Are there seas without shores? Truly, the Sargasso Sea is one continuous phenomenon called a sea without shores.
Large expanses of the Atlantic Ocean, closer to the mainland North America, between 20 and 40 gr. With. w. have the shape of a giant ellipse of light green color. This is a one-of-a-kind miracle of nature - the Sargasso Sea, the shores of which are not land, as usual, but large ocean currents: in the west and north - the North Atlantic, in the east - the Canary Sea, in the south - the Trade Wind, moving in a circular clockwise direction.
Acting as a kind of watersheds or dams, currents prevent surface water Sargasso Sea mix with the colder waters of the North Atlantic. But unlike ordinary land shores that limit the seas, these water “shores”, due to the inconstancy sea currents V different times years undergo significant movements, that is, they “travel.” Therefore, the area of the Sargasso Sea varies from 8.5 to 4 million square meters. km.
This led to the accumulation of plants called Sargassum algae on the surface of the ocean. These large, up to two meters, yellow-brown plants belong to brown algae, but, unlike their relatives, they are able to live and reproduce afloat, without attaching to anything. The first Portuguese sailors called them "sargasso" because the air bubbles that allow the algae to move and float are similar to a grape variety common in Portugal.
The Sargasso Sea is a unique world inhabited by many species of worms, mollusks, crabs and fish. Very peculiar water striders live there. Some of them are not found anywhere else. Many of these inhabitants of the open ocean are very poor swimmers or do not know how to swim at all. But this is not a mandatory requirement for life. Why swim when there are thickets all around that you can walk through?
The unusual nature of the Sargasso Sea has given rise to many legends. The most tenacious one talks about the existence of such accumulations of algae there that ships get stuck in them and die. The legend is still repeated from time to time, despite the fact that sailors never complain about the occurrence of any complications when crossing the sea.
However, sailing ships of past centuries actually got stuck in the center of the Sargasso Sea. But not because of the algae, but because of the eternal calms. Sometimes I had to stand for an infinitely long time. Galleon crews were forced to throw riding horses overboard to save supplies drinking water. Unlucky horses could survive for months by staying afloat and eating algae. Sailors from passing ships often saw strange creatures floundering in a tangle of algae with maddened horse snoring, rotting alive under the scorching sun. That is why the Sargasso Sea in past centuries was also called “horse latitudes”.
Sargasso Sea
Without shores and without wind
Sargasso is the most mysterious of all seas: it has neither shores nor a permanent area, but the water transparency of this sea without shores is one of the highest in the world. In the area of the Sargasso Sea, the bottom is visible down to 60 m depth! And there is a lot to see in this area of the Atlantic Ocean, bounded by four circular ocean currents - the Gulf Stream, North Atlantic, Canary and North Trade Winds.
The discovery of the Sargasso Sea is credited to Christopher Columbus himself, who described in detail the places where he and his crew were stranded for two long weeks in the heat of September 1492. Columbus left a colorful account of this deceptively calm region of the Bermuda Triangle, where the sailors gradually became overcome by despair at the sight of... how the sails drooped helplessly. Rowing in this place is not possible due to a thick layer of algae wrapping around the oars.
Due to the location of the Sargasso Sea in an area of constantly elevated atmospheric pressure The weather here is mostly calm. However, the lack of wind is not always a plus. Sailing ships who found themselves in a “sea without shores” found themselves immobilized for many weeks, if not months. The team, which was quickly running out of food supplies and fresh water, was dying. Especially in the Sargasso Sea area, horses transported from Europe to America died a lot. The corpses of unfortunate animals were thrown into the water, which is why the sea received the nickname “horse latitudes” in sailor’s jargon.
In the calm and warm waters of the Sargasso Sea, the temperature of which never drops below 18 ° C, life flourishes: it is here that the largest reserves of floating brown algae- sargassum, which move freely in the water column due to the presence of small air bubbles in them.
Sargassy is a real hospitable home for many fish, sea turtles, mollusks, sea anemones and crustaceans. There are especially many Atlantic eels here, which annually gather in huge numbers in the warm waters of the sea to give rise to a new life. Eels strive to get here from the rivers of America and Europe, sometimes overcoming completely unimaginable distances, up to 6000 km!
