Imagine yourself standing on a beach, looking out over the ocean, waves crashing against the shore, blue as far as your eyes can see. Let it really sink in, the sheer scope and size of it all. Now, ask yourself, "How big is it? How big is the ocean?"
想像站在沙灘上 面向整片海洋 白浪拍打著海岸 眼前是無盡的藍 讓我們 沉浸在這無邊遼闊 現在,想想看 這到底有多大? 海洋究竟有多大?
First thing, we need to understand that there really is only one ocean, consisting of five component basins that we call the Pacific, the Atlantic, the Indian, the Arctic, and the Southern. Each of these five, while generally referred to as oceans in and of themselves, are really and truly a part of a single, massive body of water, one ocean, which defines the very face of planet Earth.
首先,我們必須了解 實際上,海洋只有一個 是由五個大洋盆地所組成 分別為:太平洋 大西洋 印度洋 北極海 南冰洋 這五大洋中 通常我們就通稱為海洋 五大洋本身 其實是屬於 一個巨大的水體 一個海洋 就是地球表面的特徵
The ocean covers roughly 71% of our planet's surface, some 360 million square kilometers, an area in excess of the size of 36 USAs. It’s such a vast spread, when viewed from space, the ocean is, by far, the dominant feature of our planet.
地球表面約 71% 由海洋所覆蓋 相當於 3 億 6 千萬平方公尺 也就是 36 個美國的大小 海洋相當地廣闊 若從太空中俯視 目前為止,海洋是地球的主要特徵
Speaking of space, the ocean currently holds over 1.3 billion— that’s billion with a “b”— cubic kilometers of water. Put another way, that’s enough water to immerse the entire United States under a body of salt water over 132 kilometers tall— a height well beyond the reach of the highest clouds and extending deep into the upper atmosphere. With all that volume, the ocean represents 97% of Earth’s total water content.
講到這裡 海洋中,水的體積超過 13 億 就是後面要加 9 個零的億 立方公尺 也就是說 這些水可以將 整個美國浸泡在 超過 132 公里高 的鹽水裡頭 這個高度可以穿破雲層 直達大氣層的最外層 從體積而論 地球上的水 有 97% 是海水
On top of all that, the ocean contains upwards of 99% of the world’s biosphere, that is, the spaces and places where life exists. Now let that sink in for a second. The immediate world as we know it, indeed the totality of all the living space encompassed by the continents themselves, all of that represents only 1% of the biosphere— 1%! The ocean is everything else. So, the ocean is physically massive. It's importance to life is practically unparalleled.
除此之外 海洋還佔有世界上高達 99% 若看生物圈 生物圈就是物種能夠生存的空間 大部份也是浸在海洋裡 我們所知的世界 物種生存環境的總和 包含七大洲的陸地 只佔了生物圈的 1% 1%! 其他全都是海洋 所以海洋不但在體積上很巨大 對於生命的重要性也無法比擬
It also happens to hold the greatest geological features of our planet. Quickly, here are four of the most notable. The ocean contains the world's largest mountain range, the mid-ocean ridge. At roughly 65,000 kilometers long, this underwater range is some 10 times longer than the longest mountain chain found purely on dry land— the Andes. Beneath the Denmark Strait exists the world’s largest waterfall. This massive cataract carries roughly 116 times more water per second over its edge than the Congo River’s Inga Falls, the largest waterfall by volume on land. The world's tallest mountain is actually found in the ocean, hiding in plain sight. While 4,200 meters of Hawaii’s Mauna Kea sit above sea level, its sides plummet beneath the waves for another 5,800 meters. From its snow-covered top to it’s silt-covered bottom, then, this Hawaiian mountain is roughly 10,000 meters in height, dwarfing tiny Everest’s paltry peak by well over a kilometer. And, since we’re picking on poor Everest, let's consider the world's deepest canyon, the Challenger Deep: existing 11 kilometers below the ocean's surface, some six times deeper than the Grand Canyon. That's deep enough to sink Mount Everest into and still have over 2.1 kilometers of water sitting atop its newly submerged peak. Put another way, the depth of the Challenger Deep is roughly the same height that commercial airliners travel.
此外,它也佔有了 我們星球上最壯觀的地理景象 其中四個最值得關注的景象 世界最大的山脈位於海洋中 中洋脊 大約 6 萬 5 千公里長 這水底下的山脈約是 水平面上最大的山脈 安地斯山脈的 10 倍 丹麥海峽之下存在著 世界上最大的瀑布 這個巨大的瀑布每秒鐘 通過崖邊的水流量 約是剛果的英加瀑布的 116 倍 英加瀑布的水流量是陸地上大的 世界上最高的山也在海洋裡 藏於海平面之下 夏威夷的冒納凱阿火山 海平面上是4200公尺高 海平面之下 還有另外的 5800 公尺 從積滿雪的山頂 到淤泥覆蓋的山腳 這座位於夏威夷的山高約 1 萬公尺 足足高過珠穆朗瑪峰 1000 公尺之多 既然提到了可憐的珠穆朗瑪峰 我們再來看看世界上最深的峽谷 挑戰者深淵 深達海平面下 11 公里 比起大峽谷還要深 6 倍 足以在容納整座珠穆朗瑪峰後 在其山峰上再裝 2.1 公里深的水 這樣說好了 挑戰者深淵的深度 相當於 商用飛機飛行的高度
So, pretty much however you choose to slice it, the ocean is capital B, capital I, capital G— BIG! It defines our planet, home to the greatest geological features, comprises the largest living space, and accordingly, is home to the greatest numbers and forms of life on Earth. It is practically incomprehensible in scope.
因此,你差不多可以這樣說 海洋就是:超 級 大 超級大! 海洋是地球的特色 也藏有壯麗的地質景觀 以及最大的生存空間 因此,它是地球上生物數量最多 也是最多種生物的家 在規模上難以比擬
But it is not so big, so vast, so extraordinary as to be untouchable. In fact, with roughly 50% of the world's population living within 100 kilometers of a coastline, and with most of the remainder living close enough to lakes, rivers, or swamps, all of which ultimately lead to the ocean, virtually every single person on the planet has the opportunity to influence the general health and nature of the world ocean.
但它也不是這麼大 這麼廣闊 那麼特別 那麼遙不可及 事實上,世界上約 50% 的人口 居住於海岸線 100 公里之內 另外 50% 中的多數人 居住在最終都與海洋相連的 湖泊、河流、或沼澤處附近 事實上,在地球上每一個人 都有機會去影響 海洋的狀況
Evidence of human influence is seen in every part of the ocean, no matter how deep, no matter how distant. The ocean defines our planet, but, in a very real sense, we define the ocean.
人類對海洋影響的證據 在海洋的每個角落都可見到 無論多深 或者距離多遠 海洋形塑我們的星球 但實際上 我們的所為,也影響著海洋