How was the Challenger Deep formed?

The Mariana Trench was formed through a process called subduction. Earth's crust is made up of comparably thin plates that “float” on the molten rock of the planet's mantle. ... When two plates crash into each other, an oceanic plate plunges downward into the mantle, while the other plate rides up over the top.

1. How was the Mariana Trench formed?
2. What is Challenger Deep and why does it exist?
3. How did the Mariana Trench get so deep?
4. What's at the bottom of Challenger Deep?
5. Are there monsters in the Mariana Trench?
6. Has a human been to the bottom of the Mariana Trench?
7. Is there anything deeper than Mariana Trench?
8. What lives in Mariana Trench?
9. Is there anything deeper than Challenger Deep?
10. Who owns the Mariana Trench?
11. Which is deeper Mariana Trench or Challenger Deep?
12. How deep can a human dive before being crushed?
13. How much of the ocean is discovered?
14. What is the deepest a human has ever dived?

How was the Mariana Trench formed?

The Mariana Trench, in the South Pacific Ocean, is formed as the mighty Pacific plate subducts beneath the smaller, less-dense Philippine plate. In a subduction zone, some of the molten material—the former seafloor—can rise through volcanoes located near the trench.

What is Challenger Deep and why does it exist?

The Challenger Deep is the deepest known point of the seabed in the Earth's hydrosphere (the oceans and seas), with a depth of 10,902 to 10,929 m (35,768 to 35,856 ft) by direct measurement from deep-diving submersibles, remotely operated underwater vehicles, and benthic landers and (sometimes) slightly more by sonar ...

How did the Mariana Trench get so deep?

The Mariana Trench is part of a global network of deep troughs that cut across the ocean floor. They form when two tectonic plates collide. At the collision point, one of the plates dives beneath the other into the Earth's mantle, creating an ocean trench.

What's at the bottom of Challenger Deep?

(CNN) — An American undersea explorer has completed what is claimed to be the deepest manned sea dive ever recorded -- returning to the surface with the depressing news that there appears to be plastic trash down there.

Are there monsters in the Mariana Trench?

Despite its immense distance from everywhere else, life seems to be abundant in the Trench. Recent expeditions have found myriad creatures living out their lives at the bottom of the sea-floor. Xenophyophores, amphipods, and holothurians (not the names of alien species, I promise) all call the trench home.

Has a human been to the bottom of the Mariana Trench?

On 23 January 1960, two explorers, US navy lieutenant Don Walsh and Swiss engineer Jacques Piccard, became the first people to dive 11km (seven miles) to the bottom of the Mariana Trench.

Is there anything deeper than Mariana Trench?

The deepest place in the Atlantic is in the Puerto Rico Trench, a place called Brownson Deep at 8,378m. The expedition also confirmed the second deepest location in the Pacific, behind the Challenger Deep in the Mariana Trench. This runner-up is the Horizon Deep in the Tonga Trench with a depth of 10,816m.

What lives in Mariana Trench?

The organisms discovered in the Mariana Trench include bacteria, crustaceans, sea cucumbers, octopuses and fishes. In 2014, the deepest living fish, at the depth of 8000 meters, Mariana snailfish was discovered near Guam.

Is there anything deeper than Challenger Deep?

The Mariana Trench is a crescent-shaped trench in the Western Pacific, just east of the Mariana Islands near Guam. ... The ocean's second-deepest place is also in the Mariana Trench. The Sirena Deep, which lies 124 miles (200 kilometers) to the east of Challenger Deep, is a bruising 35,462 feet deep (10,809 m).

Who owns the Mariana Trench?

The Mariana Trench, in the Pacific Ocean, is the deepest location on Earth. According to the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), the United States has jurisdiction over the trench and its resources. Scientists use a variety of technologies to overcome the challenges of deep-sea exploration and explore the Trench.

Which is deeper Mariana Trench or Challenger Deep?

In the Pacific Ocean, somewhere between Guam and the Philippines, lies the Marianas Trench, also known as the Mariana Trench. At 35,814 feet below sea level, its bottom is called the Challenger Deep — the deepest point known on Earth. ... Challenger Deep is the deepest point of the Marianas Trench.

How deep can a human dive before being crushed?

Human bone crushes at about 11159 kg per square inch. This means we'd have to dive to about 35.5 km depth before bone crushes. This is three times as deep as the deepest point in our ocean.

How much of the ocean is discovered?

According to the National Ocean Service, it's a shockingly small percentage. Just 5 percent of Earth's oceans have been explored and charted – especially the ocean below the surface. The rest remains mostly undiscovered and unseen by humans.

What is the deepest a human has ever dived?

The deepest dive ever (on record) is 1,082 feet (332 meters) set by Ahmed Gabr in 2014. That depth is the equivalent of approximately 10 NBA basketball courts aligned vertically. In terms of pressure, that's about 485 pounds per square inch. Most people's lungs would be crushed at that depth.