May 31, 2013 — To understand the ocean we need to first explore it. You can't begin to understand the ocean if you don't even know what's "out there". The issue with the oceans is that they're vast (they cover more than 70 percent of the earth's surface), they're deep (average depth is about 2½ miles), they're dark (sunlight and its warmth only reach skin deep), the pressure is intense (1,500 atmospheres at greatest ocean depth), and for good measure they are incredibly dynamic (waves, swell, currents, etc). Indeed each of these things represents a challenge to exploration, but they are not insurmountable problems.
We have used everything from snorkels and scuba to submarines and sophisticated robots to slowly but steadily reveal the deepest darkest secrets of Neptune's realm. New imaging systems, sensors and powerful data processing and display techniques promise to deliver a view of the world beneath the sea with unprecedented accuracy and clarity. In my opinion, Jim's solo dive to the bottom of the Mariana Trench in Deep Sea Challenger wasn't a success just because of that one triumphant instance in time. It continues to be a success because it proves that no part of the global ocean is beyond our reach. We are truly at the threshold of an entirely new era of ocean exploration.
To date we've explored less than 5 percent of the world beneath the waves. There are precious few research vessels and funding for ocean exploration and science is becoming increasingly difficult to procure. It's unfortunate because in that 5 percent of the ocean we have explored we find the world's greatest mountain range (the 50,000 mile long Mid-Ocean Ridge), thousands of mountain peaks higher than those of the Alps, thousands of valleys many times deeper, wider, and longer than the Grand Canyon, undersea rivers, undersea lakes, and even undersea waterfalls (the greatest waterfall on earth is at the bottom of the Atlantic between Iceland and Greenland). In some of the most hostile parts of the sea, where we were sure we would find no life at all, we find robust communities of life that in some cases rival the tropical rainforests in diversity and density.
Watch the video and read the full story at the Huffington Post