CLASS VI

SUBJECT – GEOGRAPHY
CHAPTER – WATER BODIES OF THE EARTH

Why the Earth is called ‘the blue planet’?

When we look at the Earth from space, it looks like a blue marble. This characteristic blue
appearance is due to the enormous water bodies covering 71% of its surface. These water
bodies can be classified into four main types, namely oceans, seas, lakes and rivers.

How the vast water bodies of the Earth formed?

Earlier scientists believed that the Earth had no water when it formed, and the water was
brought to Earth when the icy comets and asteroids from outer space crashed onto our
planet. However, recent research has shown that the Earth had actually formed with water.
Water was contained in its rocks, from where it seeped out and collected on the surface.
Water vapour from volcanic eruption may have also condensed to form rain. Gradually water
bodies formed. Later, these water bodies were subjected to endogenous and exogenous
forces to form the oceans, seas, lakes and rivers we see today.

‘The Blue Marble’ – the Earth as seen from space: the ‘Blue Marble’ originally referred to
a photograph of the Earth taken by Apollo 17 in the year 1972.

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• Ocean - The huge bodies of saltwater that surround the continents.
• Five major oceans – They are all interconnected. In terms of area, the Oceans are ranked
as – Pacific Ocean, Atlantic Ocean, Indian Ocean, Southern Ocean and Arctic Ocean.

How our ocean floor looks like?

The ocean floor is not a plain surface. Here we can find –

 The longest chain of mountains of the earth.
 Deep trenches (meaning of trench - a long, narrow, deep depression in the ocean bed,
typically one running parallel to a plate boundary and marking a subduction zone.)
 Volcanoes (the definition - a mountain or hill, typically conical, having a crater or vent
through which lava, rock fragments, hot vapour, and gas are or have been erupted from
the earth's crust.
 Canyons (the definition - a deep gorge, typically one with a river flowing through it)
 Deep sea plain- [An abyssal plain is an underwater plain on the deep ocean floor, usually
found at depths between 3,000 metres and 6,000 metres. The creation of the abyssal plain
is the result of the spreading of the seafloor (plate tectonics) and the melting of the lower
oceanic crust.]

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Things to know about the Oceans –

Oceans Pacific Ocean Atlantic Ocean Indian Ocean Southern Arctic

Ocean Oceans
Features  Largest and  Second largest  Only Ocean  Also known as  Remains
deepest ocean Ocean named after a Antarctic frozen for
 Covers nearly  Resembles letter country. Ocean most of the
1/3rd of the ‘S’  This ocean is  Extension of year
Earth’s Surface  Mid Atlantic blocked towards Pacific,  Spreads
 Mariana Trench Ridges- most its north with Atlantic and around the
in Philippines striking feature the landmasses Indian Ocean North Pole
(deepest point (It is the ranges  Chagos  Remains frozen  Icebergs
on the surface of of underwater Laccadive Ridge- for most of the which are
the Earth), Kuril mountains and (a massive year huge
trench, Japan deep cracks undersea masses of
trench & through which mountain range ice floats in
Aleutian Trench molten rocks lies along the the water
oozes up to cool floor of the during
and form new ocean. Its peaks summer
rocks). appears as
islands.)

Surrounding East- North East- bounded by North- Asia Surrounds the South
Continents America and Europe and West- Africa continent of Bounded by
& Oceans South America Africa South-Antarctica Antarctica large
West- Asia & West- bounded continental
Australia by Americas masses of
North- Bering North- merges North
Sea joins it to with Arctic Ocean America
the South- it merges and Eurasia
Arctic Ocean with Southern
South- it merges Ocean
with Southern
Ocean
Islands New Guinea, Canary Island, Lakshadweep, Scott Island, Greenland
Tasmania, Cape Verde, Maldives, Balleny Iceland,
Vancouver, New Mauritius, Islands and Ellesmere
Hawaii Foundland, Andaman and Falkland Island,
British Isles, Nicobar Island Novaya
West Indies Zemlya

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What is a Sea?

