EARTH: THE BLUE

PLANET
❑ Water: The most essential component of
all life forms that exist over the surface of
the earth.
❑ It is a rare commodity in our solar system.
❑ The earth, fortunately has an abundant
supply of water on its surface.
❑ Our planet is called the ‘Blue Planet’.
 HYDROLOGICAL CYCLE
⮚The hydrological cycle describes the
movement of water on, in, and above the earth
in different
forms i.e. the liquid, solid and the gaseous
phases.
 RELIEF OF THE
OCEAN FLOOR
⮚The ocean floors can
be divided into four
major divisions:
(i) the Continental
Shelf
(ii) the Continental
Slope
(iii) the Deep Sea
Plain
(iv) the Oceanic
Deeps
 CONTINENTAL SHELF
❑The extended margin of each continent
❑Generally occupied by relatively shallow
seas and gulfs
❑Average gradient of 1° or even less
❑Typically ends at a very steep slope, called
the shelf break
❑The average width is about 80 km
❑The depth of the shelves also varies. It may
be as shallow as 30 m in some areas while in
some areas it is as deep as 600 m
❑Generally covered with sediments
 CONTINENTAL SLOPE
❑Connects the continental shelf and the ocean
basins
❑The gradient of the slope region varies
between 2-5°
❑The depth of the slope region varies between
200 and 3,000 m.
❑Canyons and trenches are observed in this
region
 DEEP SEA PLAIN
❑Deep sea plains are gently sloping areas of
the ocean basins
❑The depths vary between 3,000 and 6,000m.
❑Covered with fine-grained sediments like
clay and silt
OCEANIC DEEPS OR TRENCHES
❑These areas are the deepest parts of the
oceans
❑Relatively steep sided, narrow basins
❑They are some 3-5 km deeper than the
surrounding ocean floor
❑Located at the bases of continental slopes
and along island arcs
❑Associated with active volcanoes and strong
earthquakes
❑ 57 deeps have been explored so far
❑ 32 are in the Pacific Ocean; 19 in the
 MINOR RELIEF
FEATURES
Mid-Oceanic Ridges: composed of two
chains of mountains separated by a large
depression. Peaks as high as 2,500 m. Ex- Mid
Atlantic Ridge
Seamount: mountain with pointed summits,
rising
from the seafloor that does not reach the
surface of the ocean.
• Volcanic origin.
• 3,000-4,500 m tall
• Ex- The Emperor seamount, in the Pacific Ocean

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 CONT…..
Submarine Canyons: deep valleys, some
comparable to the Grand Canyon
• Sometimes found cutting across the continental
shelves and slopes
• Often extending from the mouths of large rivers
• Ex- The Hudson Canyon
Guyots: Flat topped seamount, showing
evidences of gradual subsidence through
stages to become flat topped submerged
mountains.
Atoll: Low islands found in the tropical oceans
consisting of coral reefs surrounding a central
depression. May be a part of the sea (lagoon),
or sometimes form enclosing a body of fresh,
TEMPERATURE OF OCEAN WATERS
Ocean waters get heated up by the solar energy
just as land.
Factors Affecting Temperature Distribution:
(i) Latitude :
(ii) Unequal distribution of land and
water :
(iii) Prevailing wind :
(iv) Ocean currents :
 VERTICAL DISTRIBUTION
OF TEMPERATURE
❑The temperature-depth profile for the ocean
water shows decrease of temperature with the
increasing depth.
❑From around 100 - 400 m below the sea
surface and extends several hundred of metres
downward shows rapid decrease of temperature
and is called the thermocline
❑About 90 per cent of the total volume of water
is found below the thermocline in the deep
ocean where temperatures approach 0° C.
 DISTRIBUTION
OF TEMPERATURE
The average temperature of surface water of
the oceans is about 27°C
The rate of decrease of temperature with
increasing latitude is generally 0.5°C per
latitude.
The average temperature is around 22°C at 20°
latitudes, 14° C at 40° latitudes and 0° C near
poles.
The oceans in the northern hemisphere record
relatively higher temperature than in the
southern
hemisphere.
The average annual temperatures for the
 SALINITY OF OCEAN
WATERS
❖The total content of dissolved salts in sea
water is called salinity.
❖It is usually expressed as parts per thousand
or ppt.
Salinity of 24.7 o/oo has been considered as the
upper
limit to demarcate ‘brackish water’.
❖Highest salinity in water bodies
•Lake Van in Turkey (330 o/oo),
•Dead Sea (238 o/oo),
•Great Salt Lake (220 o/oo)
 FACTORS AFFECTING
OCEAN SALINITY
❑Evaporation and precipitation.
❑Fresh water flow from rivers, thawing of Ice in
polar areas
❑Wind
❑The ocean currents
 DISTRIBUTION OF
SALINITY
The salinity for normal open ocean ranges
between 33o/oo and 37 o/oo.
In the land locked Red Sea, it is as high as
41o/oo, while in the estuaries and the Arctic,
the salinity fluctuates from 0 - 35 o/oo,
seasonally
Pacific Ocean: salinity variation is mainly due to
its shape and larger areal extent. Salinity
decreases from 35 o/oo - 31 o/oo on the
western parts of the northern hemisphere
because of the influx of melted water from the
Arctic region. In the same way, after 15° - 20°
 CONT……
Atlantic Ocean: The average salinity is around 36
o/oo.
Maximum salinity (37 o /oo) is observed between
20° N and 30° N and 20° W - 60° W which gradually
decreases towards the north.
The North Sea, in spite of its location in higher
latitudes, records higher salinity due to more saline
water brought by the North Atlantic Drift.
The Mediterranean Sea records higher salinity due
to high evaporation.
Indian Ocean: The average salinity is 35 o/oo. The
low salinity trend is observed in the Bay of Bengal
due to influx of river water.
the Arabian Sea shows higher salinity due to high
evaporation and low influx of fresh water.
 VERTICAL DISTRIBUTION
OF SALINITY
❑Salinity changes with depth
❑Salinity at the surface increases by the loss of
water to ice or evaporation, or decreased by the
input of fresh waters, such as from the rivers.
❑Salinity at depth is very much fixed, because
there is no way that water is ‘lost’, or the salt is
‘added.’
❑Salinity, generally, increases with depth and
there is a
distinct zone called the halocline, where salinity
increases sharply.
❑Increasing salinity of seawater causes its
density to increase that causes sink of high