The story of the ocean

Author: Serbia Erle
Publisher:
Publication Date: 2002-06-01
Features: The ocean covers nearly three-quarters of the Earth's surface, and all life on Earth originated in ancient water bodies. However, despite centuries of research, exploration, and our relentless fascination with the ocean, many aspects of it remain a great mystery to us. Just in the last century, tremendous scientific advancements have increased our understanding of the nature of the ocean, but 95% of it remains to be explored. In short, the ocean is our last uncharted frontier. Marine scientist and diver Alan Prager, along with the internationally renowned underwater explorer Serbia Erle, approach this major and multifaceted theme of the ocean with great passion and innovative methods, conducting an extremely comprehensive and accessible investigation into the past, present, and future of the sea. They guide readers through a natural history spanning 450 million years—from the Precambrian era to the present—a mesmerizing underwater journey. The Ocean reveals to us everything from waves, tides, and sea-level changes to hurricanes, El Ni?o phenomena, global warming, and ocean sediments, plate tectonics, to the abundant and astonishing life forms that inhabit the sea. In a fascinating discussion about marine science—a discipline that integrates oceanography, biology, geology, chemistry, physics, meteorology, and as a pioneering field, underwater exploration—we are drawn into an exploration of the ocean and the increasingly complex relationship between humans and the sea.