It is often said, by Captain Kirk amongst others, that the final frontier is outer space. Another common saying is that we know more about the surface of the Moon than we know about the deep ocean floor. Both are true. But first, let us be clear on what we mean by the deep ocean floor. This is taken to be any part of the ocean floor which is at or deeper than 200 metres. This still accounts for around 66% of the Earth’s surface.
So, how much of this has been explored by humans? It is a staggering 0.001%. In total, that is an area of around 540 square miles. If we take Greater London for a comparison, its total area is about 600 square miles. So, our total exploration of the deep oceans of the world equals less than the area of Greater London. I think that puts things into perspective.
Now, this figure of 540 square miles relates to the exploration, which is open to public scrutiny. There is some exploration of the depths, which is commercially or militarily a secret. These involve companies that lay subsea communications cables and oil and gas exploration organisations. We do not really know what the military knows, but I am sure they could add to our knowledge. Whatever the real figure is, it is still tiny in comparison to what is out there.
What lies beneath the oceans can be of vital importance to us on the surface. There are strange creatures down there who may, in the future, offer us the chance to create new medications. As we know, climate change is a big topic which needs to be acted upon before it is too late. One of the culprits for global warming is the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. Well, the oceans play a crucial role in being able to store that carbon. If we should disrupt this, then we could be in even greater trouble.
Therefore, although I am 100% in favour of space travel, there is another final frontier a lot closer which we should also explore.
John Pullen 