Mar 4, 2025 · The global ocean covers more than 70 percent of Earth’s surface and contains 97 percent of the planet’s water. Data collected by NASA’s Earth-observing instruments help scientists understand how the ocean supports a vast abundance of life, regulates the climate, provides a large amount of the planet’s oxygen, and stores an abundance of ...

The ocean matters The ocean covers more than two-thirds of Earth's surface, it makes life as we know it possible, and it sustains human society. Yet the global ocean is largely unexplored and unknown. What we do learn never ceases to amaze or …

Nov 14, 2024 · Ocean currents are the reason London rarely has a white Christmas despite having a latitude on par with central Quebec’s. They’re the reason San Francisco can be a pleasant 65 degrees Fahrenheit (18 degrees Celsius) while Sacramento swelters in the hundreds. Ocean dynamics determine whether it will be a good year for wheat in India.

Dec 3, 2024 · A vital ocean current is stable, for now The Florida Current, a major contributor to a system of ocean currents that regulate Earth’s climate, has not weakened as much as previously reported. By ...

Feb 6, 2025 · But unlike goliath ocean gyres, these processes take place at relatively smaller scales (about 10 kilometers [6 miles] across), known by oceanographers as the “submesoscale.” It’s been the job of scientists like former MIT-WHOI PhD student Jing He to understand how these pathways support life across the ocean, and how they transport ...

The ocean water column is made up of five zones: the sunlight (epipelagic), twilight (mesopelagic), midnight (bathypelagic), abyssal (abyssopelagic) and hadal zones (trenches).

Oct 22, 2024 · The ocean is a vast and critical reservoir that supports a diversity of life, helps regulate climate, provides a large amount of the planet’s oxygen, and stores an abundance of carbon dioxide. NASA satellite, airborne, and in-situ missions and projects are constantly collecting data about the global ocean.

Feb 27, 2024 · Press "Play" in the lower left corner of the embedded map to watch iceberg A23a move through the Southern Ocean. The animation starts with the massive iceberg (approximately 1,500 square miles in area, or about the size of the U.S. …

Jan 15, 2025 · In the Atlantic Ocean, a system of connected currents, called the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC), moves water throughout the world’s oceans powered by a combination of winds and ocean density. It not only distributes the ocean’s heat, moisture, and nutrients, but regulates the Earth’s climate and weather.

State of the Ocean (SOTO) is a suite of tools presented through an interactive, web-based visualization front end. It provides access to a broad range of satellite-derived products with key parameters of interest to the oceanographic community.