OCEANS
Introduction
According to enchantedlearning.com, oceans cover about 70% of the earth's surface. The ocean contains roughly 97% of the earth's water supply. Oceans serve many functions especially affecting the weather and temperature. The purpose of this paper is to discuss the theory of Continental Drift, the ocean's origin, its characteristics and finally what Islam has voiced on oceans.
Continental Drift:
At the start of the 20th century there were no maps for the seafloor. In 1915 a German geologist and meteorologist Alfred Wegener, proposed the theory of Continental Drift which states that parts of the earth's crust slowly drifted atop a liquid core. Wegener hypothesized that an original gigantic super continent existed 200 million years ago. He named it Pangea meaning "all earth "in Greek.
Pangea consisting of all the earth's land masses, started to break up into smaller super continents: Laurasia and Gondwaland. By, the end of the Cretaceous period the continents had separated into land masses that resemble our modern day continents.(3:1)
Español: Los 5 océanos de la Tierra
Ocean Breezes
Alfred Wegener (1880 - 1930), German meteorologist...Origin of the Sea:
Scientists believe that seas are 500 million years old. Geo-Scientists agree with the hypothesis that both the atmosphere and oceans have accumulated through time from some process of degassing of the earth's interior. According to this theory, the ocean had its origin from the prolonged escape of water vapor and other gases from the molten igneous rocks of the earth to the clouds, surrounding the cooling earth.
After the earth's surface cooled to a temperature below the boiling point of water. Rain began to fall and continued to fall for centuries. Water drained into steep hollows in the earth's surface. A primeval ocean came into existence. The forces of gravity prevented water from leaving the planet. (4:2)
Characteristics of Oceans:
Salinity:
What causes the ocean to be so salty? Water...