World Ocean

High school (ages 12+)
Environment & Earth

Name:

Date:

Step 1 · Read the article

Open the article and read it at the level above. Then answer the questions below in your own words.

https://smallwhale.org/articles/world-ocean

Write what each word means, using the article.

Do not copy the article. Write two things you learned, the way you would explain them to a friend.

Answers below are taken from the article’s stored facts, so they match what the student read.

1. How big is the World Ocean?Approximately 71% of Earth's surface
2. How deep is the World Ocean?Challenger Deep in the Mariana Trench, approximately 36,070 feet (10,994 meters)
3. What is the estimated water volume?326 million cubic miles (1.35 billion cubic kilometers)
4. What is the major ocean basins?Pacific, Atlantic, Indian, Southern, Arctic
5. How does the World Ocean affect Earth's climate?It absorbs about 90% of the excess heat trapped by greenhouse gases and about 25% of human-made carbon dioxide. This helps keep global temperatures from rising too fast.
6. Why are hydrothermal vents important?Hydrothermal vents are places on the ocean floor where hot, mineral‑rich water spews out. They support chemosynthetic bacteria that can live without sunlight, showing life can thrive in extreme pressure and darkness.

Oceanography: The scientific study of the oceans, covering their physical and biological aspects.
Thermohaline Circulation: Global ocean circulation patterns driven by differences in temperature and salinity.
Ocean Acidification: The ongoing decrease in the pH of the Earth's oceans, caused by the uptake of anthropogenic carbon dioxide.
Marine Protected Area (MPA): A portion of the ocean or a large lake, especially one that has been reserved for the purpose of conserving or protecting a particular species or ecosystem.