Seas are mostly -

• extensions of the oceans
• smaller in size
• shallower in depth and
• partly surrounded by land

OCEANS SEAS (attached to the ocean)

Pacific Ocean Bering Sea, East China Sea, Sea of Okhotsk, Sea of Japan, South
China Sea
Atlantic Ocean Caribbean Sea, North Sea, Mediterranean Sea
Indian Ocean Arabian Sea, Andaman Sea, Red Sea, Bay of Bengal
Arctic Ocean Beaufort Sea, Kara Sea, Barents Sea

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What is the difference between Marginal Sea and Inland Sea?

Marginal Sea Inland Sea

 Large and shallow bodies of water that lies  Shallow bodies of water that covers
along the margins of the continents. central areas of the continents.
 Partly enclosed by peninsulas or islands  Completely surrounded by landmasses
and they separate coastal zones from open
oceans.
Eg. – The English Channel, Caribbean Sea, Eg. – Black Sea, Caspian Sea, Aral Sea
Bering Sea, Arabian Sea

What are the importance of oceans and seas?

 Oceans and seas influence world climate and weather patterns by absorbing heat
from the sun and transferring it to colder parts of the Earth.
 They are important source of food like fish.
 They provide means of livelihood for many people and support various industries.
 Ocean bed contains many resources which are useful to us like iron ore, petroleum
and natural gas.
 They play an important role in the transport of goods and people and are vital for the
world trade.

What is the difference between Lakes and Reservoirs?

Lakes Reservoirs
It is a water filled hollow on the Earth’s Artificial lakes are called reservoirs
surface surrounded by land
Can be artificial or natural Mainly artificial
Natural lakes are mainly found in Built by human whenever required for
mountainous regions, glacial regions and specific purpose
rift zones

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Types of lakes :
Lakes are formed in different ways and accordingly names are given.
Kettle/Glacial Lakes -
Sometimes, as a glacier flows down a river
valley, it plucks out large pieces of rock from
the valley floor, forming large hollows. These
hollows fill up with rain water to form what
are called kettle lakes.
Examples – Lake Onega in Russia, Seven
Rila Lakes in Bulgaria, Tsomgo in Sikkim.
Oxbow lakes – It is formed when a meander
is cut off from the main river.
Examples – Lake Kanwar in Bihar, Lake
Chicot in Arkansas (North America).
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Caldera lakes -
When water gets collected in craters and
calderas left behind after a volcanic
eruption these lakes are formed.
Examples – Quilotoa Lake in Ecuador,
Crater lake in Oregon, USA.
Salt Lakes - These are landlocked bodies of
water with high content of dissolved
minerals.
Examples - Sambhar in Rajasthan, Chilika
in Odisha.
 Rift Lakes – Rift Lakes form when water collects
in rift valleys – depressions caused by subsidence
of the Earth’s crust. Lake Victoria and Lake
Tanganyika in the East African Rift Valley are two
of the largest fresh-water lakes in the world.

Some Facts about Lakes –

 Lake Baikal is the deepest lake in the world.
 Lake Titicaca lies along the borders of Peru and
Bolivia and is South America’s largest lake
 Africa’s Great Victoria Lake is the chief source
of the River Nile.
 Lake Chilika, with its brackish water, is the
home to a variety of migratory birds.
 The Great Lakes of North America- Superior,
Michigan, Huron, Erie and Ontario form the
largest surface fresh water system of the world.
 The Great Lakes that lie on the Canadian –USA
border are Kettle Lakes formed by the
continental glaciers.
The lakes of the Great Rift Valley in Africa
What are the importance of Lakes?
 Important sources of fresh water – both for domestic use and for irrigation.
 They provide avenues for recreation.
 They are habits for wildlife.

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Rivers :

Few keywords to remember –

 River- When fresh water flows down from a highland within a clearly defined channel, it
is termed as river.
 Source- The point from where a river begins its flow.
 Mouth- The place where a river flows into a lake, sea or another river.
 Delta- A tract of flat land formed at the mouth of the river by deposition of sediments
 Tributary- A stream which flows into a larger river.
 Distributary- A stream that branches out of the main river.
 Meander – A curve in the path of a river.

