2007-01-25 05:59:15 · 8 answers · asked by Anonymous in Science & Mathematics ➔ Earth Sciences & Geology
When they talk about salt water it's not all like the stuff you put on your french fries. Besides sodium chloride, there's calcium and a bunch of other "salts" in the water. as the rivers flow into the oceans, they get minerals dissolved in them. As the water in the ocean evaporates, the salts are left behind to form the "salt" water.
2007-01-25 06:04:45 · answer #1 · answered by Gene 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It comes from rocks and soil. Rain, streams, and rivers dissolve salt out of the rocks and wash it into the sea. Water continually evaporates from the sea, but the salt stays behind, so it accumulates in the sea water.
2007-01-25 06:05:10 · answer #2 · answered by rainfingers 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It is a consequence of run-off and evaporation. Salts, especially sodium chloride, are soluble in water, and are leached out of the ground by rain and flooding, and are carried by rivers to the ocean. Since the ocean is end point of downstream flow, the salt tends to accumulate over the eons. The fresh water recycles with evaporation and precipitation, bringing ever more solutes (salt) into the ocean. Thus, overall the ocean is far saltier today than it was hundreds of milions of years ago, when vertebrates began to evolve.
2007-01-25 10:00:09 · answer #3 · answered by Jerry P 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The water in the sea comes from land sources such as rivers. While crossing land, the rivers absorb lots of salt from the land before depositing it in the sea.
2007-01-25 06:05:12 · answer #4 · answered by Elizabeth Y 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
All water, even rain water, contains dissolved chemicals which scientists call "salts." But not all water tastes salty. Water is fresh or salty according to individual judgment, and in making this decision man is more convinced by his sense of taste than by a laboratory test. It is one's taste buds that accept one water and reject another.
How salty the ocean is, however, defies ordinary comprehension. Some scientists estimate that the oceans contain as much as 50 quadrillion tons (50 million billion tons) of dissolved solids.
Hope this helps!!!!
2007-01-25 06:09:36 · answer #5 · answered by cscmonkeefan 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
"All water, even rain water, contains dissolved chemicals which scientists call "salts.""
Check this link for the full explanation:
http://www.palomar.edu/oceanography/salty_ocean.htm
2007-01-25 06:03:58 · answer #6 · answered by Yahzmin ♥♥ 4ever 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
to preserve the fish!
2007-01-25 06:02:55 · answer #7 · answered by Mike M 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
god started crying hardcore one day and it never evaporated
2007-01-25 06:02:51 · answer #8 · answered by davidd 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