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How do salts collect in the ocean?

seo-qna
Last updated date: 26th Jul 2024
Total views: 384.6k
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Answer
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Hint: Oceans are salty due to the deposits made by rivers. They contain various mineral salts which join the ocean through rivers, which pass over rocks and soil, picking up salt along the path.

Complete answer: There are two sources from which salt comes to the ocean, that is runoff from the land and openings in the seafloor. The primary source of salts decomposed in seawater are the rocks on the land. Rainwater which falls on land is a little acidic, so it deteriorates rocks.
Salt evaporation ponds are shallow, unnatural basins constructed to take out salt from seawater, salty lakes, or mineral-rich streams through evaporation. As the water dries out, the salt crystals are collected by raking. Ocean water includes several mineral salts like; sodium, chloride, sulfate, magnesium, calcium, potassium and bromide. Initially, the primeval seas were possibly only barely salty. But with time, as rain fell to the Earth it led to dissolving rocks and transferring their minerals to the ocean, the ocean has become saltier.

Note: - Rain replenishes freshwater in rivers and streams, so they don’t taste salty. However, the water in the ocean obtains all of the salt and minerals from all of the rivers that flow into it.
- It is calculated that the rivers and streams flowing from the United States alone release 225 million tons of dissolved solids and 513 million tons of suspended sediment regularly to the ocean.