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Ocean water seeps into cracks in the seafloor and is heated by magma from the Earth’s core. The heat causes a series of chemical reactions. The water tends to lose oxygen, magnesium, and sulfates, and pick up metals such as iron, zinc, and copper from surrounding rocks.
But over time, as rain fell to the Earth and ran over the land, breaking up rocks and transporting their minerals to the ocean, the ocean has become saltier. Rain replenishes freshwater in rivers and streams, so they don’t taste salty.
The oceans cover about 70 percent of the Earth's surface, and that about 97 percent of all water on and in the Earth is saline—there's a lot of salty water on our planet. Find out here how the water in the seas became salty.
It comes from the land, mostly. As rain forms and falls through the air, it accumulates carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, causing it to become slightly acidic. It then flows over the land, eroding rocks and picking up small amounts of salt and other dissolved minerals.
If you go swimming in a lake, the water is fresh; when you dive into the ocean, it tastes salty. But why? The water flowing into the ocean comes from freshwater streams and rivers. These bodies of water do contain salt. It dissolves from rocks on land. That’s because rain is slightly acidic.
Salt in the ocean comes from rocks on land. Here's how it works: From precipitation to the land to the rivers to the sea.... The rain that falls on the land contains some dissolved carbon dioxide from the surrounding air. This causes the rainwater to be slightly acidic due to carbonic acid.
Why is the ocean salty? The ocean’s salt comes from two sources: runoff from the land and openings in the seafloor. Rocks that end up in ocean water are the primary source.
Here's a look at what makes the ocean salty and why other bodies of water have a different chemical composition. Key Takeaways: Why Is the Sea Salty? The oceans of the world have a fairly stable salinity of about 35 parts per thousand.
The short answer to the question “Why is the ocean salty?” is that water containing salts enters the ocean and has nowhere else to go. The water evaporates, leaving sodium chloride (table salt) and a variety of other dissolved minerals behind.
We explain just why the ocean is salty, where the saltiest water is on Earth and the importance of salt in the ocean.