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Take a look at physical card world: the expanses of the Atlantic Ocean near the North American mainland in the region of 20 and 40 degrees northern latitude form a large oval shape of light green color. Here it is, a real miracle of nature - the Sargasso Sea. Its shores are not land, as is usually the case, but huge oceanic river currents: in the East - the Canary, in the north and west - the North Atlantic, and in the south - the Trade Wind. These currents move in a circular clockwise direction.
The currents act as dams or watersheds and prevent the waters of the Sargasso Sea from mixing with the cold waters of the North Atlantic. The difference between these shores and land shores is that they undergo movements, or “travel,” throughout the year. Because of this, the sea area can vary from 8 to 4 million square meters. km.
Another distinctive feature The Sargasso Sea contains a huge amount of floating seaweed, per 1 sq. km. its surface contains more than two tons! Christopher Columbus discovered this sea in 1492, he gave it the name “algae jar.” An interesting fact is that all the algae that live there belong to the same species. Portuguese navigators gave them the name “sargasso” because the air bubbles with which the algae float on the surface of the water and move are similar to a grape variety that is common in Portugal.
For a long time oceanographers could not decide how the algae appeared here. A recent version was that they are brought by eddies from Cuba, the Bahamas and Antilles, or from the Gulf Coast. But in fact it turned out that they are born, live and die in this sea. When algae die, the bubbles that support them burst and the plants sink to the ocean floor.
Sargasso algae is inhabited by a wide variety of living creatures: crabs, numerous species of fish, especially mackerel, and shrimp.
Surface water The seas contain more than 69 species of fauna and flora. They are poor in plankton, and because of this they are transparent. The water in the Sargasso Sea is saltier than the surrounding ocean water. It has a bright blue color and is the most transparent on our planet. The water temperature is always higher than in ocean waters and varies between 20-23 degrees in January, and 21-27°C in July. This temperature affects the rapid and vigorous development of algae and other microorganisms.
The depth of the Sargasso Sea is 4-7 km. The typical weather is calm, due to the fact that the sea is located in an area with high atmospheric pressure. Previously, ships sank in these places, along with the animals they transported, so the bottom of the sea stores many human and animal corpses.
A special feature of the Sargasso Sea is that it serves as a cradle for freshwater eel fish. They come here in the summer from the rivers of America and Europe to spawn, die after finishing, and their young, using their instincts and landmarks, covering enormous distances, return exactly to where their parents lived. And then, after 8-9 years, they return to the Sargasso Sea again, spawn and die.
The Sargasso Sea is also called the “ladies' Sea” due to the prevalence of calm weather. Only at first glance this sea is calm. In 1970, Soviet oceanographers discovered strong upward movements of water from the depths here, similar to vortices. Scientists have found that they affect the decrease and increase in water temperature. The sea itself greatly influences the climate of the northern hemisphere of our world.
The Sargasso Sea is an unusual sea, unlike other seas on our planet. It has no earthly shores. This is an area of the Atlantic Ocean with stagnant water, surrounded on all sides by currents: in the east - the Canary, in the south - the Trade Wind, and in the northwest - the North Atlantic.
Here are some amazing facts about the Sargasso Sea: about its features, Sargassy algae and inhabitants.
They circle, moving only clockwise around the waters of the Sargasso Sea, and do not allow them to connect with the very cold waters of the North Atlantic Ocean, so the water temperature in the Sargasso Sea never drops below +18 degrees. In summer, the temperature on the water surface can reach +28 degrees. If in other seas the coastal boundaries are unchanged, then in the Sargasso Sea they change, and the area of the sea itself changes accordingly (from 4 to 8 million square kilometers).
Why does the Sargasso Sea have such a name? In 1492, Christopher Columbus, for the first time in the history of mankind, with his expedition found himself in this sea, in stagnant waters, completely covered with algae, on which some berries could be seen. To be fair, it should be noted that there is not always so much vegetation during the year, but apparently Columbus was unlucky. He later said that he had the feeling that he was in a jar of seaweed. The fruits on the algae reminded the sailors very much of the wild grapes from their native places, which were called “salgaso”, from which the algae were called sargassum, and the sea itself was called Sargasso.
