The highest salinity in the sea. Which sea is the saltiest in the world? Causes of increased salinity

3. Characteristics of the oceanic aquatic environment.

The oceanic environment, that is, sea water, is not just a substance known to us from birth, which is hydrogen oxide H 2 O. Sea water is a solution of a wide variety of substances. Almost all known chemical elements are found in the waters of the World Ocean in the form of various compounds.

Most of all chlorides are dissolved in sea water (88.7%), among which sodium chloride predominates, that is, ordinary table salt NaCl. Sea water contains significantly less sulfates, that is, sulfuric acid salts (10.8%). All other substances account for only 0.5% of the total salt composition of seawater.

After sodium salts, magnesium salts are in second place in sea water. This metal is used in the manufacture of light and strong alloys needed in mechanical engineering, especially in aircraft construction. Each cubic meter of sea water contains 1.3 kilograms of magnesium. The technology for its extraction from sea water is based on the conversion of its soluble salts into insoluble compounds and their precipitation with lime. The cost of magnesium obtained directly from sea water turned out to be significantly lower than the cost of this metal, previously mined from ore materials, in particular dolomite.

It is worth noting that bromine, discovered in 1826 by the French chemist A. Balard, is not found in any mineral. Bromine can only be obtained from sea water, where it is contained in relatively small quantities - 65 grams per cubic meter. Bromine is used in medicine as a sedative, as well as in photography and petrochemistry.

Already at the end of the 20th century, the ocean began to provide 90% of the world's bromine and 60% of magnesium production. Sodium and chlorine are extracted from seawater in significant quantities. As for table salt, people have long received it from sea water by evaporation. Marine salt mines still operate in tropical countries, where salt is obtained directly from shallow areas of the coast, fencing them off from the sea with dams. The technology here is not very complicated. Concentration table salt in water is higher than other salts, and therefore during evaporation it is the first to precipitate. The crystals that have settled at the bottom are removed from the so-called mother liquor and washed fresh water to remove residual magnesium salts, which give the salt a bitter taste.

More advanced technology for extracting salt from sea water is used in numerous saltworks in France and Spain, which supply large volumes of salt not only to the European market. For example, one of the new ways to obtain salt is to install special seawater sprayers in saltworks pools. Water turned into dust (suspension) has a huge area of evaporation and from the smallest drops it evaporates instantly, and only salt falls on the ground.

The extraction of table salt from seawater will continue to increase, because deposits of rock salt, like other minerals, will sooner or later be depleted. Currently, about a quarter of all table salt needed by humanity is mined in the sea, the rest is mined in salt mines.

Sea water also contains iodine. But the process of obtaining iodine directly from water would be completely unprofitable. Therefore, iodine is obtained from dried brown algae that grows in the ocean.

Even gold is found in ocean water, although in tiny quantities - 0.00001 grams per cubic meter. There is a well-known attempt by German chemists in the 1930s to extract gold from the waters of the German Sea (as the North Sea is often called in German). However, it was not possible to fill the Reichsbank vaults with gold bars: production costs would exceed the cost of gold itself.

Some scientists suggest that in the next few decades it may become economically feasible to obtain heavy hydrogen (deuterium) from the sea, and then humanity will be provided with energy for millions of years to come... But uranium from sea water is already being mined on an industrial scale. Since 1986, the world's first plant for extracting uranium from sea water has been operating on the shores of the Inland Sea of Japan. The complex and expensive technology is designed to produce 10 kg of metal per year. To obtain such an amount of uranium, it is necessary to filter and subject to ion processing more than 13 million tons of sea water. But the Japanese, who are persistent in their work, get the job done. In addition, they are well aware of what atomic energy is. -)

An indicator of the amount of chemical substances dissolved in water is a special characteristic called salinity. Salinity is the mass of all salts contained in 1 kg of sea water, expressed in grams.. Salinity is measured in parts per thousand, or ppm (‰). On the surface of the open ocean, salinity fluctuations are small: from 32 to 38‰. The average surface salinity of the World Ocean is about 35‰ (more precisely, 34.73‰).

The waters of the Atlantic and Pacific oceans have a salinity slightly above average (34.87‰), and the waters Indian Ocean– slightly lower (34.58‰). This is where the desalination effect comes into play. Antarctic ice. For comparison, we point out that the usual salinity of river waters does not exceed 0.15‰, which is 230 times less than the surface salinity of sea water.

The least saline waters in the open ocean are the waters of the polar regions of both hemispheres. This is explained by the melting of continental ice, especially in the Southern Hemisphere, and large volumes of river flows in the Northern Hemisphere.

