Water covers 70% of the planet, and much of it is still remote and unknown. But where we don’t set foot on solid ground, we need to know Differentiate between sea and ocean to talk about the bodies of water around us.
From the website of Eco-exploratory They explain that There are three main distinctions between the two concepts: size, depth and marine life.. The main similarity they share is that both are the continuous and extensive mass of salt water that is on the earth’s surface. Check the differences between sea and ocean.
Size
Broadly speaking, Oceans are much larger than seas, and in fact, seas are bodies of water adjacent to oceans or part of them.
Another big difference within this section is that the seas are closed, while the oceans are open.
The Pacific Ocean is the largest body of water in the world, with an incredible extension of 165,200,000 km². They are followed by the Atlantic, Indian, Southern Ocean and the Arctic. To give you an idea of the size comparison, The largest sea in the world is the Mediterraneanwith 2,500,000 km².
The following largest seas in the world They are the Caribbean, the South China Sea, the Bering Sea and the Gulf of Mexico.
Depth
The seas and oceans They differ not only in size, but also in terms of depth..
The depth of the oceans The average depth of the oceans is 3,730 metres, and more than half of them have this depth. The deepest point on Earth is the Challenger Deep in the Mariana Trench, which is 10,924 metres deep.
In general, seas, being closer to land, are less deep than oceans. One of the deepest seas is the Caribbean, with an average depth of 2,200 meters, according to the GeoEncyclopedia. Its deepest point is the Cayman Trench, located between Cuba and Jamaica at 7,686 metres below sea level.
Marine life
Although endangered by global warming, there is greater marine biodiversity in the seas than in the oceans due to their proximity to the coast. But, on the other hand, Only 5% of the ocean has been exploredAnd that’s a lot! It covers 71% of the Earth’s surface and contains 96% of the water. However, it only represents 0.022% of the Earth’s total weight.
More data: alsomost taxonomic groups of organisms on Earth are found exclusively in the ocean and the diversity of these groups is much greater in the ocean than on land.
There are about 250,000 known species in the oceans and many more that have yet to be discovered: it is estimated, according to the United Nations, More than two-thirds of the world’s marine species have yet to be identified.
Finally, the sea is an essential source of life that must be protected from the dangers of climate change: Ocean life supplies half of the oxygen, while absorbing 26% of the carbon dioxide emissions released into the atmosphere annually.
Today, 50% of the world’s coastal ecosystems, including coral reefs, mangroves and seagrass beds, have been altered or destroyed by human intervention due to industry, the impact of tourism, agriculture or urban expansion.
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