Friday, March 29

Researchers Start Mapping “Forgotten Frontier” of Ocean Floor; Will Finish by 2030

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It seems remarkable in an age when we can send space vehicles to Mars that we still know so little about much of our own planet, particularly about the floors of the oceans. Indeed, 93 percent of the oceans in the world with depths of at least 650 feet have never been charted. (That’s 73 million square miles, if anyone’s counting.) But now that’s about to change.

A group of scientists just announced that they plan to map the ocean floor by 2030, using data from underwater drones, merchant ships, explorers and other sources. All the data will be pulled together at four oceanographic centers around the world and collated at Britain’s National Oceanography Center. It plans to issue its first bathymetric map by the end of this year and update it annually.

The idea is that this information will shed light on the movement of waves, tsunamis and fish, as well as help with navigation and uncover mineral deposits. It will cost about $3 billion, and is supported by the Nippon Foundation in Japan and GEBCO, a nonprofit association of experts involved in charting the ocean floor. In the United States, NOAA also is supporting the effort.

“We know more about the surface of the Moon and Mars than our own backyard,” says Satinder Biondra, director of the project, called Seabed 2030. “This in the 21stcentury is something that we are working on to correct. For too long now we have treated our own oceans as a forgotten frontier.”  For more:

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-oceans-exploration/mappers-look-to-chart-worlds-ocean-floor-by-2030-idUSKCN1IN1VV

 

 

 

 

 

 

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