Ocean exploration

Key takeaways

Ocean exploration belongs to earth science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Ocean exploration to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Ocean exploration from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Ocean exploration, part of oceanography, is the exploration of ocean surfaces. Notable explorations were undertaken by the Greeks, the Phoenicians, the Romans, the Polynesians, Phytheas, the Vikings, Arabs and the Portuguese. Scientific investigations began with early scientists such as James Cook, Charles Darwin, and Edmund Halley. Ocean exploration itself coincided with the developments in shipbuilding, diving, navigation, depth, measurement, exploration, and cartography.

History

Early exploration 4500 BC Around this time, humans began diving into the sea as a source of food gathering, commerce, and possibly even warfare. 4000 BC Egyptians developed sailing vessels, which were probably used only in the eastern Mediterranean near the mouth of the Nile River. 4000 BC - 1000 AD Polynesian colonization of South Pacific Islands. 1800 BC Basic measuring of the depths is done in Egypt. 1500 BC Middle Eastern people explored the Indian Ocean 600 BC Phoenicians developed sea routes around the entire Mediterranean and into the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean. Going around Africa they reached England by sailing along the western European coast. Although they understood celestial navigation, they probably stayed within sight of land whenever possible. 500-200 BC Greeks developed trade routes in the Mediterranean using the length of the day (corrected for the time of the year) to estimate latitude. 450 BC Herodotus produces a map of the Mediterranean region. 325 BC Pytheas, a Greek astronomer and geographer, sailed north out of the Mediterranean, reaching England and possibly even Iceland and Norway. He also developed the use of sightings on the North Star to determine latitude. c.240 BC Eratosthenes of Cyrene measures the circumference of Earth with a high precision. 150 AD Ptolemy produces a map of the Roman world, including lines of latitude and longitude, the continents of Asia, Europe, and Africa and the surrounding oceans. 900-1430 Vikings explore and colonize Iceland, Greenland, Newfoundland. 1002 Leif Erikson reaches North America nearly 500 years before Columbus. 1405-1433 Chinese send seven voyages to extend Chinese influence and impress their neighbor states. These expensive voyages are ended after a short time. See Zheng He (1371–1433).

From Age of Exploration to present

1492-1504 Christopher Columbus reaches America looking for a searoute to the Indies; discovering various lands and islands and establishing a colony on Hispaniola 1498 Vasco da Gama sails around Africa from Portugal reaching India and establishing trade routes 1499-1504 Amerigo Vespucci explores New World 1519-1522 Ferdinand Magellan's ships circumnavigate the world. 1620 Dutch inventor Cornelis Drebbel builds the world's first submarine and makes several trips in the River Thames near London at a depth of about 12 or 15 feet. 1698-1700 Edmund Halley made probably the first primarily scientific voyage to study the variation of the magnetic compass, sailing as far as 52 deg S. in the Atlantic Ocean. On a previous expedition to St. Helena, he made an important contribution to knowledge of the trade winds. 1768-1780 James Cook explores the southern parts of the oceans looking for the southern continent. He was the first to use a marine chronometer to determine longitude. 1785 Benjamin Franklin writes Sundry Marine Observations on improvements to ships and the Gulf Stream. 1831-1836 Charles Darwin sails on the Beagle, exploring the Galapagos and many other areas. It is this work which led him to develop the concepts of natural selection and evolution. 1860 First chart of the Gulf Stream published by the United States Coast Survey. 1872-1876 H.M.S. Challenger travels around the world on a scientific mission taking sediment samples, water samples, soundings, and collecting many biological specimens. 1960 Bathyscaphe Trieste dives to what was believed to be the deepest point in the Mariana Trench. A depth of 10,915 meters was observed. 1969 The Ben Franklin (PX-15) drifts submerged for 30 days in the Gulf Stream.

Human-powered The renaissance of ocean exploration occurred in the 20th century, when human-powered exploration became increasingly popular. Via this new medium, pioneering has once again become the goal of ocean explorers.

Illustrations

Ocean exploration: Atlantic Ocean — Atlantic Ocean

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Ocean exploration

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Ocean exploration claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In earth science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Ocean exploration before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Ocean exploration ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Ocean exploration

In research: Ocean exploration appears in earth science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Ocean exploration in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Ocean exploration is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Ocean exploration, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Ocean exploration outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

How to study Ocean exploration in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Ocean exploration means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Ocean exploration out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Ocean exploration in simple terms?

Ocean exploration, part of oceanography, is the exploration of ocean surfaces. Notable explorations were undertaken by the Greeks, the Phoenicians, the Romans, the Polynesians, Phytheas, the Vikings, Arabs and the Portuguese.

Why does Ocean exploration matter?

Because it connects several earth science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Ocean exploration?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Ocean exploration.