Lesson 1: The Science of Oceanography
Lesson Outline:
I. The Oceans
II. The Science of Oceanography
Unit I: The Oceans
Lesson 1: The Science of Oceanography
The Oceans
It is the presence and abundance of water that makes our planet
unique in the solar system. Without water, life would not exist on
Earth.
Over 97% of the water on or near the Earth’s surface is contained in
the ocean, less than 3% is contained in land ice, groundwater, lakes
and rivers, and the atmosphere.
(However, there is much more water trapped in the interior of the
Earth than there is in the oceans.)
Unit I: The Oceans
Lesson 1: The Science of Oceanography
Importance of the Oceans
The oceans have always provided humans with an abundant source of
food.
Maritime routes allow for communication and the trade of
commercial goods between countries.
Reserves beneath the ocean floor now produce about 30% of the
world’s petroleum and natural gas used for energy.
The oceans influence and moderate global climate.
The past, present, and future of the Earth and its inhabitants is
intimately bound to the ocean.
Unit I: The Oceans
Lesson 1: The Science of Oceanography
Major Oceans
The world ocean may be defined as the entire body of salt water that
occupies the depressions in the Earth’s surface.
Traditionally the Arctic Ocean
world ocean is
divided into four
Atlantic
major bodies: Pacific
Ocean
Ocean
Indian
Atlantic Ocean Ocean
Pacific Ocean
Indian Ocean Southern Ocean
Arctic Ocean
An equal-area projection of the Earth.
In some circles, the body of water surrounding Antarctica is known as
the Southern Ocean.
Unit I: The Oceans
Lesson 1: The Science of Oceanography
The Size and Scale of the Oceans
On human scales, the ocean is vast.
The oceans cover about 139,400,000 square miles, or about 71%, of
the Earth’s surface.
The average depth of the ocean is 12,450 feet (compared to an
average land elevation of 2,772 feet) and the total volume is
329,000,000 cubic miles.
On a global scale, the ocean is almost negligible.
Its average depth is only .05% of the radius of the Earth.
The ocean accounts for only .13% of the Earth’s volume and .02% of
its total mass.
Unit I: The Oceans
Lesson 1: The Science of Oceanography
The Science of Oceanography
Oceanography is an interdisciplinary field of science rather than a
field separate from the other sciences.
Oceanographers typically start out in one of the traditional areas of
science (physics, chemistry, biology, meteorology, or geology) or a
science-related field (engineering, computer science, mathematics,
or statistics), then apply their knowledge to the study of the oceans.
Unit I: The Oceans
Lesson 1: The Science of Oceanography
Fields of Oceanography
The science of oceanography can be subdivided into four main
fields:
• Geological
• Chemical
• Physical
• Biological
Unit I: The Oceans
Lesson 1: The Science of Oceanography
Geological Oceanography
Geological oceanography concerns the study of the earth processes
at the coastline as well as the seafloor, and the history of the
processes that formed the ocean basins.
Marine geologists study the composition of the inner earth, the
movements of the Earth’s crust, and the composition of seafloor
sediments.
Dawn Wright , Geological Oceanographer
B.S., Geology, Wheaton College
M.S., Oceanography, Texas A & M University
Ph.D., Geography and Marine Geology, Univ. of
California, Santa Barbara
Unit I: The Oceans
Lesson 1: The Science of Oceanography
Chemical Oceanography
Chemical oceanography studies the composition of specific masses
of seawater, their interactions and change over time.
Chemical oceanographers study the solids and gasses dissolved in
seawater and the relationships of these constituents to the geology
and biology of oceanic regions.
Kay T. Ho, Chemical Oceanographer
B.S., Environmental Toxicology, Univ. of California, Davis
M.S., Environmental Toxicology, Cornell
Ph.D., Chemical Oceanography, University of Rhode
Island
Unit I: The Oceans
Lesson 1: The Science of Oceanography
Physical Oceanography
Physical oceanography investigates wave dynamics, ocean currents,
ocean-atmosphere interactions, global heat-transfer and climate.
Physical oceanographers working with meteorologists use
observational studies and complex computer models to predict long-
term weather patterns and impacts of global warming.
