2022: How much of the Ocean have we explored to date (2023)

FAQs

What percent of the ocean has been discovered 2023? ›

Yet, just 5 percent of the global ocean has been explored and less than 10 percent has been mapped using modern sonar technology.

An expedition to the bottom of the ocean off the coast of Antarctica revealed a shocking surprise, as detailed in a January 2022 study in Current Biology. Scientists discovered 60 million icefish nests covering an area the size of a small city.

It is also called the euphotic zone. Here there is enough light penetrating the water to support photosynthesis. Because photosynthesis occurs here, more than 90 percent of all marine life lives in the sunlit zone. The sunlit zones goes down about 600 feet.

But in our best-case scenarios, oceans are on track to rise 2 to 3 feet (0.6 to 0.9 metres) by 2100. Even a sea-level rise below 3 feet (0.9 metres) could displace up to 4 million people. Oceans not only will have less ice at the poles, but they will also continue to acidify in the tropics.

In fact, most of the waters remain unexplored, uncharted and unseen by our eyes. It might be shocking to find out, but only 5% of the ocean has been explored and charted by humans. The rest, especially its depths, are still unknown.

Given the high degree of difficulty and cost in exploring our ocean using underwater vehicles, researchers have long relied on technologies such as sonar to generate maps of the seafloor. Currently, less than ten percent of the global ocean is mapped using modern sonar technology.

By 2030, half the world's oceans could be reeling from climate change, scientists say. More than half the world's oceans could suffer multiple symptoms of climate change over the next 15 years, including rising temperatures, acidification, lower oxygen levels and decreasing food supplies, new research suggests.

Artifact from Space Shuttle Challenger found on ocean floor, NASA confirms.

The rare ocean animal, the blob fish, is extremely gelatinous to the point that it literally looks like a blob with a face. They live in the deep waters of Australia, Tasmania and New Zealand.

But reaching the lowest part of the ocean? Only three people have ever done that, and one was a U.S. Navy submariner. In the Pacific Ocean, somewhere between Guam and the Philippines, lies the Marianas Trench, also known as the Mariana Trench.

Why can't we explore the ocean? ›

“The intense pressures in the deep ocean make it an extremely difficult environment to explore.” Although you don't notice it, the pressure of the air pushing down on your body at sea level is about 15 pounds per square inch. If you went up into space, above the Earth's atmosphere, the pressure would decrease to zero.

Researchers around the world continue to study marine life and habitats to help develop new strategies to preserve vital ocean ecosystems. Scientists estimate that 91 percent of ocean species have yet to be classified, and that more than eighty percent of our ocean is unmapped, unobserved, and unexplored..

The amazing underground tunnels that bring water to form the Turpan Oasis in Northwest China provide historical testimony to humans' abilities to adapt. In the climate of 2100, there will be plenty of environments between these current extremes. Hence, it is safe to conclude that Earth will be habitable.

By 2050, about 75% of the world population will be living in cities. Then there will be buildings touching the sky and cities will be settled from the ground up. Roads will be built up to several floors. And to move around, the buildings will be connected to the skywalk.

Despite its size and impact on the lives of every organism on Earth, the ocean remains a mystery. More than 80 percent of the ocean has never been mapped, explored, or even seen by humans.

About 71 percent of the Earth's surface is water-covered, and the oceans hold about 96.5 percent of all Earth's water. Water also exists in the air as water vapor, in rivers and lakes, in icecaps and glaciers, in the ground as soil moisture and in aquifers, and even in you and your dog. Water is never sitting still.

The average depth of the ocean is about 3,688 meters (12,100 feet).

But new research suggests a different origin for the oceans: they simply seeped out of the center of the Earth. The finding, published in Science, suggests that a reservoir of water is hidden in the Earth's mantle, more than 400 miles below the surface.

Ocean salt primarily comes from rocks on land and openings in the seafloor. Salt in the ocean comes from two sources: runoff from the land and openings in the seafloor. Rocks on land are the major source of salts dissolved in seawater. Rainwater that falls on land is slightly acidic, so it erodes rocks.