Salinity increases towards the tropics. The highest concentration of salts is observed not at the equator, but in latitude bands 3°-20° south and north of the equator. These bands are sometimes called salinity belts.

The fact that in equatorial zone The surface salinity of the water is relatively low, due to the fact that the equator is an area of heavy tropical rains that desalinate the water. Often, near the equator, dense clouds cover the ocean from direct sunlight, which reduces water evaporation at such moments.

In marginal and especially inland seas, salinity differs from that of the ocean. For example, in the Red Sea, the surface salinity of water reaches the highest values in the World Ocean - up to 42‰. This is explained simply: the Red Sea is located in a zone of high evaporation, and it communicates with the ocean through the shallow and narrow Bab-el-Mandeb Strait, and does not receive fresh water from the continent, since not a single river flows into this sea, and rare rains unable to desalinate the water to any noticeable extent.

The Baltic Sea, extending far into the land, communicates with the ocean through several small and narrow straits, is located in a temperate climate zone and receives waters from many large rivers and small rivers. Therefore, the Baltic is one of the most desalinated basins of the World Ocean. Surface salinity of the central part Baltic Sea is only 6-8 ‰, and in the north, in the shallow Gulf of Bothnia it drops even to 2-3 ‰).

Salinity changes with depth. This is explained by the movement under surface waters, that is, the hydrological regime of a particular basin. For example, in the equatorial latitudes of the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, below a depth of 100-150 m, layers of very saline waters (above 36 ‰) can be traced, which are formed due to the transfer of saltier tropical waters by deep countercurrents from the western margins of the oceans.

Salinity changes sharply only to depths of about 1500 m. Below this horizon, almost no fluctuations in salinity are observed. At greater depths of different oceans, salinity indicators converge. Seasonal changes in salinity on the surface of the open ocean are insignificant, no more than 1 ‰.

Experts consider a salinity anomaly to be the salinity of water in the Red Sea at a depth of about 2000 m, which reaches 300 ‰.

The main method for determining the salinity of sea water is the titration method. The essence of the method is that a certain amount of silver nitrate (AgNO 3) is added to the water sample, which, in combination with sodium chloride of sea water, precipitates in the form of silver chloride. Since the ratio of the amount of sodium chloride to other substances dissolved in water is constant, by weighing the precipitated silver chloride, you can quite simply calculate the salinity of the water.

There are other ways to determine salinity. Since, for example, indicators such as the refraction of light in water, the density and electrical conductivity of water depend on its salinity, then, having determined them, it is possible to measure the salinity of the water.

Taking samples of sea water to determine its salinity or other indicators is not an easy task. To do this, they use special samplers - bathometers, which allow taking samples from different depths or from different layers water. This process requires a lot of attention and caution from hydrologists.

So, the main processes affecting the salinity of water are the rate of water evaporation, the intensity of mixing of more saline waters with less saline ones, as well as the frequency and intensity of precipitation. These processes are determined climatic conditions one or another area of the World Ocean.

In addition to these processes, the salinity of sea water is influenced by the proximity of melting glaciers and the volume of fresh water brought by rivers.

In general, the percentage of various salts in sea water in all areas of the ocean almost always remains the same. However, in some places, marine organisms have a noticeable influence on the chemical composition of sea water. They use many substances dissolved in the sea for their nutrition and development, although in various quantities. Some substances, such as phosphates and nitrogenous compounds, are consumed in particularly large quantities. In areas where there are many marine organisms, the content of these substances in the water decreases somewhat. Noticeable impact on chemical processes, occurring in sea water, affect the smallest organisms that make up the plankton. They drift along the surface of the sea or in the near-surface layers of water and, dying, slowly and continuously fall to the bottom of the ocean.

Salinity of the World Ocean. Current monitoring map(increase) .

What is it like general content salts in the World Ocean? Now answering this question is not at all difficult. If we assume that the total amount of water in the World Ocean is 1370 million cubic kilometers, and the average concentration of salts in sea water is 35‰, that is, 35 g in one liter, then it turns out that one cubic kilometer contains approximately 35 thousand tons salt. Then the amount of salt in the World Ocean will be expressed by the astronomical figure of 4.8 * 10 16 tons (that is, 48 quadrillion tons).

This means that even the active extraction of salts for domestic and industrial needs will not be able to change the composition of seawater. In this regard, the ocean, without exaggeration, can be considered inexhaustible.

Now we need to answer an equally important question: where does so much salt come from in the ocean?

