Why Is The Continental Shelf One Of The Most Valuable Places On Earth?

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Why Is The Continental Shelf One Of The Most Valuable Places On Earth??

Why is the continental shelf one of the most valuable places on Earth? The continental shelf is one of the most valuable places on Earth because of oil. What is the name of the largest canyon on the planet? The largest canyon on the planet is called the Zhemchug Canyon.

Why is the continental shelf important?

Economic significance

The relatively accessible continental shelf is the best understood part of the ocean floor. Most commercial exploitation from the sea such as metallic ore non-metallic ore and hydrocarbon extraction takes place on the continental shelf.

Why is the continental shelf the most biologically rich part of the ocean?

Continental shelves only make up about 6% of the ocean’s surface area but they are biologically one of the richest parts of the ocean their shallow depth prevents nutrients from sinking out and their proximity to the coast provides significant nutrient input.

Why are continental margins the sites of greatest sedimentation?

The continental margin at this site is subject to relatively low wave and current energy and so the river filled up most of the adjacent continental shelf with a delta and typically dumps over 200 million tons of sediment each year directly at the top of the continental slope.

Which part of the ocean floor is most useful to the man?

The part of ocean floor that is most useful to the man is Continental Shelf. A continental shelf can be defined as a part of continent that is submerged in shallow water.

Why are continental shelves Good fishing areas?

Continental shelves are shallower in relation to deep sea this enables sunlight to penetrate through water. Thus with sunlight marine flora grows abundantly for instance grass sea weds and planktons. Thus continental shelves become good feeding grounds for fishes.

What is the importance of continental shelf Class 9?

Continental shelves are one of the richest fishing grounds in the world. Because they are shallow enough for the sunlight to penetrate through the water promoting the abundant growth of plankton seaweeds and grass. Hence these zones become the richest fishing grounds in the world.

What is the most biologically rich area of the continental margin?

continental shelf
The continental shelf is the shallowest part of the continental margin. Although they only make up 8% of the Earth’s ocean surface area they are the most biologically rich part of the ocean containing the majority of the sea life.

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Which region is considered to be the most biologically rich?

Two of the Most Diverse Ecosystems on Earth

Species richness is greatest in tropical ecosystems. Tropical rain forests on land and coral reefs in marine systems are among the most biologically diverse ecosystems on Earth and have become the focus of popular attention.

What is the most biological rich part of the ocean?

The pelagic zone contains everything except for the coast and the sea floor and is divided into five parts. The epipelagic zone extends from the surface to 200m down. It receives plenty of sunlight and therefore contains the most biodiversity in the ocean.

Where can most of the world’s active continental margins be found?

The West Coast of North America and South America are active margins. Active continental margins are typically narrow from coast to shelf break with steep descents into trenches.

What separates the continental shelf from the continental slope?

The Blake Plateau off the southeastern United States and the continental borderland off southern California are examples of continental slopes separated from continental shelves by plateaus of intermediate depth. Slopes off mountainous coastlines and narrow shelves often have outcrops of rock.

Where are continental rise found?

The continental rise is a low-relief zone of accumulated sediments that lies between the continental slope and the abyssal plain. It is a major part of the continental margin covering around 10% of the ocean floor.

Which part of the ocean floor is most useful to the man I continental shelf II continental slope III abyssal plains IV marine deeps?

The correct answer is (i) Continent shelf. Continental shelf is a part of the ocean floor which is of great importance to man.

Why the continental slope is considered to be the boundary of continents?

Answer : The continental slope is the transitional region connecting the continental shelf and the ocean basin. … The continental crust (30km) is thicker than oceanic crust (7-10km) thus continental slope is considered to be the boundary of continents.

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Which landform is useful for deep sea research?

Answer b: Trenches abyssal plains etc are useful for deep sea research. On the ocean-bed there are some landforms which are deep narrow and steep. They are called marine deeps or trenches. Generally the shallower ones are called marine deeps while deeper ones and extending for longer distance are called trenches.

Why continental shelves are so biologically productive?

The topography of continental shelves are typically the same as the coastal areas they border. … Despite their small size in both areal extent and volume the waters over continental shelves are usually rich in nutrients which in turn make them among the most biologically productive areas of the oceans.

How is the continental shelf?

