Why don't the oceans freeze?

Answer 1

In the Arctic and Antarctic, the oceans do freeze. The ice cap at the North Pole is entirely over ocean; the ice, however, is only a few feet deep.

Oceans don't freeze solid for because they contain a lot of water, which is constantly circulating around the world. In addition, water flowing from warmer oceans (and from areas near underground volcanoes) takes off some of the chill. Another important factor is that oceans contain salt water, which has a higher freezing point than fresh water..

Answer 2

The surface can freeze, and large blocks of sheets of sea ice and icebergs are a main characteristic near the Arctic and Antarctica. Only the surface can freeze, however. When water freezes, unlike most liquids, it becomes less dense, so all ice floats to the top. The surface layer insulates the water below. More importantly,the large volume and high pressures of the ocean keep it from freezing solid near the North Pole. Water cools slowly, and the larger the volume the slower it cools; and at natural temperatures on Earth, such a large volume as the ocean couldn't freeze completely or even mostly. Water is also very heavy, pushing down on water at deeper depths. This pressure prevents the water from freezing deep down, too. Yet another reason why the ocean can't freeze solid is that convection currents in the ocean circulate heat and move water in a vertical direction, which also prevents freezing. As stated above, the ocean surface freezes in the Arctic, creating a polar ice cap that has remained permanent to an extent for millions of years. Icebergs further south (or north near the Antarctic) than the arctic aren't so much from ocean water freezing there, but from melting sea or glacial ice further north (or south near Antarctica). There was a time 600 million years ago when the oceans might have froze over almost completely (just the surface stil, else life probably wouldn't exist now), known as the "Snowball Earth" period.

Answer 3

Does The Ocean Freeze

Answer 4

Salt only lowers the freezing point a couple of degrees. I'm thinking as water
on the surface gets cold, it sinks, letting warmer water up. So until the depths
get cold, too, no freezing. Also the motion of the ocean must interfere with
freezing. Finally, there's the point about specific heat. Doesn't it you just
have to get rid of a lot of energy to freeze something? A lot more than lowering
it one degree.

Answer 5

if u want a better understanding.. go look at a pond.. when it freezes.. take a stick and poke all the way down.. guaranteed theres water underneath the ice..

Ice floats.. and u cant get the entire ocean to be frozen because of the of currents. The north pole is frozen cus of lack of heat.. the south is just a glacier from the ice age.. underneath the ice is real land.

and an iceberg is not a frozen ocean.. its a part of a glacier wall that fell off and drifted

Answer 6

The oceans freeze.Salt water freezes at a lower temperature.Bays and inlets freeze.Open ocean has moving currents that carry warmer water from middle latitudes.Ice moves in packs from colder latitudes with the advance of the winter season.

Answer 7

It's too much water. If the temperature dropped a whole lot, the oceans could freeze. I think Io is one of Jupiter's moons that is an entire frozen ocean.

Answer 8

When the atmospheric temperature starts falling below 0C , the water on the surface of the ocean, which is in contact with air starts freezing.As the density of ice is less than water ice floats on water .
Ice is a bad conductor of heat. It does not allow the heat in the water below it to escape to the air. When there is no loss of heat , the temperature doesn't fall and water doesn't freeze
thus oceans do not freeze The icebergs and glaciers that you see are only parts of oceans There's water below it!!

Answer 9

Parts of some rivers and parts of Arctic and the Antarctica freezes.

Some small river freezes completely water stops flowing.

But in larger collection of water convection keeps some water from freezing. Ice stays on the top due to the expansion of water, fish can still survive under the ice, all the water does not freez, thank god. We can still have drinking water and water that we can use for other purposes.

Answer 10

The salt in the ocean doesnt let it freeze