Ocean Reef

Ocean Reef, Western Australia

Ocean Reef is a suburb in northern Perth, Western Australia. It is located within the City of Joondalup. The name was coined by developers in the 1970s from the line of a reef visible several kilometres offshore. The name was formally adopted in 1974, replacing the prior name of Beaumaris, a name still retained by one of the shopping centres and one primary school.

Ocean

The ocean is the body of salt water that covers approximately 70.8% of Earth. The ocean is conventionally divided into large bodies of water, which are also referred to as oceans, and are themselves mostly divided into seas, gulfs, and subsequent bodies of water. The ocean contains 97% of Earth's water and is the primary component of Earth's hydrosphere, acting as a huge reservoir of heat for Earth's energy budget, as well as for its carbon cycle and water cycle, forming the basis for climate and weather patterns worldwide. The ocean is essential to life on Earth, harboring most of Earth's animals and protist life. It originated photosynthesis and therefore Earth's atmospheric oxygen, and still supplies half of it.

Reef

A reef is a ridge or shoal of rock, coral, or similar relatively stable material lying beneath the surface of a natural body of water. Many reefs result from natural, abiotic (non-living) processes such as deposition of sand or wave erosion planing down rock outcrops. However, reefs such as the coral reefs of tropical waters are formed by biotic (living) processes, dominated by corals and coralline algae. Artificial reefs, such as shipwrecks and other man-made underwater structures, may occur intentionally or as the result of an accident. These are sometimes designed to increase the physical complexity of featureless sand bottoms to attract a more diverse range of organisms. They provide shelter to various aquatic animals which help prevent extinction. Another reason reefs are put in place is for aquaculture, and fish farmers who are looking to improve their businesses sometimes invest in them. Reefs are often quite near to the surface, but not all definitions require this.

ocean

Noun

1. One of the large bodies of water separating the continents.
2. The continuous body of salt water covering a majority of the Earth's surface.

reef

Noun

1. A chain or range of rocks, sand, or coral lying at or near the surface of the water.
2. A large vein of auriferous quartz; hence, any body of rock yielding valuable ore.

Noun

1. A portion of a sail rolled and tied down to lessen the area exposed in a high wind.
2. A reef knot.