1. Ocean Contents
What is the contents of ocean water and how does it's composition compare to freshwater?
Ocean water is made up of both gases, and solids dissolved in pure water. Oceanographers (people the specialize in ocean studies) believe that ocean water has all the natural elements found on Earth. In total, there are 90 elements found on Earth, and in the water 85 of those have been found. The make up of ocean water is pretty simple, yet it is so different from fresh water. In ocean water there is the following:
~Oxygen and Hydrogen- 96.5%
~Chloride-1.9%
~Sodium-1.1%
~Magnesium, Sulfer, Calcium, Potassium, Bromine, Carbon, Strontium, Silicon, Fluorine, Aluminum, Phosphorus, Iodine- .5%
As you can see, ocean water is so similar to freshwater that only 3.5% of it is different. One of the things that makes ocean water so different is the sodium. You've probably noticed that saltwater tastes a lot like salt. That because it contains salt, so common to you that you eat it every day. Thats right! Ocean water contains common table salt. That kind of salt is called sodium chloride, and out of all the salts, thats the most common. However, there are a lot of other salts in the ocean and they are:
~Sodium Chloride
~Magnesium Chloride
~Calcium Sulfate
~Potassium Sulfate
~Calcium Carbonate
~Magnesium Bromide
These salts are all measured in a thing called salinity. Salinity is the number of grams of salt dissolved in 1 kilogram of ocean water. They measure this by seeing the amount of salt left behind after 1 kilogram of ocean water evaporates. When the water evaporates the scientists can see that 35 grams of salt remain, and of that, 27.2 are sodium chloride. The salinity is shown through parts per thousand and is usually around 33-37, and the average is about 35. In some places of the ocean, salinity is higher than others. Salinity could be lower in areas that freshwater runs into the ocean. This would be a very obvious reason for salinity to be low because the fresh water cancels out the salt. Salinity is especially high in areas that are very hot, and hardly rain. Salinity is also higher in areas that it's very cold. This is because the water freezes, which removes pure water and leaves the salt behind.
Along with salt, ocean water also contains dissolved gases. The most common found in ocean water are carbon dioxide, nitrogen, and oxygen. Carbon dioxide and oxygen are extremely important to ocean life. Plants use carbon dioxide to make food. They mix that with the sunlight to make sugars and somewhere along the way they release oxygen. Oxygen is used to support life of plants and animals. Just like the salt, the amount of ocean gases vary form place to place. Scientists have found that the gases are more so towards the oceans surface. This is because the sun helps the plants create their food/sugars and in that process they release oxygen (like explained before). The amount of gases also depends on the temperature of the ocean. Warm water tends to hold less gases then cold water because cold water is heavier and it causes the gases to sink. This also allows animals to live lower down the ocean.
As you can see, ocean water is very different form fresh water, and this is hard to believe because like I said earlier, only 3.5% of it is different, however that percentage changes the two types of water greatly!
Ocean water is made up of both gases, and solids dissolved in pure water. Oceanographers (people the specialize in ocean studies) believe that ocean water has all the natural elements found on Earth. In total, there are 90 elements found on Earth, and in the water 85 of those have been found. The make up of ocean water is pretty simple, yet it is so different from fresh water. In ocean water there is the following:
~Oxygen and Hydrogen- 96.5%
~Chloride-1.9%
~Sodium-1.1%
~Magnesium, Sulfer, Calcium, Potassium, Bromine, Carbon, Strontium, Silicon, Fluorine, Aluminum, Phosphorus, Iodine- .5%
As you can see, ocean water is so similar to freshwater that only 3.5% of it is different. One of the things that makes ocean water so different is the sodium. You've probably noticed that saltwater tastes a lot like salt. That because it contains salt, so common to you that you eat it every day. Thats right! Ocean water contains common table salt. That kind of salt is called sodium chloride, and out of all the salts, thats the most common. However, there are a lot of other salts in the ocean and they are:
~Sodium Chloride
~Magnesium Chloride
~Calcium Sulfate
~Potassium Sulfate
~Calcium Carbonate
~Magnesium Bromide
These salts are all measured in a thing called salinity. Salinity is the number of grams of salt dissolved in 1 kilogram of ocean water. They measure this by seeing the amount of salt left behind after 1 kilogram of ocean water evaporates. When the water evaporates the scientists can see that 35 grams of salt remain, and of that, 27.2 are sodium chloride. The salinity is shown through parts per thousand and is usually around 33-37, and the average is about 35. In some places of the ocean, salinity is higher than others. Salinity could be lower in areas that freshwater runs into the ocean. This would be a very obvious reason for salinity to be low because the fresh water cancels out the salt. Salinity is especially high in areas that are very hot, and hardly rain. Salinity is also higher in areas that it's very cold. This is because the water freezes, which removes pure water and leaves the salt behind.
Along with salt, ocean water also contains dissolved gases. The most common found in ocean water are carbon dioxide, nitrogen, and oxygen. Carbon dioxide and oxygen are extremely important to ocean life. Plants use carbon dioxide to make food. They mix that with the sunlight to make sugars and somewhere along the way they release oxygen. Oxygen is used to support life of plants and animals. Just like the salt, the amount of ocean gases vary form place to place. Scientists have found that the gases are more so towards the oceans surface. This is because the sun helps the plants create their food/sugars and in that process they release oxygen (like explained before). The amount of gases also depends on the temperature of the ocean. Warm water tends to hold less gases then cold water because cold water is heavier and it causes the gases to sink. This also allows animals to live lower down the ocean.
As you can see, ocean water is very different form fresh water, and this is hard to believe because like I said earlier, only 3.5% of it is different, however that percentage changes the two types of water greatly!