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Running Head: THE WORLD OCEAN

Jose Luis Silva

The World Ocean Research Paper

Harmony Science Academy

5th Grade English

February 18, 2011

Lydia VanderKamp
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The World Ocean Research Paper

Oceans are one of the most fascinating things to talk about. The ocean is really a great

mystery to mankind because only about 5 percent of the ocean has been explored. All the oceans

of the eart are connected making up one World Ocean. The four oceans are the Pacific Ocean,

Atlantic Ocean, Artic Ocean, and the Indian Ocean. In the following article I will be talking

about what the ocean hides beneath its beautiful blue water, how the ocean plays a mojor role on

weather/cliamte and the natural resources that the ocean provides for mankind.

The ocean is so big that it covers 71% of our planet’s surface and its average depth is

more than 2.5 miles. Almost 97% of our entire planet’s water is contained in the ocean. Beneathe

all that water another world exsists. Under the ocean you can find mountain rages and volcanos

that can not be seen by mankind. There are more mountains and volcanos in the ocean than on

land. Many changes happen in the oceans surface do to tsunamis and plate tectonic shifts.

Actually, almost all the rocks on land were underwater when the sea level was higher than today.

Amazingly, the longest continous mountain chain known to exsist in the Universe can be found

in the ocean at more than 40,000 miles long that connects with all four oceans. The Great Barrier

Reef is found in the ocean and can be seen from the moon. It is the largest living structure on

earth measuring at 1,243 miles.

The ocean also plays an important role in our weather and climate. The ocean creates 3

global weather cycles. These are water, carbon and energy. Have you ever wondered where rain

comes from? Well, rain comes from evaporated seawater. The sea plants from the ocean produce

most of the oxygen in the world and the seawater takes up half of the carbon dioxide put into the
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air. The currents in the sea carry warmth from the tropics to the poles and as these currents shift,

the climate shifts as well.

The ocean and we are interconnected. The ocean can provide us with resources and

dangers. From the ocean we get foods, medicines, and mineral that we need in our everyday

lives. Fish supply the greatest percentage of protein consumed by humans all over the world.

Most of us live near the ocean and we buy and trade with other countries through ocean

transportation. The ocean also serves as a recreational attraction. We all love to go to the beach

during hot days. The dangers that the ocean gives us are storms. For example, tsunamis and

hurricanes which threaten human lives and can cause big disasters on land. Like: hurricane

Katrina which destroyed Louisiana and killed many people. The ocean is amazing and very

important for all of us because it provides muliple resources that we need for survival. This is

why we should work hard to preserve our ocean. Without our ocean we could not survive.