Truly, the Sargasso Sea is one continuous phenomenon. Extracurricular activity for younger students “Why is the Sargasso Sea without coasts? Sargasso Sea why without shores

Did you know that there are seas without shores and borders? Where mirages live permanently and the sun rises from two sides?

the site knows a lot of strange and interesting things about this mysterious sea.

Our planet has a boundless sea that does not have a solid coastline. It is located in the Atlantic Ocean, in the Bermuda Triangle, and is clearly visible from space.

In this place you can observe unusual mirages with a split moon. Simultaneous sunrise from two opposite sides. Ghost ships gliding across the water. Giant disks "floating" from the depths.

Sea in the ocean

Mysterious sea on Earth

The area of ​​this mysterious reservoir is about 6 million km2. Due to the lack of solid shores and the instability of currents, it is constantly changing, either increasing or decreasing. The maximum depth reaches 7 thousand meters. AT summer period water temperature is 26-28 o, in the cold season it does not fall below 16-18 o.

This indicator of transparency is higher than in the Red Sea, which is considered the cleanest on our planet. In many places the surface is covered with accumulations of brown algae.

Life in the Sargasso Sea

Fauna of the Sargasso Sea

In the sea, on its bottom, bushy Sargassum algae grow. Breaking away from the bush, they float up and are held on the surface of the water thanks to air bubbles. It is a natural pasture for 60 species marine life Sargasso Sea - sea turtles, shrimp, crabs, flying fish, etc. But large predators I don't like this place, only occasionally swim here.

If he is frightened, then he begins to quickly swallow water, swelling and increasing in size to a spherical state.

eel fish

But most striking is the behavior of the European eel. For a long time it was a mystery to man where they spawn. And only in the last century it was possible to find out that in order to reproduce offspring, they travel to the Sargasso Sea, thousands of kilometers from their habitat.

Behavior of the European eel

The history of the name of the sea

What do the name of the sea and wild Portuguese grapes have in common? It turns out that it got its name thanks to this plant.

When, in 1492, the navigator Columbus found himself in these waters covered with algae with some kind of "berries", they reminded him and the entire crew of sailors of grapes in their homeland. Its name was Sargazo, they named the algae and this place - the Sargasso Sea.

Subsequently, it turned out that the "berries" are just an accumulation of air bubbles at the ends of the plant. They support them on the surface of the water. For sailboats of past centuries, these algae were a mortal danger. From the insidious trap in complete calm there was no way to get out.

Windless weather in these places can last for several months. Sailors of sailboats became eternal hostages of the sea and died of hunger and thirst.

Cemetery of ships

The proximity of the mysterious Bermuda Triangle adds to the mystery.

Mysterious sea without borders and shores

The surviving witnesses reluctantly tell that in the midst of complete calm and a cloudless sky, it suddenly began suddenly. And soon, just as suddenly, there was silence, and the surface of the water was in a misty haze. The entire crew of the ship disappeared without a trace, but everything of value and lifeboats remained in place.

Ecology

From the debris on it formed a huge floating island. It was first discovered in 1972. And every year its size increases, occupying hundreds of kilometers of the water surface.

Video: Mysterious sea without shores

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It turns out that it is not at all easy to define such a seemingly simple concept as the sea. There is no generally accepted definition, which means that there is no generally accepted classification of the seas either.

The sea is usually defined as a large part of the world ocean, which differs in some parameters from this ocean itself. Its own special climatic, hydrological and meteorological regime in the sea arises from the fact that for some reason the free water exchange between the sea and the "open" ocean slows down. Most often, such a reason is the configuration of the seashore or the rise of the underwater relief to the surface of the water. So, the Sea of ​​\u200b\u200bAzov connects with the Atlantic Ocean through the Black and Mediterranean Seas, but both the salinity of the water here and the fauna and flora differ significantly from those of the ocean. The border between the Aegean and the Mediterranean is determined very conditionally along the line connecting the islands of Crete, Karpathos and Rhodes. The difference between these seas is difficult to determine if you are not an expert.

And immediately everyone who studied geography remembers the seas that are not connected to the ocean: the Caspian, the Aral, the Dead... They do not fit the above definition, but are considered seas. But neither Baikal nor Lake Kinneret, located very close to Dead Sea, for some reason they are not considered as such.