The Sargasso Sea is quite deep (6 to 7 km). The water in it is very salty and at all times was amazingly clean and transparent (up to 60 m). However, in last years Ships sailing in the Atlantic Ocean throw out huge amounts of garbage. Ocean currents they take it down to a certain part of the Sargasso Sea, so that now there is a man-made floating island of garbage on the sea.
Scientists initially thought that the sargassum was carried here by the current, but later it turned out that they grow on the bottom of the sea, then break off and float on the surface of the water surface. When their lifespan comes to an end, they sink to the bottom and rot.
Many marine inhabitants have chosen sargassum “thickets” as their home. Here you can see various crabs, turtles, pipefish, mackerel, shrimp, corals and others. Obviously, the most bizarre representative of the depths of the Sargasso Sea is the clown sea. It clings to the sargassum with fins that look like twisted arms. It must be said that the clown is a good master of camouflage; he disguises himself as the algae surrounding him. Hiding in them, a clown fish can grab and devour prey as big as itself. And if he gets scared, he begins to quickly swallow water and swells up to a spherical state.
But the most famous representative of the animal world of these waters is european eel. It lives quietly for several years in fresh European waters, and when it reaches adulthood, along with external changes, the eel develops irresistible desire fall into the waters of the Sargasso Sea. Gathering in groups, eels begin to move towards their target at night. Sometimes, moving from body of water to body of water, they end up in shallow water overgrown with grass. It would seem a hopeless situation, but the desire to get into salt water is so strong that the fish literally crawls through these areas. In three months, eels can travel almost six thousand kilometers from Europe. And here she is desired salty water Sargasso Sea! There they descend to a depth of more than a kilometer, lay eggs and die. The eggs hatch into fry that rise to the surface and are picked up warm waters Gulf Stream and set off on a long journey to Europe. Then they grow up, and the cycle repeats again.
There have always been many legends around the Sargasso Sea and scary stories. Some of them are related to sargassum. Sailors said that there could be so much algae that the ship became entangled in it and could not move. In fact, algae does not interfere with the movement of the ship, although it can cover almost the entire surface of the water.
Sailboats actually often died here, but because of the calm. The ship could stand motionless for many days, supplies of water and provisions ran out, and people died. Previously, thoroughbred horses were transported along this route; often the ship with the animals found itself in a calm state. To save the remaining water, the horses were thrown overboard. Since then, these places have also been called “horse latitudes.” They say that sailors of ships passing here at night see ghosts of horses and hear their plaintive neighing.
At all times, it is believed that the Sargasso Sea is a graveyard of ships. Yes, there are wrecks here, but there are also many tales of untold riches and treasure chests at the bottom of this fantastic sea.
In ancient times, these waters were called cursed. The proximity of the notorious Bermuda Islands, or more precisely, the Bermuda Triangle, located on the eastern part of the Sargasso Sea, also leaves its mark. Here, for unknown reasons, many people died, many schooners, warships, and airplanes disappeared. Problems arose even with ultra-modern airliners equipped with powerful radio communications. In the 20th century, three military American aircraft flew over these places, communication with them was interrupted, and the planes disappeared. They were never found.
Skeptics try to explain such cases bad weather, hurricane, fog or something else, but no one can answer the question: why no one has ever discovered even a small piece of debris from the missing ship.
Abstract extracurricular activities“Why is the Sargasso Sea without shores?”
Author: Dyatlova Lyubov Mikhailovna, teacher additional education MBU DO DDT Nevinnomyssk.
Description. This material can be used in elementary school classes on the environment. It may also be useful and interesting for teachers of additional education for classes in biological and environmental associations of institutions of additional education.
Goals: consolidate knowledge about bodies of water, in particular the seas; form an idea of the Sargasso Sea.
Tasks: introduce the history of discovery and features of the Sargasso Sea; instill curiosity and interest in nature.
