The Oceans
Scientific American Presents

Digital subscribers-sign in for full access

Cover; The Oceans; by Staff Editor; 1 Page(s)

Table of Contents; The Oceans; by Staff Editor; 2 Page(s)

Masthead; The Oceans; by Staff Editor; 1 Page(s)

Celebrating the Sea; The Oceans; by Staff Editors; 1 Page(s)

When the United Nations declared 1998 as the International Year of the Ocean, we thought it would be the ideal time to take our readers, at least vicariously, on the ultimate ocean cruise.

Atlantic Ocean; The Oceans; by Staff Editor; 2 Page(s)

The Atlantic Ocean is named for Atlas, who according to Homeric myth held heaven up with great pillars that rose from the sea somewhere beyond the western horizon.

Pacific Ocean; The Oceans; by Staff Editor; 2 Page(s)

Named by Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan, who believed it to be free of violent storms, the Pacific Ocean is not, in fact, so pacific.

Indian Ocean; The Oceans; by Staff Editor; 2 Page(s)

Unlike the Atlantic or Pacific, the Indian Ocean is completely enclosed on the northern side, a configuration that gives rise to drastic seasonal changes in the winds and currents.

Polar Oceans; The Oceans; by Staff Editor; 2 Page(s)

The ice-covered Arctic was first recognized to be a deep basin only a century ago, and it remains today the most enigmatic ocean on the earth.

The Origins of Water on Earth; The Oceans; by Kasting; 6 Page(s)

Evidence is mounting that other planets hosted oceans at one time, but only Earth has maintained its watery endowment

Pacific Ocean: Bikini's Nuclear Ghosts; The Oceans; by Zorpette; 4 Page(s)

The atoll survived some of the worst destruction that humankind has ever dished out to become a lush paradise once again

The Rising Seas; The Oceans; by Schneider; 8 Page(s)

Although some voice concern that global warming will lead to a meltdown of polar ice, flooding coastlines everywhere, the true threat remains difficult to gauge

Arctic Ocean: Forty Days in the Belly of the Beast; The Oceans; by Coakley; 2 Page(s)

Or, a marine geologist's account of life on board a U.S. Navy nuclear attack submarine under the Arctic ice

The Oceans and Weather; The Oceans; by Webster, Curry; 6 Page(s)

The sea is as important as the atmosphere in controlling the planet's weather

Atlantic Ocean: Ten Days under the Sea; The Oceans; by Edmunds; 4 Page(s)

Living underwater in the world's only habitat devoted to science, six aquanauts studied juvenile corals and fought off "the funk"

Enriching the Sea to Death; The Oceans; by Nixon, sidebar by Schmiedeskamp; 6 Page(s)

An excess of nutrients flowing from the land into the sea has created serious environmental problems in many coastal waters. Only recently have measures been taken to forestall the worst effects

Pacific Ocean: Why Are Reef Fish So Colorful?; The Oceans; by Marshall; 4 Page(s)

Bright patterns on reef fish are key to astoundingly complex strategies to attract mates, repel rivals and hide from predators

The World's Imperiled Fish; The Oceans; by Safina; 6 Page(s)

Wild fish often cannot withstand the onslaught of modern industrial fishing. The collapse of fisheries in many regions shows the danger plainly

The Promise and Perils of Aquaculture; The Oceans; by Boyd, Clay, McKinsey, Staff Editor; 6 Page(s)

Whether fish farming helps or hurts wild populations remains an open question

Indian Ocean: Fishing the "Zone" in Sri Lanka; The Oceans; by Nonis; 2 Page(s)

Sri Lanka depends on data to protect its rich coastal fisheries, but something stronger is needed to keep the poachers at bay

Indian Ocean: Sharks Mean Business; The Oceans; by Anderson; 2 Page(s)

Throughout the tropics, the future of reef sharks hangs in the balance as the interests of tourism and those of commercial fishing meet head-on

Life in the Ocean; The Oceans; by Nybakken, Webster; 13 Page(s)

The richest realm on the earth remains largely mysterious

Atlantic Ocean: The Atlantic's Wandering Turtles; The Oceans; by Dellinger; 4 Page(s)

Newborn loggerhead turtles embark on a transoceanic crossing of thousands of kilometers. Researchers are trying to determine where they go and how they survive in the featureless blue expanse

The Mineral Wealth of the Bismarck Sea; The Oceans; by Binns, Dekker; 6 Page(s)

Discoveries of valuable minerals on the floor of the southwestern Pacific have renewed interest in deep-sea mining. But can metallic ores be recovered there without endangering marine ecosystems?

Pacific Ocean: An Island is Born; The Oceans; by Malahoff; 2 Page(s)

Loihi, an undersea volcano south of the big island of Hawaii, offers geologists a fascinating glimpse of an "island in the womb"

The Evolution of Ocean Law; The Oceans; by Jacobson, Rieser; 6 Page(s)

In fits and starts, the international law of the sea has evolved to keep pace with the world's changing political, economic and environmental concerns

Exploring the Ocean Planet; The Oceans; by Menduno; 6 Page(s)

In this Year of the Ocean, the options range from visiting a maritime museum or aquarium to swimming with sharks, sleeping in an underwater hotel and visiting the Titanic