The term “continental shelf” is used by geologists generally to mean that part of the continental margin which is between the shoreline and the shelf break or where there is no noticeable slope between the shoreline and the point where the depth of the superjacent water is approximately between 100 and 200 metres.

What is continental shelf and what is the extent of it?

A continental shelf typically extends from the coast to depths of 100–200 metres (330–660 feet). It is gently inclined seaward at an average slope of about 0.1°. In nearly all instances it ends at its seaward edge with an abrupt drop called the shelf break.

What is the economic importance of continental shelf?

The distribution of the continental shelf is significant since it is the nursery ground for living resources and an important source of minerals and offshore petroleum. The continental shelf in itself however extensive does not necessitate the presence of resources to the coastal state.

What is the continental shelf quizlet?

Continental shelf. a gently sloping shallow area of the ocean floor that extends outward from the edge of a continent.

Where is the continental shelf in Australia?

Two areas of Australia’s extended continental shelf extend south of 60 degrees South into the Antarctic Treaty area. The largest of these areas is the extended continental shelf arising from the Territory of Heard Island and McDonald Islands between Australia and South Africa.

Is the continental shelf flat?

The continental shelf is a gently sloping and relatively flat extension of a continent that is covered by the oceans. … The average width of the shelf is 43 mi (70 km) and varies from tens of meters to approximately 800 mi (1 300 km) depending on location.

Would you expect the continental shelf near a convergent plate to be wide or narrow?

Continental shelves near convergent plates tend to be narrow because these boundaries tend to create trenches with steep sides. … Even steeper when located near a convergent boundary because of the presence of trenches. Continental rise. a gently sloping surface at the base of the continental slope where sand deposits.

Which is closest to the continental margin?

continental shelf

The part of the continental margin closest to land is called the continental shelf. The continental shelf is the flat shallow sloping area we are…

What is the outer edge of the continental shelf?

Colombia 2012). Article 76(1) provides that the continental shelf extends to “the outer edge of the continental margin or to a distance of 200 nautical miles ” whichever is further.

Why do those regions whether tropical desert or temperate that include high mountains tend to be most biologically diverse?

2.3-1. Why do those regions whether tropical desert or temperate that include high mountains tend to be the most biologically diverse? … Greater rainfall higher average temperatures and higher levels of biological activity all contribute to higher rates of nutrient depletion in tropical rain forest soils.

Where is the largest percentage of the world ocean found?

Covering approximately 63 million square miles and containing more than half of the free water on Earth the Pacific is by far the largest of the world’s ocean basins. All of the world’s continents could fit into the Pacific basin. The Pacific is the oldest of the existing ocean basins.

Why is it that our country has one of the richest marine resources in the world?

The Philippines forms an ocean region that has long been recognized as the world’s center of marine biodiversity. With the Malay archipelago Papua New Guinea and Australia the country forms the ‘Coral Triangle ’ so-called because of the abundance of its coral reef life.

Where is greatest concentration of marine biodiversity on planet Earth?

A new study finds that sea surface temperature as well as the size and variety of habitats are the main factors responsible for the proliferation of marine life in the Coral Triangle – the most biologically diverse marine region in the world.

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What is the role of ocean currents in the world?

By moving heat from the equator toward the poles ocean currents play an important role in controlling the climate. Ocean currents are also critically important to sea life. They carry nutrients and food to organisms that live permanently attached in one place and carry reproductive cells and ocean life to new places.

What is an active continental shelf?

An active continental margin is found on the leading edge of the continent where it is crashing into an oceanic plate. … Because of the mountainous terrain most of the rivers are fairly short and the continental shelf is narrow to non-existent dropping off quickly into the depths of the subduction trench.

What is the most prominent feature on active continental margins?

Active margins are marked by earthquakes volcanoes and mountain belts. Unlike passive margins they lack a continental rise and abyssal plain. Instead the continental slope ends in an oceanic trench and beyond the trench the topography is hilly and irregular often dotted with rugged volcanic seamounts.

What makes up the continental margin?

The continental margins consist of three portions: (1) the continental shelf which has shallow water depths rarely deeper than 650 ft) and extends seaward from the shoreline to distances ranging from 12.3 miles to 249 miles (2) the continental slope where the bottom drops off to depths of up to 3.1 miles and (3) the …

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