It found that an estimated 4.3 million acres — an area nearly the size of Connecticut — will be underwater by 2050, including $35 billion worth of real estate. “Higher flood waters are reaching further inland, flooding properties and buildings that have never flooded before,” Climate Central researchers wrote.

How much longer will the ocean last? ›

An extreme future climate scenario—assuming as much as 5 degrees Celsius of warming by the end of the century—would trigger a mass extinction within the next 300 years.

Despite being treated as humanity's rubbish dump for decades, the oceans of the world are proving remarkably resilient, says a new scientific review. Building on that resilience could lead to a full recovery within three decades, the researchers argue.

Evidence points to oceans on other planets and moons, even within our own solar system. But Earth is the only known planet (or moon) to have consistent, stable bodies of liquid water on its surface. In our solar system, Earth orbits around the sun in an area called the habitable zone.

These photos, that date back through the last 30 years, can be timed precisely to your birthday. Just head to NASA.gov here to see how the stars were aligned on your special day!

The red planet once had a global ocean, rivers, and lakes. Then, the solar wind — charged particles from the Sun — stripped away the Martian atmosphere. As the planet's protective shield faded, all liquid water on the surface evaporated into space, merged with minerals, or fled underground to become water ice.

While the blue whale is the overall-largest creature of the sea, the lion's mane jellyfish goes to the top of the list for being the longest. These languid beauties have tentacles that reach an astonishing 120 feet in length.

While box jellyfish are found in warm coastal waters around the world, the lethal varieties are found primarily in the Indo-Pacific region and northern Australia. This includes the Australian box jellyfish (Chironex fleckeri), considered the most venomous marine animal.

The tiny Australian box jellyfish is considered the most venomous animal in the sea—their sting can cause cardiac arrest, paralysis or death in humans in just a few minutes.

Neil Armstrong and Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin were the first of 12 human beings to walk on the Moon. Four of America's moonwalkers are still alive: Aldrin (Apollo 11), David Scott (Apollo 15), Charles Duke (Apollo 16), and Harrison Schmitt (Apollo 17).

Vescovo's trip to the Challenger Deep, at the southern end of the Pacific Ocean's Mariana Trench, back in May, was said to be the deepest manned sea dive ever recorded, at 10,927 meters (35,853 feet).

What is the deepest a human has gone? ›

Last year an expedition to the Mariana Trench made history by conducting the deepest crewed dive ever completed as it descended 10,927 metres into the Challenger Deep.

The deepest point ever reached by man is 35,858 feet below the surface of the ocean, which happens to be as deep as water gets on earth. To go deeper, you'll have to travel to the bottom of the Challenger Deep, a section of the Mariana Trench under the Pacific Ocean 200 miles southwest of Guam.

The dive to the ocean's deepest point turned up some surprises. The news: During a four-hour exploration of the Mariana Trench, retired naval officer Victor Vescovo piloted his submarine to 10,927 meters (35,849 feet) below the sea's surface, making it the deepest dive on record.

We have come to understand the fundamental building blocks of ordinary matter, and what we know of the universe is only a tiny fraction of what is out there. We know only five per cent of the universe. The remaining 95 per cent is still a mystery – an unknown universe of new particles and forces awaits discovery.

The answer is almost certainly yes. Scientists are still learning about life on Earth and the siphonophore is one of several giants that humans have found in recent decades.

Because deep in the darkest parts of the oceans, at unimaginable depths, live some of the most unusual and primitive sharks in the world. Many of these sharks live so deep that they are rarely seen and have barely been studied, and it's entirely possible that there are even more still that are as yet undiscovered.

The stateless Bajau people, also known as 'sea nomads,' have literally lived at sea for over 1,000 years. For most of us, kicking back in a stilted chalet by the sea makes for picture-perfect holidays. But try living that way every day. For the stateless Bajau, living on the water is just daily routine.

