New study shows just how little – about 99.999% – of the world’s oceanic depths have been viewed by human eyes.

Explorers know that the Earth’s oceans are vast, covering about 71% of the surface of the globe. According to a new study, just 0.001% of the deep seafloor has been visually observed.

In a revolutionary advancement in oceanography, scientists have created one of the most detailed maps of the ocean floor to date. The map, compiled using high-resolution data from the SWOT ...

In the 1950s, geologist Marie Tharp turned depth measurements into detailed maps of the ocean floor. ... who had worked with them on many maps for National Geographic, to paint it.

What has been documented also illustrates a troublesome bias in geographic location. Most expeditions have taken place inside EEZs within 200 nautical miles of the US, Japan, and New Zealand.

Japan will from January attempt to extract rare earth minerals from the ocean floor in the deepest trial of its kind, the ...

In summer 2023, a companion Ocean, Freshwater, and Us exhibit featuring the giant floor map and information panels on ocean and freshwater conservation supported the overarching message of PRESSURE: ...

A sample of ocean crust, turned upside down, reveals tubeworms and other organisms. Mónika Naranjo-Shepherd / Schmidt Ocean Institute CC BY-NC-SA 4.0. In summer 2023, researchers deployed a ...

Vast expanses of the sea floor remain where the only information available is from rough mapping tools, such as sonar, Bell says. “The Indian Ocean is one of the least-explored areas.” ...

Earle served as the Chief Scientist at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. She is the founder of Deep Ocean Exploration and Research, and Mission Blue, a National Geographic ...