Guys, let's remember the reservoirs you know. Almost all of you named the river and the sea. What is the sea? The sea is a part of the ocean separated by land. That is, any sea has a shore.
Why then do they say that the Sargasso Sea is a sea “without shores”? Are there such seas? Regular ones - no. And Sargasso is the only exception in the world.
This discovery was made by the famous navigator Christopher Columbus in September 1492 during his first voyage across the Atlantic Ocean.
A team of almost 100 people went on an expedition on three ships. The main one is the carrack "Santa Maria" and two caravels: "Nina" and "Pinta".
This is what Columbus himself wrote about what he saw in the ocean expanses in his diary: “We began to notice many tufts in the water green grass. And, as one could judge by its appearance, this grass had only recently been torn from the ground.”
But the wind soon died down, and the speed of the caravels dropped. And the “herbs” in sea water it became more and more. On September 23, 1492, Columbus made the following entry in his diary: “Since the sea was calm and smooth, people began to grumble, saying that the sea here was strange, and the winds would never blow to help them return to Spain.”
It was also surprising that the compass needle stopped pointing to the North Star, having shifted several degrees to the northwest.
Still, Columbus's journey ended successfully. He discovered not only an amazing sea, but already in October of the same year he landed on the Bahamas, Cuba, Haiti...
Why did the Sargasso Sea get this name? Thanks to a large number algae covering the surface of the sea. To the Portuguese sailors they seemed similar in appearance to grapes, and so they began to call this place the Grape or Sargasso Sea. There is another version: the name comes from the Spanish word “sargazo”, which means “focus”.
Since those long ago mysterious sea notoriety quickly began to grow. For many centuries, the Sargasso Sea has caused fear among sailors. There are many legends about how ships got entangled in seaweed and died, and the whirlpool carried sailors to the seabed. Mysterious calms, mysterious fogs, thick algae haunt the human imagination.
Even today, the Sargasso Sea is full of mysteries: the “sea of ghosts” and the “sea of debris” inspires superstitious fear among sailors. The fact is that part of its water area is the no less mysterious Bermuda Triangle, which also gave rise to many rumors.
With the development of navigation, the secrets associated with the Sargasso Sea became fewer. It would be more correct to call its shores boundaries. Their difference from land animals is that they undergo movements, or “travel,” throughout the year. Because of this, the area of the sea can vary from 8 to 4 million square kilometers. The boundaries are formed by currents: in the west it is the Gulf Stream, in the north – the North Atlantic, in the east – the Canary, in the south – the Trade Wind. Not only currents, but the entire body of water, along with algae and other marine life, rotate slowly clockwise.
There is also an explanation for why Columbus’s compass deviated from the North Star - the north magnetic pole is located near the Sargasso Sea.
What is the Sargasso Sea like?
The water in the Sargasso Sea is saltier than ocean water. It is bright blue in color, and it is also the most transparent on our planet (visibility reaches 60 meters).
The depth of the Sargasso Sea ranges from 4 to almost 7 kilometers. The water temperature never drops below +18 degrees. Due to the high atmospheric pressure, it is always calm here.
The diversity of life in the Sargasso Sea is much lower than in any other. However, the algae are inhabited by a wide variety of living creatures: shrimp, traveler crabs.
Numerous species of fish live, in particular mackerel.
The most remarkable inhabitant of this sea is the Sargassum clown sea, which has a color like algae, so it is almost invisible among the tangle of marine vegetation. This fish is able to cling to algae with its fins and more often climbs on them than swims in the water.
Many living organisms in the Sargasso Sea survive only due to their camouflage. For example, shrimp have white spots on their shells, and sea needles look like algae shoots.
The body shape of many inhabitants, as a rule, resembles leaves and twigs of algae. So he hides sea Horse.
And another mystery of the Sargasso Sea: it is like a cradle for freshwater eel fish. Fish come here in the summer from the rivers of America and Europe to spawn, die after it ends, and their cubs, using their instincts and landmarks, covering a huge distance, return exactly to where their parents lived. And then after 8-9 years they again swim to the Sargasso Sea to spawn.
This is a real miracle of nature - the Sargasso Sea.
