Read the summary and the most important questions on Oceanography: An Invitation to Marine Science | 9781305480575 | Tom S. Garrison

• 1 The Origin of the Ocean

• 1.1 Earth is an Ocean World

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• Where can most water be found on Earth?

  Most water is trapped within Earth's hot interieur compared to the oceans and the atmosphere.

• What is the average depth of the ocean and its coverage of the Earth's surface?

  The average depth of the ocean is 3682 meters and its coverage is 331 million square kilometers.

• 1.2 Marine Scientists use the Logic of Science to Study the Ocean

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• How can 'marine sciences' or 'oceanography' be defined?

  It is the process of discovering unifying principles in data obtained from the ocean, its associated life-forms and its bordering lands. There are various disciplines within marine sciences, for instance geologists, physical oceanographers and marine engineers.

• What is a 'hypothesis'?

  A tentative explanation for the observation or measurement. It is a speculation about the natural world that can be tested and verified or disproved by further observations and controlled experiments.

• What is a 'theory'?

  A statement that explains the observations. Hypotheses consistently supported by observation, experiment or historical exploration often evolve to become a theory.

• 1.3 Stars from Seas

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• How were the sun and planets, including Earth, formed?

  They condensed from a cloud of dust and gas enriched by the recycled remnants of exploded stars.

• 1.3.1 Stars Formed Early in the History of the Universe

• How did the universe come into existence?

  We know the universe has a beginning. Around 13.7 billion years ago, there was the big bang. All the mass and energy is believed to have been concentrated at a geometric point (unknown size); the moment when the expansion of the universe began. We don't know what triggered the expansion.

• What happened after the big bang?

  The very young universe was extremely hot; but as it expanded, it cooled. About 1 million years after the big bang, the earth had cooled down enough for atoms to be formed from energy and particles that were dominantly present in that time. Most of the atoms were hydrogen. 1 billion years after the big bang, this matter began to form the first galaxies and stars.

• 1.3.2 Stars and Planets are Contained within Galaxies

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• What is a 'galaxy'?

  A galaxy is a huge, rotating aggregation of stars, dust, gas and other debris held together by gravity. Our galaxy is called the 'Milky Way'. Every galaxy contains 100 billion stars and there are probably 100 billion galaxies in the universe.

• At what speed are we moving around the galaxy?

  We are moving at 280 km/second and so we have made 20 circuits of the galaxy since the ocean was formed. One circuit takes about 230 million years.