Putting Earth’s Water Into Perspective

DISCUSSION: Many people living around the world are consistently humbled by Earth’s oceans and their massive coverage area.  However, what is not readily apparent to many people is the fact that Earth’s oceans are actually relatively shallower with respect to the size and mass of the planet Earth itself.  In fact, as shown to scale in the image above (courtesy of research scientists from both the United States Geologic Survey and the National Aeronautic and Space Administration), the total mass of all the surface and near-surface water throughout Earth’s rivers, lakes, and oceans put together would likely only amount to a ball with a radius of roughly about 700 kilometers.  As a point of reference, a radius of 700 kilometers is only about half the radius of Earth’s moon which is just goes to show how much water there actually is on Earth as compared to the mass of Earth’s inner/outer core and the landmasses which make up Earth’s continents and such. 

Having said everything above, it is important to still understand and recognize the critical importance and unique value of Earth’s water resources (i.e., both fresh-water and salt-water alike).  First and foremost because of the fact that the Earth has a limited supply of freshwater left on the planet and in order to keep Earth in a sustainable mode, mankind must utilize these resources in logically-sound ways so as to not overuse and/or waste unnecessary amounts of freshwater.

That being said, it is particularly interesting to truly recognize how much of a contrast there actually is between the amount of water on Earth and the relative size of the Earth itself.  Many people often perceive Earth’s oceans as a seemingly never-ending feature which has been found to cover a little over 2/3 of Earth’s surface. Nonetheless, it certainly puts things into real perspective when one realizes how little water there is in comparison to the rest of the planet.

To read the full story as posted by NASA, click on the following link:  https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap160911.html?utm_content=bufferd7451&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=buffer.

?To learn more about other interesting educational topics across meteorology and related sciences, click on the following link:                           https://www.globalweatherclimatecenter.com/education.

?© 2018 Meteorologist Jordan Rabinowitz