Ocean Exploration Facts
The ocean exploration facts in this section provide short answers to common or intriguing ocean questions. The questions are organized in a series of categories; click on a category to learn more about these topics.
For many ocean exploration facts, content has been repurposed from essays posted elsewhere on the website; to access the original content, click on links available on individual ocean fact pages.
Tiny, microskeletal structures embedded in an octocoral's soft tissue that provide the animal support and protection.
The Earth’s greatest migration and a major influencer on ocean and planetary systems.
Habitat connectivity refers to how and to what degree distinct patches of habitat are connected, which can influence the distribution, genetic diversity, and health of animal and plant populations.
An “exclusive economic zone,” or “EEZ” is an area of the ocean, generally extending 200 nautical miles (230 miles) beyond a nation's territorial sea, within which a coastal nation has jurisdiction over both living and nonliving resources.
Corals are animals.
Upwelling occurs when winds push surface water away from the shore and deeper water rises to fill the gap.
Glass sponges have skeletons made of silica, which is the same material used to make glass, but glass sponges are not glass, per se.
Ocean acidification refers to a reduction in the pH of ocean water, caused primarily by uptake of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, but also by other chemical additions or subtractions from the ocean.
Squat lobsters look like lobsters, but they are actually more closely related to hermit crabs.
A narwhal is a medium-sized, toothed whale that is only found in Arctic waters.
Hydrography is the science of measuring and describing the physical features of bodies of water.
Living organisms may produce their own light via the processes of bioluminescence, fluorescence, or phosphorescence.