The research ship directs sound waves at the bottom and charts the echoes that bounce back to create a detailed map.
Facts of the ocean floor.
The ocean is like an entirely separate world.
The lack of weathering and erosion in most areas however allows geological processes to be seen more clearly on.
Mauna kea is the highest mountain on the ocean.
As seawater makes its way through layers of salt it forms little depressions on the ocean floor.
The largest ocean on earth is the pacific ocean covering around 30 of the earth s surface.
Oceanographers use sonar to map the ocean floor.
Exploration of the seafloor and the earth s crust.
In fact the oceans hold about 96 5 of all water on earth.
Continental shelf 300 feet continental slope 300 10 000 feet abyssal plain 10 000 feet abyssal hill 3 000 feet up from the abyssal plain seamount 6 000 feet.
In fact it is said that we know more about the moon than we know about the deeper ocean.
The farthest that a human wearing a diving suit can reach under the ocean is 2000 feet.
There are trenches mountains volcanos and lakes and rivers.
The following features are shown at example depths to scale though each feature has a considerable range at which it may occur.
Here are 15 facts about the ocean floor.
The ocean floor is so vast that it covers around 70 of the earth s surface.
This graphic shows several ocean floor features on a scale from 0 35 000 feet below sea level.
Because the water around these depressions contains more salt than normal seawater it s denser and sinks into the depressions creating.
We know very little about the deep ocean floor and the life it holds due to the depth and the difficulties this creates for scientists.
On average oceanic crust is only 6 to 7km thick compared to 35 to 40km for con tinental crust.
Around 70 of the planet s surface is covered by oceans.
The ocean basins are characterized not only by lying in deep water the ocean floor averages about 4km below sea level but also by being underlain by a thin layer of crust.
There are a lot of sea creatures that were able to adapt their bodies to withstand the high pressure found at the deepest corners of the ocean.
This makes the ocean very difficult for scientists to explore the deep sea and the life it holds because of its depth.
The magnetism of mid ocean ridges helped scientists first identify the process of seafloor spreading in the early 20th century.
The ocean floor covers 70 of the earth s surface.
From the ocean floor it stands about 33 400 feet high.
In fact it has been said that we know more about the surface of the moon than about the deeper ocean trenches.
Take a deep breath gang as we dive into our ocean facts top ten ocean facts.
Other articles where ocean floor is discussed.
Here are 15 crazy facts about the ocean floor.
Sonar has revealed features such as seamounts submerged volcanic peaks which rise 1 000 m 3 300 ft from the sea floor and guyots flat topped seamounts.