For many years, science was dominated by the hypothesis that rivers brought salt to the sea. But this hypothesis, at first glance quite convincing, turned out to be scientifically untenable. It has been established that every second the rivers of our planet carry about a million tons of water into the ocean, and their annual flow is 37 thousand cubic kilometers. It takes 37 thousand years for the water in the World Ocean to be completely renewed - in about this time the ocean can be filled with river flow. And if we accept that in geological history There were at least one hundred thousand lands from such periods, and the salt content in river water, on average, is about 1 gram per liter, it turns out that over the entire geological history of the Earth, about 1.4 * 10 20 tons of salts were carried into the ocean by rivers. And according to the scientists’ calculations, which we just cited, 4.8 * 10 16 tons of salt are dissolved in the World Ocean, that is, 3 thousand times less. But it's not only that. Chemical composition The composition of salts dissolved in river water differs sharply from the composition of sea salt. If in sea water the compounds of sodium and magnesium with chlorine absolutely predominate (89% of the dry residue after evaporation of water and only 0.3% is calcium carbonate), then in river water calcium carbonate takes first place - over 60% of the dry residue, and sodium chlorides and magnesium together – only 5.2 percent.

Scientists are left with one assumption: the ocean became salty during its birth. The most ancient animals could not exist in weakly salted, much less freshwater, pools. This means that the composition of sea water has not changed since its inception. But where did the carbonates that came into the ocean along with river runoff for hundreds of millions of years go? The only correct answer to this question was given by the founder of biogeochemistry, the great Russian scientist Academician V.I. Vernadsky. He argued that almost all calcium carbonate, as well as silicon salts carried by rivers into the ocean, are immediately extracted from solution by those marine plants and animals that need these minerals for their skeletons, shells and shells. As these living organisms die, the calcium carbonate (CaCO 3) and silicon salts they contain are deposited on seabed in the form of sediments of organic origin. Thus, living organisms throughout the existence of the World Ocean maintain the composition of its salts unchanged.

And now a few words about another mineral contained in sea water. We have spent so many words praising the ocean for the fact that its waters contain many different salts and other substances, including deuterium, uranium and even gold. But we did not mention the main and main mineral that is found in the World Ocean - simple water H 2 O. Without this “mineral” there would be nothing on Earth at all: neither oceans, nor seas, nor you and me. About the main physical properties water, we already had the opportunity to talk. Therefore, here we will limit ourselves to only a few comments.

In the entire history of science, people have not unraveled all the secrets of this rather simple chemical substance, the molecule of which consists of three atoms: two hydrogen atoms and one oxygen atom. By the way, modern science claims that hydrogen atoms make up 93% of all atoms in the Universe.

And among the mysteries and secrets of water there remain, for example, the following: why frozen water vapor turns into snowflakes, the shape of which is surprisingly regular geometric figure, reminiscent of magnificent patterns. What about drawings on window glass on frosty days? Instead of amorphous snow and ice, we see ice crystals, which are lined up in such an amazing way that they look like the leaves and branches of some fairy-tale trees.

Or here's another one. Two gaseous substances - oxygen and hydrogen, combined together and turned into liquid. Many other substances, including solids, when combined with hydrogen, become gaseous, like hydrogen, for example, hydrogen sulfide H 2 S, hydrogen selenide (H 2 Se), or a compound with tellurium (H 2 Te).

It is known that water dissolves many substances well. They say that it dissolves, although to a vanishingly small degree, even the glass of the glass into which we poured it.

However, the most important thing to say about water is that water has become the cradle of life. Water, having initially dissolved dozens of chemical compounds in itself, that is, becoming sea water, turned into a solution unique in its diversity of components, which ultimately turned out to be a favorable environment for the emergence and maintenance of organic life.

In the first chapter of this story, we have already noted what is almost universally accepted. The hypothesis has now turned into a theory of the origin of life, each position of which, according to the authors of this theory, is based on factual data from cosmogony, astronomy, historical geology, mineralogy, energy, physics, chemistry, including biological chemistry and other sciences.

The first opinion that life originated in the ocean was expressed in 1893 by the German naturalist G. Bunge. He realized that the amazing similarity between blood and sea water in the composition of the salts dissolved in them was not accidental. Later, the theory of the oceanic origin of the mineral composition of blood was developed in detail by the English physiologist McKellum, who confirmed the correctness of this assumption by the results of numerous blood tests of various animals, from invertebrate mollusks to mammals.

It turned out that not only blood, but also the entire internal environment of our body shows traces preserved from the long stay of our distant ancestors in sea water.

Currently, world science has no doubts about the oceanic origin of life on Earth.