Another exception to the seemingly strict definition is the sea without shores. Yes, there is such a thing. It is called the Sargasso Sea and is located in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of America. Bermuda is located at its northwestern tip. Christopher Columbus discovered it in his voyage before reaching the shores of America. At some point sea ​​water, along which his caravels sailed, became motionless and covered with many plants. Plus, the wind stopped at that moment. It seemed to the sailors that these plants clung to the sides of their boats and did not allow them to sail further. "We are dead!" - was the first thought. In addition, at night in the sky, sailors saw a large starfall, which was also interpreted as a sign of trouble. God knows what might have happened next if Columbus hadn't ordered the oars to get away from both the calm and the strange water covered with algae. A few days later, the wind blew, a current appeared. Soon the sailor on duty saw the islands. This marked the end of a glorious journey that literally changed the course of world history.

Columbus, of course, marked a strange place on the map. But it was studied later. And the sea got its name later. Sargassum was named after the algae that covered the entire water surface here. Portuguese sailors called these algae "sargassa", "small grapes".

But why does this sea exist without shores? What limits it from other ocean waters? What makes the waters of the Sargasso Sea different from other waters Atlantic Ocean?

The answer is: undercurrents. The Sargasso Sea region is bounded on all sides by the Atlantic currents. In the west it is the warm Gulf Stream, in the north it is the North Atlantic Current. In the east, the Sargasso Sea is limited by the Canary Current, and in the south by the North Trade Wind Current. It was this latter that drove the ships of Columbus at the beginning of his journey across the open ocean. In general, these four currents form a circular movement of ocean waters in a clockwise direction.

As always, if the water begins to move in a circle, a place is formed in the center where it is still. This is the Sargasso Sea. Precisely because the surface layer of water is immobile here, Sargasas rise to the surface and form a huge "carpet". This "carpet" is visible even from space. space stations and satellites have repeatedly filmed the surface of the Sargasso Sea for biological research.

Unfortunately, they photographed him for other purposes as well. The fact is that the circular current, as if forming the "shores" of the Sargasso Sea, sucks in from the outer ocean all kinds of light debris floating on the surface of the Atlantic in tropical latitudes. Almost one hundred percent of this garbage consists of plastic bottles and boxes. You cannot deceive the laws of nature - all the garbage, swirling in a circular current, slowing down its movement, gradually shifts to the center of the Sargasso Sea, where, having stopped, it forms huge spots plastic waste. Because the

Text by Pavel Digay

In February of this year, the French yacht "Julia" was in trouble. Having passed the Panama Canal, she was heading from the shores of Central America to the shores of Europe. There were four people on board the yacht: two adults - father and mother, and their two children - a 9-year-old girl and an 11-year-old boy. Safely passing the Caribbean Sea, passing between Haiti and Cuba, leaving behind Bahamas, the yacht turned to the northeast. The travelers had no intention of visiting Bermuda, they wanted to go straight to Gibraltar to go to the Mediterranean and in Marseille, at home, to put an end to their round-the-world trip. All was well until thunder struck. Literally. The sky was covered with clouds. From them to the sea stretched lightning. One of them - perhaps because the Julia's hull is made of steel - hit the mast. Fortunately, the lightning rod worked reliably, but navigation equipment was disabled. And not only the devices themselves, all the wiring turned out to be unusable. The situation, however, did not look dramatic, there are sails, a motor, in the end you can ask for help ... But it turned out that the engine could not be started, damaged batteries did not allow contact with the ground, the emergency buoy also refused to work - and not a breeze. Complete, dead calm! So it was the next day, and a week later, and two weeks later. However, there was no panic on board: there was enough food, although the non-working refrigerator made adjustments to the menu, there was also enough water. It remained to be patient and wait, entertaining yourself with a swim among the Sargasso seaweed. Yes, the yacht and its crew ended up in the center of the Sargasso Sea, a mysterious and, as it was believed in past centuries, deadly place.

How deadly?

In the Age of the Great geographical discoveries, when Spanish, Portuguese and other sailing ships sailed from the Old World to the New World, they often fell into a calm zone, stretching between 23-35 ° N. sh. and 30-68° W. e. The merciless sun and complete calm for many weeks led to the fact that people lost their minds and even died of hunger and thirst. Indeed, this happened, but for some ship to become completely depopulated for the indicated reason - there is no documentary evidence of this, these are already stories. Another thing is certain: having become prisoners of the Sargasso Sea, the first thing the sailors did was get rid of the horses that were taken to the American colonies. That is why these latitudes were nicknamed "horse" - Horse Latitudes. But sooner or later the wind filled the sails, and the ships continued on their way.

