2/1/13: Introduction to Oceanography
Oceans and Seas
![Picture](/uploads/1/3/8/1/13814235/977391982.jpg)
The five oceans of the world are the Atlantic Ocean, Indian Ocean, Pacific Ocean, Arctic Ocean and the Antarctic (Southern) Ocean. The major seas are the Red Sea, Arabian Sea, Mediterranean Sea, Russian Sea, Caribbean sea, and South China Sea. These seas are smaller than the oceans and are isolated or surrounded by land.
Bays
![Picture](/uploads/1/3/8/1/13814235/905503395.png?186)
Bays are incursions of oceans into the land. Bays are formed as a result of continental drift and glacia and river erosion. Bays were significant in the history of human settlement because they can provide a safe place for fishing. Later they were important in the development of sea trade as the safe anchorage they provide encouraged their selection as ports.
Gulf
![Picture](/uploads/1/3/8/1/13814235/136428892.gif)
Bays can form its own seas, called a gulf. In other words, a very large bay is called a gulf. A good example is the Gulf of Mexico. It is surrounded by the North American continent and the island of Cuba. It is bounded on the northeast, north, and northwest by the Gulf Coast of the United States, on the southwest and south by Mexico, and on the southeast by Cuba.
Peninsula
![Picture](/uploads/1/3/8/1/13814235/481903177.jpg)
A peninsula, or a cape, is an incursion of land into the water. Florida is a famous example of a large peninsula because its land area is divided between the larger Florida peninsula and the smaller Florida panhandle on the north and west.
An isthmus is a narrow strip of land connecting two larger land areas, usually with water on either side. It connects a peninsula to the land.
An isthmus is a narrow strip of land connecting two larger land areas, usually with water on either side. It connects a peninsula to the land.
The First Discoverers: Polynesians
![Picture](/uploads/1/3/8/1/13814235/320621054.jpg)
The first people to travel the sea and cross continents are the Polynesians. They are a collection of various ethinic groups that speak the Polynesian language. These seafarers traveled from the Americas and Asia to the islands of Pacific.They conquered many islands on the Pacific.
The Vikings
![Picture](/uploads/1/3/8/1/13814235/164106023.jpg)
The Vikings were the Norse explorers, warriors, merchants, and pirates who raided, traded, explored and settled in wide areas of Europe, Asia and the North Atlantic islands from the late 8th to the mid-11th century. They used their famed longships to travel as far east as Constantinople and the Volga River in Russia, and as far west as Iceland, Greenland, and Newfoundland, and as far south as Nekor.
The Age of Discovery
![Picture](/uploads/1/3/8/1/13814235/693728280.png)
The age of discovery started with the exploration of the West and the need to reach India. The famous explorers of the time were Christopher Columbus, Ferdinand Magellan, and Marco Polo. Columbus was born in 1451 in Italy and he was the one who discovered America. Ferdinand Magellan was born in Portugal, circa 1480 and he was the first person to successfully sail around the world. Marco Polo was born in 1254, in Venice, Italy. He travelled through Asia and introduced Europeans to Central Asia and China.
The HMS Challenger
![Picture](/uploads/1/3/8/1/13814235/603660826.jpg)
The HMS Challenger was a steam-assisted Royal Navy ship launched on February 13, 1858. For the first time, two hundred scientists went to the ocean to understand it. This is the first oceanography expedition.
The Father of Discovery: Matthew Maury
![Picture](/uploads/1/3/8/1/13814235/918248772.jpg)
Matthew Maury is one of developers who is involved in the expedition. He is one of the mappers of the currents of the ocean. He is considered the father oceanography because he developed a uniform methodology for recording ocean winds and currents. His analysis of these patterns allowed shippers to take advantage of air and water flow, decreasing trans-Atlantic travel time by days or even weeks. As a result, oceanography was born.