Sea water covers two-thirds of our planet and has many unique properties. Main characteristics sea water - its salinity, which differs in different parts of the planet: from 41–42 g/l in the saltiest sea to 7 g/l in the freshest. The average salinity of the World Ocean is 34.7 g/l. What is the saltiest sea in the world?

The Red Sea is the saltiest sea in the world

It is the Red Sea that is known as the saltiest sea on our planet. The density of salts in its water is 41 g/l, which is a third higher than the average salt content in the World Ocean. But this does not bother its many inhabitants. The rich flora and fauna of the Red Sea attract thousands of tourists, especially lovers of underwater tourism - diving.

By the way, if someone decides to argue with you about which sea is the saltiest - the Dead Sea, whose waters contain 270 g/l of salts, or the Red Sea, you can confidently answer that it is Red. The fact is that the Dead Sea, despite its name, is from a scientific point of view a lake, since its waters have no drainage.

In turn, the Red Sea is distinguished by the fact that it does not have a single river that flows into it. This is one of the reasons why the water in it is so salty. The climate here is very dry and hot. Water evaporates at a tremendous speed - up to 2 thousand mm per year, but the salt remains. Rains are not able to replenish this amount of evaporation: in total, less than 100 mm of precipitation falls here per year. For comparison: in the central and northern parts of Kazakhstan, 300 falls per year. – 500 mm of precipitation, in Turkey - 400 – 700 mm, in Ukraine - 600 – 800 mm, in Central Africa - 1800 – 3000 mm per year.

The Red Sea belongs to the Indian Ocean basin. It would probably have dried up long ago if not for the Gulf of Aden, which allows it to exchange waters with the ocean. Currents move in both directions and replenish the water balance of the Red Sea by thousands of liters per year. On the other hand, it connects with Mediterranean Sea thanks to the Suez Canal. There is also a current here, although to an insignificant extent for the scale of the sea.

Sandwiched between the northeastern coast of Africa and the Arabian Peninsula, the Red Sea stretches for more than 2 thousand km. However, even at its widest point it remains narrower than many rivers - only 360 m. In some places its depth reaches 2.2 km, although the average depth of the saltiest sea in the world is only 437 m.

Despite its large extent, the salinity of the waters of the Red Sea has almost the same characteristics throughout its entire area (which, by the way, is 450 thousand km2). This is due to the unique natural mechanism of water mixing. In winter, the cooling water sinks to the bottom, and the retaining heat rises to the top. In summer, the water on the surface becomes heavier due to evaporation and increased salinity, so this giant mixer works all year round.

Hot depressions, discovered by scientists no more than half a century ago, contribute to the mixing of water. Observations of the temperature and composition of the waters in these depressions suggest that they are heated by heat coming from the bowels of the Earth. So, average temperature water in the Red Sea stays at 20 throughout the year – 25 °C, and in the depressions - 30 – 60 °C, and increases by 0.3 annually – 0.7 °C.

Rivers carry with them not only water, but also sand, silt and debris, so the Red Sea, as the only body of water in the world without river flow, retains the incredible clarity of its waters. This turns it into one of the most picturesque places on the planet. Coral reefs, thousands of species of colorful fish, numerous algae, including the one that gave the sea its name - all this is worth seeing with your own eyes. It is important to note that about a third of the local inhabitants are endemic, which means they can only be found here.

The saltiest seas: list

The main contenders for the status of the saltiest seas in the world are:

Mediterranean Sea.

The second place in the list of the saltiest seas after the Red Sea is occupied by the Mediterranean Sea - 39.5 g/l. Although such salinity can only be felt far from the coast, it still significantly limits the development of small algae and zooplankton, increasing the transparency of sea waters. Like the Red Sea, the Mediterranean Sea is one of the most warm seas planets: even in winter the water temperature here does not drop below 10 – 12 °C, and in summer it warms up to 25 – 28°C.

Aegean Sea.

The next in salinity is the Aegean Sea, which washes the shores of Greece and Turkey, as well as the famous island of Crete. Here the water contains an average of 38.5 g/l of salts, which are high in sodium. Doctors recommend that you rinse off after swimming in this sea to avoid corroding the surface layers of the skin.

Ionian Sea.

Another Greek sea is only slightly behind in salinity - the Ionian Sea, whose water contains on average 38 g/l of salts. Here, the high alkali content also forces tourists to be more careful about their skin. But high density (highest for sea water) combined with high water temperature (26 – 28 °C in summer) maintains the attractiveness of these places.

Ligurian Sea.

