Oceans & Seas Quiz

Question 1

How many oceans are officially recognised?

Accepted Answer

5

Answer

4

Answer

6

Answer

7

Question 2

What is the deepest point on Earth, and which ocean is it in?

Accepted Answer

Challenger Deep, Pacific Ocean

Answer

Puerto Rico Trench, Atlantic Ocean

Answer

Java Trench, Indian Ocean

Answer

Molloy Hole, Arctic Ocean

Question 3

The Gulf Stream is a powerful ocean current. What does it do?

Accepted Answer

Brings warm water from the Gulf of Mexico to Western Europe, moderating its climate

Answer

Cools the coasts of North America

Answer

Brings cold Arctic water south along the US East Coast

Answer

Powers the monsoon in Southeast Asia

Question 4

The Mediterranean Sea borders how many countries?

Accepted Answer

21

Answer

10

Answer

15

Answer

28

Question 5

Which ocean is the smallest?

Accepted Answer

Arctic Ocean

Answer

Southern Ocean

Answer

Indian Ocean

Answer

Atlantic Ocean

Question 6

What percentage of Earth's surface is covered by oceans?

Accepted Answer

71%

Answer

51%

Answer

61%

Answer

81%

Question 7

Which sea is the world's saltiest body of water?

Accepted Answer

Dead Sea

Answer

Red Sea

Answer

Mediterranean Sea

Answer

Caspian Sea

Question 8

The Strait of Gibraltar connects which two bodies of water?

Accepted Answer

The Atlantic and the Mediterranean

Answer

The Mediterranean and the Red Sea

Answer

The Black Sea and the Mediterranean

Answer

The North Sea and the Atlantic

Question 9

The Great Barrier Reef is in which ocean?

Accepted Answer

Pacific Ocean

Answer

Indian Ocean

Answer

Southern Ocean

Answer

Tasman Sea

Question 10

What causes ocean tides?

Accepted Answer

The gravitational pull of the Moon and Sun

Answer

Wind patterns

Answer

Ocean currents

Answer

Earth's rotation only

Question 11

The Red Sea separates Africa from which peninsula?

Accepted Answer

The Arabian Peninsula

Answer

The Sinai Peninsula

Answer

The Indian Subcontinent

Answer

The Horn of Africa

Question 12

Which ocean do ships cross when sailing from Europe to North America?

Accepted Answer

The Atlantic Ocean

Answer

The Pacific Ocean

Answer

The Indian Ocean

Answer

The Arctic Ocean

Question 13

What is the 'thermocline' in the ocean?

Accepted Answer

A boundary layer where temperature decreases rapidly with depth

Answer

The warm top layer of ocean water

Answer

The deepest, coldest zone of the ocean

Answer

A current that runs along the ocean floor

Question 14

The Suez Canal connects which two bodies of water?

Accepted Answer

The Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea

Answer

The Red Sea and the Persian Gulf

Answer

The Indian Ocean and the Persian Gulf

Answer

The Mediterranean Sea and the Black Sea

Question 15

What percentage of Earth's water is fresh (not salt water)?

Accepted Answer

3%

Answer

10%

Answer

20%

Answer

30%

Question 16

The Drake Passage, the world's most treacherous stretch of water, lies between:

Accepted Answer

South America and Antarctica

Answer

Iceland and Greenland

Answer

Australia and Antarctica

Answer

New Zealand and Antarctica

Question 17

Which ocean is surrounded by more landmass than any other?

Accepted Answer

Arctic

Answer

Pacific

Answer

Atlantic

Answer

Indian

Question 18

What is 'bioluminescence' in the ocean?

Accepted Answer

Light produced by living marine organisms through chemical reactions

Answer

The reflection of sunlight on ocean waves

Answer

Phosphorescent minerals on the seafloor

Answer

The blue colour of tropical ocean water

Question 19

The Panama Canal connects the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. In which country is it?

Accepted Answer

Panama

Answer

Colombia

Answer

Nicaragua

Answer

Costa Rica

Question 20

What is a 'tsunami' and what typically causes one?

Accepted Answer

A massive ocean wave typically triggered by an underwater earthquake, landslide, or volcanic eruption

Answer

A giant tide caused by storms

Answer

An extremely high tide

Answer

A whirlpool in the open ocean