World Ocean

World Ocean

In medieval Europe, the World Sea was the body of water that encircled the Continent (the mainland of Europe, Asia and Africa), and thus excluded the Mediterranean, Black and Caspian Seas. The contemporary term World Ocean was coined in the early 20th century by the Russian oceanographer Yuly Shokalsky to refer to the continuous ocean that covers and encircles most of Earth. The global, interconnected body of salt water is sometimes referred to as the World Ocean, the "global ocean" or the "great ocean". The concept of a continuous body of water with relatively unrestricted exchange between its components is critical in oceanography.