Canada is a huge country, but even the even all of the land in the world is small compared with the oceans. About 70% of the Earth is covered by oceans. Pollution and global warming are threatening the oceans, but people can help to save them.

If you walk around in your neighbourhood, you will probably see a few birds and maybe a squirrel or a rabbit. Land areas have many animals and plants, but the world’s oceans, lakes, and rivers have even more. About 94% of life on Earth comes from the water, and much of that is in the oceans. So far, people have explored only a small part of the oceans, but they have already discovered some amazing things.

The biggest ocean in the world is the Pacific Ocean, between North and South America and Asia. The Pacific makes up about 30% of the Earth’s surface, and it has about 25,000 islands. Most of the world’s volcanoes are in an area called the Pacific Ring of Fire, which goes around the edge of the Pacific in a horseshoe shape.

After the Pacific, next two biggest oceans are the Atlantic and Indian Oceans. Canada borders on the Atlantic in the east, the Pacific in the West, and the Arctic Ocean in the North. The Arctic Ocean freezes over in winter, but some of the others never completely freeze. The Pacific is a fairly calm ocean, which is how it got its name, but the Atlantic can have huge storms.

Oceans are very important for the health of the planet. They give people fish to eat and also produce more than half of the oxygen that we breathe. They also help to keep temperatures regular and they make life better in many other ways.

People have discovered many interesting facts about the ocean. For example, the longest mountain range in the world is the Mid-Oceanic Ridge, which is about 56,000 kilometres long. The deepest point in the world is the Mariana Trench, which goes down eleven kilometres. The longest living structure in the world is the Great Barrier Reef, which is 2600 kilometres long and is near Australia.

Learning about the oceans is not just a fun activity; it could change the world. Oceans are essential for the planet, but they are in trouble. The planet has been warming up, and this has been killing a lot of life in the ocean. Melting sea ice has also raised the levels of oceans and flooded towns and villages on the edge of the water. Many people depend on fishing and other water-based activities for their living. Any major changes in water levels could be a disaster for these people.

Pollution has also been a major problem. Sometimes, fish eat plastic and then people eat the fish and get sick. Whales and dolphins can get caught in fishing nets and drown, which reduces the health of the oceans. The Great Barrier Reef and other coral areas are dying. Erosion and storm damage are killing parts of the oceans, and the world might soon lose these very important areas. What will you do to help preserve the oceans?

Bibliography:

Dreamer, Kacey. “Sea Science: 7 Bizarre Facts about the Ocean.” https://www.livescience.com/55015-amazing-ocean-facts.html.

National Geographic Kids. “Ocean Facts!” https://www.natgeokids.com/uk/discover/geography/general-geography/ocean-facts/.

Science Kids. “Fun Ocean Facts.” http://www.sciencekids.co.nz/sciencefacts/earth/oceans.html.

World Wildlife Fund. “Oceans.” http://www.wwf.ca/conservation/oceans/.