The Ligurian Sea also has a brine density of 38 g/l. This small sea with an area of only 15 thousand km2 is located between the island of Corsica and the Tuscan coast. The many streams flowing into it from the Apennines could not add freshwater to it.

Barencevo sea.

The Barents Sea has a salinity of 35 g/l - the saltiest sea in Russia. It is located in the north of the European part of Russia and combines the warm waters of the Atlantic Ocean and the cold waters of the Arctic Ocean.

Also in the top ten saltiest seas are the Sea of Japan, known for its typhoons (37 – 38 g/l), Laptev Sea (34 g/l), Chukchi Sea (33 g/l) and White Sea (30 g/l).

Interestingly, the Aral Sea, located on the borders of Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, which, like the Dead Sea, is more of a lake than a sea, may soon catch up with it in terms of water salinity. This reservoir, which in the mid-twentieth century occupied the 4th largest area among the planet’s lakes, became so shallow that its area decreased almost 10 times - from 68.9 thousand km2 to 7.3 thousand km2 - in 2014. During the same time, water salinity increased 10 times and in 2007 reached 100 g/l.

Despite the diversity, the salinity of the waters in the World Ocean is much more stable - over the past 50 years, scientists have not been able to notice significant fluctuations. So, when your children and grandchildren begin to wonder which sea is the saltiest in the world, the answer will remain the same - Red. We wish you to someday experience the unique composition of its waters on your own skin and see with your own eyes the diversity of its underwater inhabitants.

Among the properties of the waters of the World Ocean, temperature and salinity are distinguished.

Water temperature The world's oceans change in the vertical direction (decreases with depth, since the sun's rays do not penetrate to great depths) and horizontally (the temperature of surface waters decreases from the equator to the poles from +25 ° C to - 2 ° C due to the difference in the amount of water received solar heat).

Surface water temperature. Ocean water is heated by the influx of solar heat onto its surface. The temperature of surface waters depends on the latitude of the place. In certain areas of the ocean, this distribution is disrupted by the uneven distribution of land, ocean currents, constant winds, runoff of water from the continents. Temperature naturally changes with depth. Moreover, at first the temperature drops very quickly, and then quite slowly. Average annual temperature surface waters of the World Ocean +17.5 °C. At a depth of 3-4 thousand m, it usually ranges from +2 to 0 °C.

Salinity of the water of the World Ocean.

Ocean water concentrates different salt: sodium chloride (gives water a salty taste) - 78% of the total amount of salts, magnesium chloride (gives water a bitter taste) - 11%, other substances. The salinity of sea water is calculated in ppm (the ratio of a certain amount of substance to 1000 weight units), denoted ‰. The salinity of the ocean varies, it varies from 32‰ to 38‰.

The degree of salinity depends on the amount of precipitation, evaporation, and desalination of rivers flowing into the sea. Salinity also changes with depth. To a depth of 1500 m, salinity decreases slightly compared to the surface. Deeper down, changes in water salinity are insignificant; it is 35‰ almost everywhere. The minimum salinity is 5‰ in the Baltic Sea, the maximum is up to 41‰ in the Red Sea.

Thus, water salinity depends : 1) from the ratio atmospheric precipitation and evaporation, which varies depending on geographic latitude (as temperature and pressure change); Salinity may be lower where the amount of precipitation exceeds evaporation, where the influx of river water is large, where the ice is melting; 2) from depth.

There are about 73 seas on Earth. They are part of the World Ocean. All objects are divided into various classifications. One of the criteria is the salinity of the water. Depending on this indicator, objects are divided into highly and lightly salted. The saltiest sea in the world has been established. It is the Red Sea. Several objects have a controversial status. They are not classified as seas, but according to a number of indicators they are salt lakes. This applies to the Dead and Aral Seas. The latter is almost completely dry.

In Russia, even bodies of water that are part of the Arctic Ocean are characterized by a high content of sodium chloride. The territory of the Russian Federation is washed by one object in which the salt level exceeds similar indicators in other seas. It is located in the east of the country. This is the Sea of Japan. The salinity of its waters ranges from 33.7% to 34.3%. This value is lower than in the waters of the World Ocean. But in fact, this is the saltiest sea in Russia. This object is part of Pacific Ocean. It washes the territories of not only Russia, but also Japan, as well as two Koreas.

In the Russian Federation there are lakes in which the concentration of salts is regarded as very high. One of them is Bearish. This salt lake is analogous Dead Sea in Russia. It is located on the territory of the Kurgan region. Medvezhye is located in the interfluve of two reservoirs - Tobol and Ishim. The salt concentration in it reaches 360 g/l.