Rick Mohammed, Physical Oceanographer
B.S., Mathematics, University of South Carolina
M.S., Meteorology and Oceanography
Naval Post Graduate School (candidate)
Unit I: The Oceans
Lesson 1: The Science of Oceanography
Biological Oceanography
Biological oceanography concentrates on the study of the plants
and animals of the sea, and the relationships of these organisms with
the marine environment.
Marine biologists work with the nature and distribution of marine
organisms, the impact of pollution on marine populations, the
isolation of disease fighting drugs from marine species, and the
yields of fisheries.
Peter C. Griffith, Biological Oceanographer
B.S., Botany and Zoology, Duke University
M.S., Marine, Estuarine, and Env. Science
University of Maryland
Ph.D., Ecology, University of Georgia
Unit I: The Oceans
Lesson 1: The Science of Oceanography
Fields of Oceanography
Biophysics BIOLOGY Biochemistry
PHYSICS OCEANOGRAPHY CHEMISTRY
Geophysics Geochemistry
GEOLOGY
Unit I: The Oceans
Lesson 1: The Science of Oceanography
Practice Exercise
The following is a list of some remarkable facts about the world’s
oceans. Classify each as to whether they relate to biological (B),
physical (P), chemical (C), or geological (G) oceanography. Many
may fall under more than one category.
1. Challenger Deep is the deepest point in the ocean at 6.86
miles. (Note that Mount Everest, the highest point on the
Earth's surface, is only 5.49 miles high.) The average depth
of the ocean is more than 2 miles. .
2. The oceans provide 99% of the Earth's living space. More
than 90% of this habitat exists in the deep sea known as the
abyss, but less than 10% of this living space has been
explored by humans.
Unit I: The Oceans
Lesson 1: The Science of Oceanography
Practice Exercise
The following is a list of some remarkable facts about the world’s
oceans. Classify each as to whether they relate to biological (B),
physical (P), chemical (C), or geological (G) oceanography. Many
may fall under more than one category.
3. The longest continuous mountain chain known on earth
resides in the ocean at more than 40,000 miles long.
4. The Monterey Bay Submarine Canyon is deeper and larger in
volume than the Grand Canyon.
5. The average temperature of the oceans is 2º C, about 39º F.
6. The top ten feet of the ocean hold as much heat as our entire
atmosphere.
Unit I: The Oceans
Lesson 1: The Science of Oceanography
Practice Exercise
The following is a list of some remarkable facts about the world’s
oceans. Classify each as to whether they relate to biological (B),
physical (P), chemical (C), or geological (G) oceanography. Many
may fall under more than one category.
7. Cold, saline water that forms off the coast of Iceland can be
found in the North Pacific Ocean about 1000 years later.
8. The Gulf Stream off the Atlantic seaboard of the United States
transports nearly 300 times more water by volume than the
world’s largest river, the Amazon.
9. The color blue is least absorbed by seawater; the same shade
of blue is most absorbed by microscopic plants, called
phytoplankton, drifting in seawater.
Unit I: The Oceans
Lesson 1: The Science of Oceanography
Practice Exercise
The following is a list of some remarkable facts about the world’s
oceans. Classify each as to whether they relate to biological (B),
physical (P), chemical (C), or geological (G) oceanography. Many
may fall under more than one category.
10. The Great Barrier Reef, measuring 1,240 miles, is the largest
living structure on Earth.
11. A new form of life, based on chemical energy rather than light
energy, resides in deep-sea hydrothermal vents along mid-
ocean ridges.
12. A swallow of seawater may contain millions of bacterial cells,
hundreds of thousands of phytoplankton and tens of thousands
of zooplankton.
Unit I: The Oceans
Lesson 1: The Science of Oceanography
Practice Exercise
The following is a list of some remarkable facts about the world’s
oceans. Classify each as to whether they relate to biological (B),
physical (P), chemical (C), or geological (G) oceanography. Many
may fall under more than one category.
13. More oil reaches the oceans each year as a result of leaking
automobiles and other non-point sources that was spilled in
Prince William Sound by the Exxon Valdez.
Unit I: The Oceans