Scientists haven't conclusively found an explanation for what caused the blob. Some have suggested it's at the extreme end of a cyclical ocean weather pattern, while many say anthropogenic climate change has created the perfect conditions to concentrate intense, warm ocean water over the eastern Pacific. Though the name may conjure up a massive island of plastic jutting out of the sea, 94 percent of the plastics found in the patch are actually microplastics—tiny pieces of plastic smaller than a grain of rice and often impossible to see with the naked eye.
The garbage patch in the Pacific is the largest known on the planet, but several others can be found in other oceans five main ones are often reported. Debris tends to collect in swirling, circular currents called gyres. Experts say that cleaning up the patch entirely is likely impossible, but some are trying to at least mitigate the problem. Early ocean trials have so far shown mixed results. Billions of people around the world rely on fish as their primary source of protein and millions rely on it for their livelihood.
Many of the world's populations of wild fish harvested for humans to eat are now overfished, or over exploited beyond what the fish can replace through reproduction. The precise number is often debated by conservationists but the United Nations has estimated about a third of global fisheries are overfished. Whether a mile off a country's coast or far out to sea, overfishing affects much of the Pacific Ocean, although there have been encouraging signs that some fisheries are recovering.
The Pacific Ocean is also the site of much of the world's high seas fishing, both legal and illegal, a practice that has been criticized by conservationists as being unsustainable as well as unprofitable. Recent international discussions have raised the question of whether nations should unite to limit or even prohibit fishing on the high seas, which currently faces few restrictions. All rights reserved.
Here's a look at some key features of this great ocean, as well as issues affecting it. Share Tweet Email. Why it's so hard to treat pain in infants. This wild African cat has adapted to life in a big city.
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Additionally, it contains almost twice as much water as the world's second largest body of water, the Atlantic Ocean. The deepest place on Earth, known as Challenger Deep, extends to a depth of more than 11, meters 36, feet and is found in the Mariana Trench, in the Pacific.
Holding more than half of the Earth's open water supply, the Pacific Ocean was named by explorer Ferdinand Magellan in , who called this body of water "pacific," due to the calmness of the water at the time 'pacific' means peaceful.
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