High mineralization rates are also observed in lakes Elton and Baskunchak. The first is located in the Volgograd region, the second in the Astrakhan region. In Elton, the average salt concentration is 279 g/l, and in some places 500 g/l. In Baskunchak - 300 g/l.

Top 10 saltiest seas in the world

The mineralization indicator in a separate object is determined based on the sodium chloride content in a liter of water. Researchers continue to debate which is the saltiest sea in the world. A number of scientists classify some objects as lakes and do not consider them in any other status.

The list of the saltiest seas in the world includes:

Dead;
Red;
Mediterranean;
Aegean;
Ionic;
Japanese;
Barentsevo;
Laptev;
Chukotka;
White.

Half of the objects on the list wash the shores of Russia. The status of the first on the list continues to be disputed.

Dead Sea

This object is considered an endorheic lake in Israel, as well as Palestine and Jordan. Average level minerals in the waters of the facility is 265 ppm. This value allows us to consider it one of the saltiest lakes in the world. At the same time, it is not too large in size: the length is 67 km, and the width is 18. The maximum depth is 306 meters. The Caspian is generally recognized as the largest salt lake in the world.

Red sea

This object is located between Africa and the Arabian Peninsula. It acts as part of the Indian Ocean. Its area is 450 thousand km2. It has the status of the saltiest on the planet.

The object is unique in that no rivers flow into it. There are 41 g of salts per liter of water. Even the open ocean contains only 34 grams of minerals. But the saltiest lake in the world (Dead) significantly exceeds the Red Sea in sodium chloride concentration. In the first, the salt level is 260-350 ppm, in the second - 41.

Mediterranean

Located between the African continent and Europe. Its area is 2.5 million km2. In some places the depth exceeds 5 km. It is among the top 3 objects of the World Ocean in terms of salinity. Its value fluctuates in the range of 36-39.5%.

The Mediterranean Sea also has the status of the warmest. In the eastern part it can warm up to 300C. Even in winter period in its northern part the water temperature does not fall below 80C.

Video: The saltiest sea in the world The Red Sea

Aegean

Is semi-closed. It washes Turkey and Greece. It is considered one of the saltiest. The mineralization of its waters is 37-39 ppm. In some places the salt concentration reaches 40%. It is the oldest body of water on the planet. Its age exceeds 20 thousand years.

Ionian

It is part of the Mediterranean, located between the Balkans and the Apennines and the islands of Sicily and Crete. Salinity reaches 38 ppm. This allows it to be included in the top 5 objects of the World Ocean in terms of mineralization level.

Japanese Sea

It is considered the saltiest in Russia. The sodium chloride content in it reaches 34.3 ppm. The area exceeds 1 thousand km2. The most great importance The depth of the object is 3.7 km. In the north, the reservoir is covered with ice.

The object is part of the Arctic Ocean. It washes the coastal zones of Norway and the Russian Federation. The area in the southwest does not freeze due to the influence of the warm North Atlantic Current.

The salinity of the reservoir is uneven. Its highest values are observed in the southwestern part and amount to 35 ppm. Less salinity is observed in the north - no higher than 33. The salinity of the object changes with the change of seasons. In summer in the coastal zone it does not exceed 32 ppm, and in winter it increases to 34.5.

Laptev

It washes the northern part of Siberia. Its area is 672 thousand km2. The highest salinity of the object is in its northwestern zone. In winter it reaches 34 ppm. In the south, salinity is much lower - no more than 25. In summer, the concentration of substances in sea water in the north drops to 32 ppm. In the south it ranges from 5 to 10. High salinity is observed in the depths of the waters. There its values reach 33 ppm. The Laptev Sea is considered one of the most severe water bodies in terms of climate.

Chukotka

The object is also part of the Arctic Ocean. It is located between Alaska and the Chukotka Peninsula. Salinity of the reservoir in winter months ranges from 31 to 33 ppm. In summer its value drops to 28-32. At depth, mineralization increases. The reservoir has a harsh climate.

White Sea

The object washes the northern part European territory Russia. Due to the significant influx of water from rivers, it has relatively low salinity. Its value is 26 ppm. In deep waters, salinity increases to 31.

Features of flora and fauna

The flora and fauna of the world's saltiest seas is diverse. The Dead Sea is almost completely lifeless. Neither fish, nor animals, nor plants live in it. Only higher mushrooms are adapted to high salinity.

The Red Sea is unique for its variety of corals. lives there a large number of fish Also found are bottlenose dolphins, killer whales, green turtles, sharks and moray eels.

