superocean

English

Etymology

From super- +‎ ocean.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˈsuːpəɹˌəʊ.ʃən/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /ˈsuːpɚˌoʊ.ʃən/

Noun

superocean (plural superoceans)

1. An ocean surrounding a supercontinent.
   • 1952, Calvin Victor Davis, Handbook of Applied Hydraulics‎^[1], McGraw-Hill, page 376:

     The energy involved is of a magnitude difficult to visualize; for each valve will then be releasing about 230,000 hp, the total for each group of six being equal to 1,380,000 hp, or the equivalent of seven superocean liners each of the same power capacity as that of the "Queen Mary.".

   • 1978, Introduction to Marine Micropaleontology‎^[2], Elsevier, page 14:

     Reduced to its simplest scenario the earth appears to have consisted essentially of a single ‘‘supercontinent’’, Pangaea, surrounded by “‘superocean”’ Panthalassa in the late Paleozoic.

   • 1979, Ocean Science‎^[3], Nautilus Press, page 2:

     To study the evolution of world ocean from a single supercontinent and superocean 200 million years ago to the fragmented system we have today.

   • 1990, Ocean Drilling Program, Proceedings of the Ocean Drilling Program, Initial Peport: Part A‎^[4], The Program, page 92:

     The main reason for interest in Jurassic sediments from the Pacific is that they chronicle the paleoenvironment of the Jurassic superocean, which covered two-thirds of the Earth at the time, but for which we have no direct record.

   • 1992, Cesare Emiliani, Planet Earth: Cosmology, Geology, and the Evolution of Life and Environment‎^[5], Cambridge University Press, →ISBN, page 239:

     A single supercontinent, called Pangea, came into, existence, together with a single superocean called Panthalassa.

Further reading

• Superocean on Wikipedia.Wikipedia