We are able to discover features on the ocean floor through the use of sonar. Scientists time how long it takes sounds waves to bounce off the ocean floor and return to the surface.
Some features...
Continental Margin: Where the continent meets the ocean, it consists of the shelf, slope and rise.
Continental Shelf: This is a sloping region that extends from the shore to the shelf break.
Continental Slope: This steep slope follows the shelf and extends to the basin.
Continental Rise: This is where the continental margin begins to level out and meets the abyssal plain.
Submarine Canyon: This steep-walled feature occurs on the continental slope.
Abysall Plain: The ocean floor at the beginning of the oceanic plate.
Trench: A long, deep and narrow part of the abysall plain. It is the deepest point in the ocean.
Island Arcs/Volcanic Island: A volcano which erupts on the sea floor, and with consecutive lava flows builds up overtime, eventually breaking the ocean surface, forming an island.
Seamounts: A mountain that rises from the seafloor, but doesn't break the water's surface. They are formed from extinct volcanoes, and maintain a classic "volcano" shape.
Guyots: This is similar to a seamount, but instead of having a "volcano" shape, it looks like a plateau. These are also called tablemounts.
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