An oceanographer uses a device called a sonar to locate underwater
sounds. Behind her is the underwater house she stays in.
Learning about the sea
How long can you hold your breath under water? A few seconds? A minute?
Whatever the length of time, you can’t stay under water very long.
But scientists called oceanographers often swim under water for hours.
Some oceanographers even live beneath the ocean’s surface for months at
a time!
Oceanographers use air tanks, diving suits, or even small submarines
while under water. And when oceanographers stay under water for days at
a time, they live in a canlike house right on the ocean floor. There,
scientists spend hours outside their underwater shelter studying
everything around them.
There are many kinds of oceanographers. Some make maps of the rocky
ocean floors. Other sea scientists map the direction and strength of the
moving water. Still other oceanographers study the plants and animals
that live in the ocean.
sampling the ocean bottom
Japanese oceanographers check and bottle samples of mud and sand brought
up from the ocean floor. They will study the mud to find out what’s in
it.
