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There are five oceans that cover just over 70% of the planet, and they are all connected together:

• the Atlantic Ocean
• the Pacific Ocean
• the Indian Ocean
• the Southern Ocean
• the Arctic Ocean

The nearest ocean to the UK is the Atlantic Ocean. It stretches from Europe to North and South America, and is the second largest of the five oceans.

The water in the oceans is constantly moving in patterns called currents.

As the currents flow around the planet, they move cold and warm water from one place to another. This changes climate and temperatures all over the world.

The UK would be much colder if it wasn’t warmed by water that travels from the Caribbean - called the North Atlantic Drift, or the Gulf Stream.

Rubbish finds its way around the world, pollutes the oceans and can be harmful to sea creatures.

Some kinds of rubbish, such as plastic, are eaten by sea creatures. This causes them lots of problems and can even kill them. It's important to look after the planet by recycling and reducing the plastics people use.

As well as the impact from plastic pollution, other threats to our oceans include over-fishing and climate change.

Scientists say that seas are now the warmest they have ever been in recorded human history. The cause of this temperature rise is global warming linked to human activity, such as the burning of fossil fuels.

Higher global temperatures mean that ice caps begin to melt, sea levels rise and people in low-lying coastal areas lose their homes. Marine creatures lose their homes too: some can’t adapt to the higher temperatures and ecosystems like coral reefs can become badly damaged.

Warmer oceans are also linked to changes in weather and climate patterns, such as storms, floods and drought around the world.