Most of the ancient civilization were river valley civilization - Why?

Rivers are considered to be the lifelines of human civilization. Rivers were important for
their survival as they provided them with water, good farmland and a way for people to carry
out trade. Thus, the Indus, the Nile and the Yellow River Valley civilizations all flourished
along rivers.

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Rivers are good for agriculture- Give reason?

Rivers shape the land they flow through by the process of erosion. The eroded material is
called sediments. During the rains, the river overflows and flood its banks. When the flood
water recede, they leave behind sediments creating a broad flood plain. The extremely fertile
soil of these plains are good for agriculture.

The famous cities of today which are located on the banks of rivers –

CITY RIVER
Delhi Yamuna
Cairo Nile
Chicago Mississippi
London Thames
Bonn Rhine
Wuhan Yangtze
Paris Seine

DISTRIBUTION OF RIVERS IN THE WORLD

RIVERS SOURCE MOUTH

Amazon Andes in Peru Atlantic Ocean
Nile Central Africa Mediterranean Sea
Mississippi Lake Itasca Gulf of Mexico
Rhine Swiss Alps North Sea in Netherlands
Danube Black Forest Black Sea
Indus Tibet, China Arabian Sea
Yangtze Geladaindong Peak East China Sea near Shanghai
Huang He Bayan Har Mountain Gulf of Bohai
Ob Altai Mountains Arctic Ocean
Murray Australian Alps Indian Ocean
Ganga Gangotri glacier in Himalayas Bay of Bengal
Mackenzie Rocky Mountains Arctic Ocean
Saint Lawrence Great Lakes region of USA and Atlantic Ocean in eastern
Canada Canada

What are the importance of rivers?

 Rivers are an important source of fresh water, which is essential for many human
activities, such as drinking, cooking and agriculture.
 Dams built over rivers help generate hydroelectric power.
 Rivers play an important role in the transport of people and goods, and are vital for trade.
 A lot of tourist and recreational activities are centred around rivers.

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Pollution of Water Bodies :
Pollution of water bodies is a serious concern today, with consequences on health,
environment and climate.

Common causes of water pollution include-

• Human activities such as dumping hazardous waste like human waste, chemical and other
toxic material into water bodies
• Seepage from industries and littering especially of non-biodegradable material like plastics
around water bodies.
• Commercial activities in oceans and rivers that causes oil spills.
• Activities related to festivals such as the immersion of idols etc.

How water pollution is harmful for the environment?

Pollution of water bodies harms the flora and fauna that live in them and also affects the
environment. Contaminated water causes harmful diseases in human beings and livestock.
When water becomes contaminated, it becomes unsuitable for use, thus leading to shortage
of fresh water.

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Methods to Control Water Pollution:
• Treatment of waste - all waste - human, agricultural and industrial should be treated to
remove toxic substances, before being discharged into water bodies
• Restrictions on dumping
• Raising public awareness about harmful effects of water pollution should be increased

FACT FILE
• Mauna Kea (over 10,000m), a volcanic mountain is taller than Mt. Everest
(8,850m) when measured from base to summit. However, most of it lies under
water.

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 A rare type of octopus, called Dumbo Octopus, was found in Atlantic Ocean

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 Penguins are native to the Antarctic Ocean.

 The swirls of aquamarine in the Black Sea due to an abundance of tiny

plants called phytoplankton.

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• The rapid decrease in the size of Aral Sea is due to the impact of human
activity on water.

 Dead Sea, an inland sea in Asia – its high salinity prevents anything except
microorganisms from surviving and almost nothing can sink to the bottom.
It is rich in many minerals which are used in medicine, cosmetics and
healthcare.

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 The Amazon River Basin has the highest diversity of plant and animal life
in the world.
 The Yangtze is the longest river in China.
 River Huang He is also known as Yellow River. Its basin was the birthplace
of the ancient Chinese civilization.
 Murray is the longest river in Australia.
 Mackenzie is the longest river in Canada.

 Sambhar Lake as seen from a satellite – note the salt encrustations

around the lake

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