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General Knowledge - Facts of Hydrosphere
Hydrosphere is the combined name (for the study purpose) given to all the water bodies found on the Earth’s surface, for example, Oceans, Rivers, Lakes, etc.
About 71% of the Earth’s surface is covered by water and rest is covered by landmass.
About 97.5% (of total hydrosphere) is saline water and rest 2.5% is fresh water.
About 68.7% of the fresh water is available in the form of permanent snow found in the regions of Arctic, Antarctic, and other mountain glaciers.
About 29.9% fresh water is available in the form of (fresh) groundwater.
Only about 0.26% fresh water is easily accessible for the use, available in the form of rivers, lakes, reservoirs, etc.
Oceans
There are five Oceans namely −
Pacific Ocean
Atlantic Ocean
Indian Ocean
Arctic Ocean &
Southern Ocean
The following table describes the major facts of all the five Oceans −
| Ocean | Area (sq. km) | % of Total | Avg. Depth (in meter) | Deepest Point |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pacific Ocean | 168,723,000 | 46.6 | 3,970 | Mariana Trench (10,994 m deep) |
| Atlantic Ocean | 85,133,000 | 23.5 | 3,646 | Puerto Rico Trench (8,648 m) |
| Indian Ocean | 70,560,000 | 19.5 | 3,741 | Diamantina Trench (8,047 m) Sunda Trench (7,725 m) |
| Arctic Ocean | 15,558,000 | 15,558,000 | 1,205 | Eurasian Basin (5,450 m) |
| Southern Ocean | 21,960,000 | 6.1 | 3,270 | South Sandwich Trench (7,236 m) |