That mutation would be highly unlikely, considering our existing body physiology. Furthermore, flying isn't of much evolutionary use to humans, so it is not a trait that would be selected for through natural selection.

According to the company, humans in the year 3000 could have a hunched back, wide neck, clawed hand from texting and a second set of eyelids.

Finally, Homo sapiens appeared. But we aren't the end of that story. Evolution won't stop with us, and we might even be evolving faster than ever.

How hot will the Earth be in 2050? ›

Since 1880, average global temperatures have increased by about 1 degrees Celsius (1.7° degrees Fahrenheit). Global temperature is projected to warm by about 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7° degrees Fahrenheit) by 2050 and 2-4 degrees Celsius (3.6-7.2 degrees Fahrenheit) by 2100.

We'll live somewhere beyond Earth.

In 1,000 years we'll probably have a thriving civilization on Mars, the Moon, or maybe even another planet beyond the solar system. We've already discovered billions and billions of planets outside our own solar system. There are 40 billion Earth-like planets in our own galaxy alone.

The end of earth will come in 7.59 billion years, unfortunately the end for all life on earth will come much sooner. Various geological catastrophes, like the formation of large igneous provinces (in short LIPs), pose a real danger to life on earth.

Results from a wide range of climate model simulations suggest that our planet's average temperature could be between 2 and 9.7°F (1.1 to 5.4°C) warmer in 2100 than it is today.

2070 will be marked by increased acidification of oceans and slow but remorseless sea-level rise that will take hundreds if not thousands of years to reverse – a rise of more than half a metre this century will be the trajectory. “It's a very different world,” Thorne says.

In a study from 2019, researchers found that cities in North America by the year 2080 will basically feel like they're about 500 miles (800 km) away from where they currently are – in terms of the drastic changes that are taking place in their climate.

We need to go further and mobilize the international community so that at least 80% of the seabed is mapped by 2030. Knowing the depth and relief of the seabed is essential to understanding the location of ocean faults, the workings of ocean currents and tides, and the transport of sediments.

More Than 100 Countries Call for Protecting at Least 30% of the Global Ocean by 2030 | The Pew Charitable Trusts. Protecting Life in the Arctic - U.S.

But reaching the lowest part of the ocean? Only three people have ever done that, and one was a U.S. Navy submariner. In the Pacific Ocean, somewhere between Guam and the Philippines, lies the Marianas Trench, also known as the Mariana Trench.

Vescovo's trip to the Challenger Deep, at the southern end of the Pacific Ocean's Mariana Trench, back in May, was said to be the deepest manned sea dive ever recorded, at 10,927 meters (35,853 feet).

Are we ever going to discover the whole ocean? ›

We continue to discover new features and creatures, clues to our past, and resources that can improve our future. But the ocean will never be fully explored. Earth is constantly changing, and it's important to understand these changes given the importance of the ocean in our everyday lives.

By 2050, there will be more plastic than fish in the world's oceans, study says. There is a lot of plastic in the world's oceans. It coagulates into great floating “garbage patches” that cover large swaths of the Pacific.

The ocean floor is called the abyssal plain. Below the ocean floor, there are a few small deeper areas called ocean trenches. Features rising up from the ocean floor include seamounts, volcanic islands and the mid-oceanic ridges and rises.

The ocean is big, deep and impermeable to the laser altimeter that made mapping our less watery neighbor planets possible. To complete a map of Earth's ocean floor, you've got to take to the high seas by boat. The first oceanographic researchers—like those onboard the H.M.S.

By the year 2100, swollen seas and rivers will redraw shorelines as climbing temperatures melt ice caps. In one of the most extreme scenarios, waters globally could rise by as much as eight feet, and even a smaller amount of flooding would inundate low-lying areas of the coast.

The high-end global mean sea-level rise is now projected to be up to 1.3-1.6 meter for strong warming in 2100.

The new models suggest Earth could approach Permian levels of marine extinction by 2300 if emissions continue to increase. As temperatures rise, according to the research, species richness will decline near the tropics, with some animals migrating toward higher latitudes.