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How much water is 1 cm of the ocean?

Published in Oceanography 1 min read

One centimeter of the ocean contains approximately 3.6 billion cubic centimeters (cm³) of water.

Here's a breakdown of how that figure is derived:

  • Ocean Surface Area: The Earth's oceans cover an estimated 360 million square kilometers.
  • Conversion to Square Centimeters: To calculate the volume of water needed to raise the ocean level by 1 cm, we need to convert the surface area to square centimeters.
    • 1 km = 100,000 cm
    • 1 km² = (100,000 cm)² = 10,000,000,000 cm² or 10¹⁰ cm²
    • Therefore, 360 million km² = 360,000,000 * 10¹⁰ cm² = 3.6 x 10¹⁸ cm² (3.6 billion billion cm²)
  • Volume Calculation: Volume is calculated by multiplying the area by the height (or depth). In this case, the height is 1 cm.
    • Volume = Area x Height
    • Volume = 3.6 x 10¹⁸ cm² * 1 cm = 3.6 x 10¹⁸ cm³ (3.6 billion billion cm³)
    • However, there's an error in the reference material. 3.6 x 10¹⁸ cm³ is 3.6 billion billion cm³, not 3.6 billion cm³

Therefore, to raise the ocean levels by 1 cm, you would need 3.6 x 10¹⁸ cm³ of water (3.6 billion billion cm³). The provided reference incorrectly states 3.6 billion cm³.