The Julia drifted for eighteen days. Although it seemed that the yacht was frozen in place, in fact it was slowly circling clockwise in a huge whirlpool, which is called the Sargasso merry-go-round. But the wind came, and everything started to move - the people on board smiled, and the yacht headed towards the shore, but towards the one that is closer, to Bermuda. She got there without any incidents to the great joy of the crew, who were burning with impatience to tell the world and journalists about their stay in the heart of the Sargasso Sea. Their story, however, turned out to be colorful only at the beginning, where there was a thunderstorm, thunder and lightning, but then ... day after day the same thing. Heat, sublimates, swimming, algae - melancholy! Nevertheless, he makes us turn to past examples, and not from glorious times, but relatively recent ones.

In 1894, the schooner Norwood was heading from the United States to Europe. A hurricane swept her south into the Sargasso Sea. Even in the first stormy days, the crew of the schooner left the ship, which gave a leak, and moved to boats, while forgetting about the cabin boy, the cook's assistant named Thomson. Left alone on a ship that had sunk, but kept on the water, Thomson did not give up, but repaired one of the remaining boats, armed it with a mast and a sail, and got out of the trap (and his “comrades” in the crew disappeared into the ocean). As the young man later said, during his journey through the sea, reminiscent of a "green meadow or swamp", he saw an old galleon entangled in algae, an 18-gun brig next to it, and a rusted steamer in the distance. This would have been enough for him, but the following story about the meeting with sea ​​serpent somewhat undermined the credibility of everything said earlier. However…

In 1912, the Italian three-masted sailing ship Herat was also “delivered” by a storm to the Sargasso Sea. For seven months, a hopeless drift in a vicious circle continued. During this time, the sailors saw huge "islands" of algae, from which tree trunks and wrecks of sunken ships protruded. When food and water supplies were almost exhausted, a saving fresh breeze carried the Herat into clear waters.

And before that ... Joshua Slocum - this name is known to every sailor. In 1898, completing trip around the world- the first circumnavigation of the world, accomplished on a yacht under sail alone, Slocum was stuck in the Sargasso Sea for a whole week. 10 years have passed, and in 1909, the captain of the Spray set off on his famous boat from the island of Martha's Vineyard (Massachusetts) to South America. Since then, no one has seen him again. And it seems that his path lay just across the Sargasso Sea ...

And one more thing ... In 1955, the Connemara-4 yacht was discovered in the Sargasso Sea without a single person on board. What happened on board remains a mystery.

And finally ... In 2012, the crew of the Russian yacht Scorpius, led by captain Sergei Nizovtsev, tried to set a world record by completing two round-the-world trips without a break in one year - around Antarctica and North Pole. At the point with coordinates 27 degrees 9 minutes s. sh., 64 degrees 50 minutes for s. d., and this is the "roadside" of the Sargasso Sea, the yacht was struck by lightning. All navigational devices failed, except for ... the Russian GLONASS. And the motor was fine too. So our travelers did not have a chance to experience all the horrors of the "Sargasso captivity" - they left! And then the record was set.

So what is it, the Sargasso Sea?

First, about the name. When the ships of Christopher Columbus made their way through these waters, the sailors paid attention to the berries with which the branches of algae were hung, they very much resembled sargazo - small berries wild grapes. So they began to call strange algae, and then the sea, which became Sargasso, although, if desired, it can be translated poetically - the Sea of ​​​​Vines. By the way, in the old days this sea was also called the Ladies' Sea, because, according to the sailors, even the most weak woman. The Ladies' Sea is also beautiful.

It should be noted that the "berries" of algae are not fruits at all, the Sargasso do not have them at all, they reproduce by spores. In fact, this is something like floats filled with air that hold the plant near the surface. Sargasso grow along the coasts of the West Indies and the American continent, where they are not floating, but take root in the bottom soil. Hurricanes tear them up and carry them into the ocean, where they are picked up by currents and collected in the whirlpool of the Sargasso Sea. The stocks of floating algae here are estimated at about 10 million tons.

Let us return, however, to the sea. However, some geographers believe that this section of the World Ocean cannot be called a sea at all. Because it has no shores! To this another - most of geographers objects: the presence of coasts, they say, is not the main feature that the scientific world endows with the seas, the main thing is special hydrometeorological conditions, namely, they sharply distinguish these waters from their surroundings. And this is undeniable.

The Sargasso Sea (we will still call it that) is located above the deep part of the Atlantic Ocean - the North American Basin, whose maximum depth is 6995 m. The boundaries of the sea, which has the shape of a giant ellipse, are ocean currents: in the north - the North Atlantic, in the south - the North Trade Wind, in the west - the Gulf Stream, in the east - the Canary.

