Where is the ocean salinity lowest?

Variation in salinity. The salinity of the ocean varies from place to place, especially at the surface. Much of the ocean has salinity between 34 ppt and 36 ppt, but there are places that tend to be higher or lower. read more

The commonest way to record salinity is to measure the amount of salt in 1,000 g of water, so it is referred to as ‘parts per thousand’ or ppt. Most of the ocean has a salinity of between 34 ppt and 36 ppt. Some properties of water are changed by having salt in it: Salt makes seawater more dense than freshwater. read more

The Arctic Ocean's salinity varies seasonally as the ice cover melts and freezes; but it is the lowest on average due to low evaporation and heavy freshwater inflow from rivers. read more

Net evaporation leads to a relatively salty Atlantic; net input of freshwater generates low salinity, characteristic of the Pacific Ocean. Map of Precipitation Map of evaporation Figure 2: Example of precipitation (top left) and evaporation (top right) distribution. read more