The flora of the Mediterranean Sea is not very diverse. Its waters are dominated by different kinds seaweed Animal world represented by crayfish, turtles, stingrays, octopuses, crabs, squids, jellyfish and lobsters. There are over 540 species of fish there.

The flora of the Aegean and Ionian seas is identical to that of the Mediterranean. The fauna is diverse. The Aegean is rich in sponges, fish and octopuses, the Ionian - especially mackerel, flounder and tuna.

The fauna and flora of the Sea of Japan is heterogeneous. In the north it is less diverse than in the south. Laminaria and sea anemones live there. The waters are rich sea urchins and stars, scallops, shrimp. In May there are crabs there.

Algae and plankton are common in the Barents Sea. There are also about 20 species of commercial fish. Previously introduced Kamchatka crab and snow crab are found there. The most common mammals are seals, beluga whales, polar bears and seals. There are numerous bird colonies along the coast.

The flora and fauna of the Laptev Sea are not very diverse. There are 39 types of fish living there. Sardines, flounder and cod are common. Mammals include seals, bearded seals, walruses and seals. Several dozen species of birds live here.

In the Chukchi Sea, the flora is sparse due to the severity of the climate. The most common animals are polar bears and walruses with seals. There are whales. The fish world is rich in polar cod and grayling.

How is water salinity measured?

The basic unit of this indicator is ppm. It refers to the amount of solid substances dissolved in a kilogram of sea water. Chemical analysis does not accurately measure the degree of mineralization of a liquid. Sea water is too complex in its composition. Its salinity is determined by the concentration of one of the elements of the composition, by electrical conductivity or refractive value. Based on these methods, a rating of sea salinity is compiled.

Video: Dead Sea. Israel

Summing up

The Dead Sea is considered the most mineralized sea in the world. A number of researchers classify it as a lake, which allows us to consider the Red Sea to be the leader in the rating. In Russia, the saltiest sea is the Sea of Japan. The lake with the highest mineralization is Medvezhye.

Five seas from the top 10 rankings are considered northern waters. All of them wash the territory of the Russian Federation. The scarcest of animals and flora is the Dead Sea. In other objects there is a wide variety of fauna. The richest in flora is the Red Sea.

The main difference between a sea and a lake or any other large body of water is that it belongs to the world ocean, that is, through rivers and straits it (in this case the body of water is called internal) is connected to other water areas, which together make up a single space equal to two-thirds of the surface globe. The saltiest sea in the world is called the Red Sea. It belongs to the Indian Ocean and is the same internal strait connected to the World Ocean and surrounded on all sides by land. While the Dead Sea has no flowing rivers, it is not connected in any way with other bodies of water, that is, it is not one at all.

Very cool pickle

Since the most concentrated body of water (Dead Sea) on the planet with a salt content of 340 grams per 1 liter of water, with a total of 34 g in the world ocean, is not considered the most salty sea on Earth, it is simply a unique object in terms of salinity. This one-of-a-kind body of water was formed at the site of a graben, or tectonic fault, that filled with water millions of years after the tectonic plates moved apart. Much has been written about the fact that the territory of the “Arava Sea” is located at a depth of 350-400 meters below the level of the World Ocean, that is, all of it, including the lowest point - 423 meters, is a depression, the deepest valley on our planet. The only river that flows into the Dead Sea is the Jordan and nothing comes out. Being a lake, the Dead Sea gives way to the Red Sea, which belongs to the Indian Ocean and is connected to it through the Bab el-Mandeb (“Gate of Tears”) Strait, which flows into the Gulf of Aden.

What causes salinity in the first place

As already noted, the saltiest sea in the world is the Red Sea, which seems to separate Africa from the Arabian Peninsula. In the north, thanks to the Suez Canal, it mixes its waters with the Mediterranean Sea, connected to the Atlantic Ocean. Except the Dead Sea. Both the Caspian and Baikal are lakes. But the former, due to its enormous size, is usually called the sea, and Baikal is no longer called that, except in songs (“The Glorious Sea is the sacred Baikal”). The saltiest sea in the world is so for two reasons: heat on the surface, causing strong evaporation, and the absence of rivers replenishing and diluting marine reserves with fresh water. Through the only source - the Gulf of Aden, or rather through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, water flows annually in half as much as it evaporates. There is almost no rain in this area - 100 ml per year.