It is clear that "liquid coasts" are by definition unstable, so the area of ​​the sea is constantly changing from 8.5 to 4 million km2. Those who have taken the Sargasso Sea into a ring of currents drive their water into it, at the same time making it difficult for its water to go out. That is why the level of the Sargasso Sea is 1-2 meters higher than the surrounding ocean. But this is not the only result. Another is the increased salinity of the water due to the immiscibility of the layers and, for the same reason, its temperature. AT winter months the water temperature does not fall below +18, and in summer it reaches +28; even at a depth of 400 m, the water is warm - up to +17, while in other areas of the ocean at the same depth the temperature is only +5 °.

The Sargasso Sea is located in the zone of increased atmospheric pressure, so it rarely blows here strong winds. There are few rainfalls. Vapors are strong. Internal currents are weak. As a result, the water is extremely poor in oxygen, and hence in phytoalgae, and hence in zooplankton. That is why the water here is so clear - visibility reaches 60 meters, which is higher than in the Red Sea, which is considered the standard of water purity due to the absence of flowing rivers. But for the same reason, the fauna here is not rich in wealth. But the one that is, is unique!

Sargasso have become a floating home for tiny crustaceans and crabs, shrimps, seahorses... Almost all the inhabitants of the Sargassum community have a body shape and colors that hide them among the algae. Such is the Sargasso clown, whose body looks like a twig of sargassum, he is yellow-brown, and his fins resemble hands with which he “grabs” seaweed. An interesting animal is the traveler crab, known for, which upset the sailors of Columbus: when they saw a Sargasso crab sitting on a branch, they mistakenly decided that the land was somewhere nearby. In ancient times, there were a lot of turtles in the Sargasso Sea, and they even sometimes saved sailors, captivated by calm, from starvation. Of the creatures of a more impressive size, there are dolphins that feed on flying fish, and sharks, but since there are very few people who want to splash among the algae of the Sargasso Sea, there is no data on the tragic meetings of people with sharks. And also - eels! Only a little over a century ago, their secret was discovered - they spawn in the Sargasso Sea, thousands of kilometers from their rivers, and, having given life to a new generation, die in its waters. And that's why they do this long haul still no clear answer.

Truly, the Sargasso Sea is one complete phenomenon.

But is it worth it to attribute to him what is not, as experts in the field of "paranormal" knowledge do? It is the Sargasso Sea that they consider guilty of all the troubles that happen in the notorious Bermuda Triangle. One of the leading "experts", Australian oceanographer Richard Sylvester, argues that the unhurried "carousel" of the Sargasso Sea gives rise to smaller, but incredibly strong and swift whirlpools that drag ships into the abyss. In turn, the minicyclones, which have arisen due to whirlpools, suck in planes. Such hypotheses are, of course, curious as "mind games", but you should listen to other scientists who are concerned that there is more and more plastic garbage in the center of the "carousel", and this is no longer a secret - a problem that needs to be solved.

Win-win plot
The legends surrounding the Sargasso Sea could not but be reflected in literature, and above all adventure literature. Painfully suitable were the "decorations" - broken ships of all sizes and eras, decayed sails, skulls and bones, and treasures that the inhabitants of this incredible world do not need, from which there is no way out alive.
Writers have approached this plot more than once, but hardly anyone will dare to dispute the fact that Alexander Belyaev, known not only for his books Amphibian Man or Air Seller, but also for The Island of Lost Ships, did it best.
The first chapters of the novel were published in The World Pathfinder in 1926. The following year, the publication was completed, and a separate edition appeared at the same time. Since then, the novel has been reprinted many times, its total circulation has long exceeded ten million copies. And all because the history of a strange state in the center of the Sargasso Sea, where dozens of abandoned ships pressed against each other, turned out to be excitingly interesting. Plus, the love of the main characters and the attempt on this love by the Governor of the Island. Plus a crime that never happened, and an absolutely positive character, who is actually a criminal. In general, a complete set of fascinating moves, which are not at all hindered by the class struggle and denunciation of the "animal grin of capitalism."
In 1987, based on the novel, a film of the same name was shot, which turned out to be unsuccessful, despite the presence of the "star" Konstantin Raikin in it. Because the film was performed like a musical, and dances and songs somehow do not fit with real adventures, brutal heroes and flawless beauties.
In 1994, again based on the novel, the film drama Rains in the Ocean was filmed. Few have heard of this film, and even fewer have watched it. And who saw, he will agree: it is for the best. The movie failed.
But the book lives on! And absolutely deserved.

Large expanses of the Atlantic Ocean, closer to the mainland North America, between 20 and 40 gr. With. sh. 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, in the south - the Trade wind, moving circularly clockwise.

