Oceans on brink of catastrophe. The Independent 21st June 2011
Surely, surely, slumber is more sweet than toil, the shore
Than labour in the deep mid-ocean, wind and wave and oar;
Oh rest ye, brother mariners, we will not wander more. Alfred Lord Tennyson, The Lotus-Eaters, 1832
It was at a hot volcanic vent around three kilometres down that Ballard discovered not just life but a thriving eco-system. Extreme Universe: Edge of Space, 2010
The waters between Dover and Calais here are about forty metres deep. Which in sea terms is pretty shallow. That’s because this part of the seabed is just flooded land. Richard Hammond’s Journey to the Bottom of the Ocean BBC 2011
The Monterey Canyon is deep. From the surface of the ocean to the bottom of the Canyon it’s over two miles. ibid.
The huge mountain range is called the Mid-Atlantic Ridge ... It’s part of a vast tear in the planet’s surface – a single line of underwater mountains and volcanoes that runs for over forty thousand miles around the planet. ibid.
Iceland is the only place in the world where the mid-ocean ridge rises above the waves exposing over a hundred active volcanoes. ibid.
A metal snail: this snail makes its shell and the scales on its foot from the metals in the water around it. ibid.
The summit of Molokai volcano on Hawaii has grown over two and half miles above sea level, but it’s another three and a half miles down to the sea floor, and it doesn’t stop there ... The true base is another five miles down. ibid.
Twelve men have stood on the moon, but only two have been to the deepest place of all. ibid.
This line of coastal volcanoes is known as the Pacific rift ring fire. ibid.
They cover two-thirds of our planet. They hold clues to the mysteries of our past. And they’re vital to our future survival. But the secrets of our oceans have remained largely undiscovered. Oceans: Sea of Cortez, BBC 2012
A unique corner of the Pacific Ocean – the Sea of Cortez. The Sea of Cortez is a rich fertile gulf. ibid.
This ocean paradise is under threat. ibid.
Across the world sharks are in decline. ibid.
The success of the Humboldt squid is having a radical effect on this eco-system. ibid.
Relatively little is known about Sperm whales. Sperm whales dive for up to forty minutes at a time. ibid.
The whales are socialising: this is a rare sight. ibid.
Male sperm whales have the largest brain of any animal that’s ever lived. ibid.
A vast body of wild, cold water. Oceans II: Southern Ocean
Parts of it are warming more than twice as fast as any other ocean. ibid.
Along the east coast of Tasmania the size and number of giant kelp beds has declined dramatically over the last ten years. ibid.
This coast and Antarctica were once joined together. ibid.
The team has seen the devastating effects of the warming waters here especially the kelp forests. ibid.
The Red Sea is technically an ocean because it was formed when the continents of Africans and Asia tore apart. Oceans III: Red Sea
Home to a spectacular array of species. ibid.
These tools show how our ancestors learned to exploit the Red Sea. ibid.
Coral is vital to the health of the ocean. ibid.
The team is about to explore the mighty Atlantic. This vast sea is the second largest of the world’s oceans. It dominates the Western hemisphere. Oceans IV: Atlantic Ocean
The purple cloud ... bacteria absorb the sunlight’s energy to photosynthesise. ibid.
The oldest life-form on Earth: stromatolites. ibid.
In this part of the ocean [Bahamas] the invader is the lionfish. ibid.
These waters are being changed by man. ibid.
Caves were sacred places and used for burial. ibid.
The Gulf Stream moves a hundred times as much water as all the rivers on Earth. ibid.
The future of the Atlantic is being shaped by man. The effects of large-scale commercial fishing are damaging this mighty ocean. ibid.
The third largest body of water on Earth – the Indian Ocean. More than 6,000 miles wide it covers 13% of the world’s surface. It’s home to 5,000 species of fish, many of them unique to this sea. But it’s an ocean on the edge. Oceans V: Indian Ocean
The largest population of Manta Rays in the world. ibid.
The largest of the ocean’s Rays – Mantas weight up to one and a half tons. ibid.
The destruction of over 22% of the reefs in the south-west Indian ocean alone. ibid.
One of its rarest animals: the Dugong. ibid.
44,000 miles of shoreline. Oceans VI: Indian Ocean – Coastal Waters
Coral reefs support a quarter of all fish species and help support the coastal people here. ibid.
Corals use chemical and biological warfare. ibid.
Coral grows at about one centimetre a year. ibid.
Coconut crabs begin life in the ocean before moving on shore. They weigh up to four kilograms and can have a legspan over a metre. ibid.
Seahorses: a few centimetres tall and perfectly camouflaged they are not easy to spot. ibid.
The whale-shark – the largest fish in the sea ... Whale-sharks can weigh up to thirty-five tons. ibid.
A hundred million visitors each year. Western civilisation developed around these shores, but now human activity is threatening to ruin this sea. Oceans VII: Mediterranean Sea
Sharks are crucial to the health of our oceans. ibid.
The Sixgill: one of the largest predatory sharks in the world. ibid.
The clearer the water the less plankton there is. ibid.
Pregnant and newborn Great Whites have been sighted. ibid.
Great Whites rarely attack humans. ibid.
Humankind is encroaching more and more on this sea. ibid.
One of the most hostile bodies of water on the planet – the icy wastes of the Arctic Ocean. The water temperature hovers around zero. Oceans VIII: Arctic Ocean
The smallest and shallowest of the five main oceans. ibid.
It’s heating up twice as fast as anywhere else on Earth. ibid.
The polar bear is the world’s largest terrestrial carnivore. ibid.
There are about thirty [Beluga whales] swimming around the boat. ibid.
In 1997 something emerged from the ocean that has confounded scientists to this day. From deep within the Pacific Ocean came one of the loudest and most mysterious sounds ever recorded in the natural world ... The sound was nicknamed the Bloop. (Ocean & Sound) Weird or What? s1e2: Ghost Ship, Discovery 2010
Scientists say they have discovered a riot of new species after charting the first census of the ocean’s wildlife. Sky News 4th October 2010
I really don’t know why it is that all of us are so committed to the sea, except I think it’s because in addition to the fact that the sea changes, and the light changes, and ships change, it’s because we all came from the sea. And it is an interesting biological fact that all of us have in our veins the exact same percentage of salt in our blood that exists in the ocean, and, therefore, we have salt in our blood, in our sweat, in our tears. We are tied to the ocean. And when we go back to the sea – whether it is to sail or to watch it – we are going back from whence we came. John F Kennedy, September 1962
It is an ancient Mariner,
And he stoppeth one of three.
‘By the long grey beard and glittering eye,
Now wherefore stopp’st thou me?’ Samuel Taylor Coleridge, The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, 1798