The youngest and most beautiful

To the most important feature characterizing the Red Sea, we can add the fact that it is also the youngest on the planet - it is only 25 million years old. It was formed simultaneously with the East African Rift. In essence and form, the sea bed is a trough - a valley formed by the activity of glaciers. This is a trough with a U-shape in cross section, a wide bottom and rather steep sides, which, turning into the banks, stretch from north to south almost parallel to each other. Also, the saltiest sea in the world is one of the most beautiful. This is also the warmest sea on the planet. In a word, a record-breaking sea.

Causes of increased salinity

The water in it is well mixed, but in the sea there are areas of high salinity, where its concentration reaches 60 grams per liter. This is the Gulf of Aqaba, or, as it is also called, the Gulf of Eilat, separating the Sinai Peninsula from Egypt. He himself is separated from the body of the sea by the shallow Strait of Tiran. This narrow bay was much more likely to turn into a salt lake in dry years than the Red Sea itself. And this happened repeatedly over the course of 25 million years, the last time 2.7 million years ago.

As a result of natural disasters, the sea level dropped to the bottom of the bottleneck - the Bab el-Mandeb Strait. This state of affairs existed for quite a long time, and the water in the reservoir became, according to the assumptions of some scientists, almost salty than today waters of the Dead seas. Then the World Ocean brought the sea closer to itself, and the salt concentration decreased. In the 60s of the last century, scientists discovered depressions with hot brine at the bottom of the Red Sea (salt content reaches 60 g per liter and increases by 0.3-0.7 g annually). A very interesting fact is that, according to the testimony of researchers who sank to the bottom in special apparatus, the brine does not mix with sea water, but lies as a separate mass. It contains a lot of different precious metals. The Red Sea is truly unique; in many respects it is the “most” on the planet.

Many variations of the name

The origin of the name is also interesting. There are several versions, each of which has the right to exist. For example, it is named after the color of the numerous red algae that give the water this hue. Ancient sailors saw it red because of the rocks of that color reflected in it. Or is it all due to the incorrect reading of the ancient Simite word, as if denoting the name of the people who lived here in time immemorial. In Ancient Egypt, the desert located next to the sea was called Ta-Desher (desher - “red”).

One version claims that some peoples associated the cardinal directions with colors: the east meant white, the north meant black, and the south meant red. According to this version, the Black Sea also means “northern”, “dark”, because in relation to the location of ancient civilizations it really is located in cold countries. The salinity of the Black Sea is low - 18%.

Salinity indicators of some seas

The most fresh sea on Earth, with a salt content in the depths of up to 1 gram per liter, and on the surface - up to 5, is the Baltic. The saltiest sea in the world belongs to the Indian Ocean basin, the warmest of all. It is natural to assume that the waters of water areas located closer to the equator are more saturated with salt. For example, the salinity of the Aegean Sea is 37-39% and higher, the Mediterranean Sea is 36-39.5%, the Ionian Sea is 38%, etc. The Sargasso Sea, located on the other side of the world, is also quite salty - 37%.

It is inappropriate to remember the disappearing Aral Sea, which at one time was the 4th most salinous body of water on the planet, since it is also a lake. The saltiest seas in the world are located in the same area of the globe, at a distance of 300 km from each other. Dead (if in this particular case we forget that this is a lake), or, as it is also called, Asphalt, or Sodom, is located between Israel, Jordan and Palestine.

Natural unique

We can talk endlessly about the Dead Sea because it is unique. As already noted, the lowest point on the planet - 423 meters below sea level - is located right here. The sea was formed about 5,000 years ago by breaking the earth's crust, as a result of which the shores of the salt lake still diverge. There is no life in it. This is an object of tourist pilgrimage. Dead Sea cosmetics are known all over the world. What else can I say? It was here that all the inhabitants of Sodom were turned into salt.

It is so concentrated that very little will sink in it. You can see a lot of photographs of people lying on the surface and reading a newspaper. Millions of tourists claim that the saltiest sea in the world is the Dead Sea. It’s hard to argue with this, it’s really very large, and many travelers don’t delve into whether it’s drainage or drainless, whether it’s connected to the World Ocean or not. Fabulous, amazing and big. Its area is 1059 square meters. km. For comparison: the saltiest lake in Russia, Baskunchak (37 grams of salt per liter of water) occupies 106 square meters. km.

Salty seas of Russia

The northern seas of Russia, located very far from the equator, are also quite concentrated. According to some sources, the percentage of salt in the Barents and Kara Seas is at the level of 34%, sometimes higher. But in most cases, the saltiest sea in the country is called the Sea of Japan, although it has the same indicator. So not in Russia, in general the greatest number Seas with a high content of this element are the saltiest sea in the world. Kara is simply one of the saltiest reservoirs in Russia.