Acting as a kind of watershed or dam, the currents keep the surface waters of the Sargasso Sea from mixing with the colder waters of the North Atlantic. But unlike ordinary land shores that limit the seas, these water "shores" due to the inconstancy of sea currents undergo significant movements at different times of the year, 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 fact that plants accumulated on the surface of the ocean, which are called Sargasso algae. 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 navigators called them "sargasso", because the air bubbles that help the algae move and stay on the water are similar to the grape variety common in Portugal.

The Sargasso Sea is a peculiar 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 on?

The unusualness of the Sargasso Sea has given rise to many legends. The most tenacious tells of the existence of such accumulations of algae there that ships get stuck and die in them. 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, the sailboats of past centuries really got stuck in the center of the Sargasso Sea. But not because of the algae, but because of the eternal calm. Sometimes I had to stand indefinitely. Crews of galleons were forced to throw overboard riding horses to save supplies drinking water. The unfortunate horses could survive for months by staying afloat and eating algae. Sailors on passing ships often saw incomprehensible creatures floundering in the tangle of seaweed with the maddened snoring of a horse, rotting alive in the scorching sun. Therefore, the Sargasso Sea in past centuries was also called "horse latitudes."

As a rule, the status of the sea receives a small space in the ocean, which is framed by islands and shores of the continents. However, the Sargasso Sea is an exception, as it has no shores at all. Such a kind of "sea without shores" stretches in the west of the Atlantic Ocean. Unlike other seas, the Sargasso Sea is different unique properties water, amazing calmness and features of the living population, you will not find this in the waters of the Atlantic. Such differences are facilitated by the circulation of currents, which goes clockwise, creating peculiar boundaries in the sea.

To date, the Sargasso Sea remains a mysterious place for mankind. In the Middle Ages, there was an unkind rumor about him. And the reason is that a significant part of the maritime territory is located in the Bermuda Triangle, which is located in the southwest of the Atlantic Sea. In addition, the Sargasso Sea is considered the only sea of ​​its kind that has no boundaries on land. From all borders, the Sargasso Sea is beaten off by strong currents, among which is the Gulf Stream. Also in this zone of the World Ocean there are strong thickets of algae, which, floating on the surface of the sea, resemble land islands. Such islands sometimes circle in place, but the sea water seems to be stationary here, because they move very slowly.

Another mystery of the Sargasso Sea is the year-round calm, windless weather. Therefore, this sea has a bad reputation, it is called a graveyard of ships. Medieval sailboats, falling into a calm, stopped, and rowing by hand was not possible due to algae. For this reason, the sailors relied on the appearance of the wind or slowly died.

Interestingly, only algae grow in the Sargasso Sea, but their quantity is sufficient for most small fish and other living creatures that live and feed among them. Many fish choose these waters for breeding because of the warmth, salinity and cleanliness.

Inhabitants of the Sargasso Sea

It is the Sargasso Sea that is called the birthplace of eels that live in the Atlantic Sea basin. Eels swim here to spawn, from here they do not return back. Eel larvae hatch in local waters, and then fry develop. Adults are sent to Europe.

Science fiction writers have appreciated this interesting natural object. Edward Hamilton, Jules Verne, Warner Munn, Andre Norton and many others often used Sargassum seaweed or the Sargasso Sea theme in their works.

It is noteworthy that almost all living creatures of the Sargasso society are distinguished by their color and shape, which is hidden in algae. The fish resemble twigs and leaves, and the body color has yellow-brown hues that perfectly mask them. It is difficult to see a seahorse among the Sargassum branches. The sargasso sea clown is also disguised - its body resembles a sargassum branch.

Most people are familiar with the breeding history of the European eel in the Sargasso Sea. After all, for hundreds of years no one knew exactly where this fish breeds. This has been the secret of the Sargasso Sea for centuries. Interestingly, they create offspring in its waters, then return here to die in its depths. Such loyalty to the motherland is an amazing development among the fish community.

A little more about the inhabitants

It is noteworthy that it was thanks to the eels that scientists were able to detect the current at a considerable depth of the ocean, because the fish goes here. The discovered current is the opposite of the Gulf Stream, which is why it received the name Anti-Golf Stream. Thanks to this current, the eels return to their spawning grounds. The story of eels is endless, the American eel from North America spawns in another region of this sea, and uses a certain branch of the current as a passing transport to rivers and American shores.

The inhabitants of the Sargasso Sea are sea ​​turtles who saved sailors during a calm. These wonderful turtles feed on algae. Jellyfish and invertebrates are also found here. Even sharks are found in this unusual sea, mainly: pelagic sharks, blue sharks, silk and mako. Almost no one swims in this sea, so sharks do not pose a danger to people.