a small crack in a submarine’s hull can cause it to crack like a paper cup in the great depths of the ocean.
Some experts believe that the claim that only 5% of the ocean floor has been mapped, leaving 95% of the ocean floor uncharted, is not entirely accurate. In fact, the entire ocean floor was mapped with a maximum resolution of approximately 5 km, meaning that all objects on the ocean floor larger than 5 km were mapped. However, it is true that a complete, detailed mapping of the ocean floor is still lacking. In the case of Venus, 98% of the planet’s surface has been mapped with a resolution of around 100 meters. However, only 10 to 15% of the ocean floor has been mapped at this resolution.
Unlike land features, which are mapped using radar transmitted by satellites, the ocean floor must be measured by other means. Ocean water blocks radio waves, so measurements are inaccurate that way. However, it is possible to measure sea level height using satellites. If the variations in ocean surface height due to waves and tides can be subtracted using sophisticated mathematical calculations, the dips and bumps in the ocean surface that are affected by the landscape on the ocean floor can be precisely measured. For example, in places with large mountains on the sea floor, a slight increase in local gravity caused by the mass of the mountain will pull seawater and create a slight hump over the object. This will increase the sea level in such places.
It’s Time For The Next Wave Of Ocean Exploration And Protection
In order to map the ocean floor in more detail, it is currently necessary to switch technology from satellite to sonar detection. Modern sonar detection systems can create maps of the ocean floor with a resolution of around 100 meters. 10% to 15% of the ocean floor has been mapped using this technology. However, in order to detect objects and features on the seabed with even greater resolution, sonar detection must be performed from a closer distance to the seabed. Underwater vehicles or towed tools can be useful in this regard. Oceans have fascinated mankind for millennia. Since the dawn of time, we have crossed the blue horizons in search of new nations and adventures. Throughout history, the oceans have been an essential source of survival, transportation, trade, growth and motivation.
We know that the oceans make up more than 71 percent of the Earth’s surface and are the planet’s largest ecosystem, containing 99 percent of all habitable space.
Even better, we’ve even successfully located some of their mysterious underwater structures, such as the 7-mile-deep Mariana Trench, the deepest place on Earth, and the Bermuda Triangle. And remember the discoveries of entire submerged cities, such as the 5,000-year-old Palvopetri in Greece, which may have sunk around 1,000 BC.
Despite our best efforts, the extent of the oceans and what lies within them is still somewhat incomprehensible. In fact, we may already know more about the universe than our oceans; “We have better maps of the surface of Mars and the Moon than we do of the ocean floor,” he said
How Much Of The Ocean Have We Explored?
Our Earth is unique in the solar system. Its optimal distance from the Sun and the predominance of liquid on its surface and atmosphere contribute to this.
More than 70 percent of the Earth’s surface lies beneath a large body of salt water—the global ocean. However, scientists have categorically divided the body of water into four major oceans; Great Pacific, Atlantic, Indian and Arctic. And recently there is a fifth!
, which has been making maps since 1915, recognized a fifth ocean called the Southern Ocean that surrounds Antarctica.
Despite modern technology, only 5 percent of the oceans have been explored. As such, the remaining 95 percent remains untouched, unseen and undiscovered to this day.
Ocean Driven Security Challenges In The Pacific
As for marine species, scientists have yet to determine how many exist in the oceans. About 226,000 ocean species are currently known. Some believe that many ocean species are in decline due to marine ecosystems suffering from rising sea temperatures, pollution and other problems.
This means that scientists are still finding new living species, and it is estimated that several hundred thousand to several million more species have yet to be discovered.
Even better, in recent decades the oceans have been an incredible source of information about the evolution of the animal kingdom. From the largest shark that ever lived – the prehistoric megalodon – to modern tuberculates from extreme deep-sea environments, ocean exploration has revealed that life on Earth has changed significantly since it began to evolve.
Ocean exploration has also been key to unlocking important ancient human mysteries. For example, the Antikythera Mechanism, which may have been the world’s first computer and was created in 100 BC (2,122 years ago), was found in a shipwreck in 1901.
Scientists Find 30 Potential New Species At Bottom Of Ocean
Many ancient civilizations whose cities are now underwater have also been explored, such as Palvopetri in Greece. This submerged city is 5,000 years old and is believed to be the oldest of its kind on Earth. For thousands of years, the city was buried right under our eyes, until a young oceanographer found its walls only three to four meters below sea level.
The study of all aspects of the oceans is called oceanography. Modern oceanography is one of the more recent additions to scientific disciplines. However, its roots can be traced back tens of thousands of years to the time when humans first began to travel the seas on rafts and explore its shores.
In ancient Egypt, near the mouth of the Nile River, some of the earliest sailing ships were probably made exclusively for travel.
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