Chloe Zhang
The Great Pacific Garbage Patch (GPGP), often referred to as 'Trash Island', is a collection of marine debris in the North Pacific Ocean. It is located roughly from 135°W to 155°W and 35°N to 42°N, halfway between California and Hawaii. The GPGP is the largest accumulation of plastic in the open ocean, with plastic in the patch outnumbering marine life 180 to 1. It is often imagined as a solid mass of plastic, large enough to walk across, but in reality, it is more of a thin soup of plastic pieces, with 94% of the estimated 1.8 trillion pieces being microplastics.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Name | Great Pacific Garbage Patch (GPGP) |
| Other Names | Pacific trash vortex, North Pacific Garbage Patch, Trash Island |
| Location | North Pacific Ocean, halfway between California and Hawaii |
| Size | 1.6 million square kilometres (0.62 million square miles) |
| Plastic Concentration | 10–100 kilograms per square kilometre (57–571 lb/sq mi) |
| Weight | 80,000 metric tons (88,000 short tons) |
| Plastic Pieces | 1.8 trillion |
| Plastic Size | 92% of mass in objects larger than 0.5 centimetres (3⁄16 in); 94% of pieces are microplastics |
| Age | Some plastic is over 50 years old |
| Items Found | Plastic lighters, toothbrushes, water bottles, pens, baby bottles, cell phones, plastic bags, nurdles, fishing gear, shoes |
| Cleanup Efforts | The Ocean Cleanup has removed over 1 million pounds of trash from the GPGP as of 2024 |
| Discovery | Discovered in 1997 by Captain Charles Moore |
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What You'll Learn
The Great Pacific Garbage Patch is not an island
The Great Pacific Garbage Patch (GPGP) is the largest accumulation of plastic in the open ocean. It is located in the central North Pacific Ocean, from 135°W to 155°W and 35°N to 42°N. The GPGP is not a solid mass of trash floating on the ocean, as it is often portrayed in the media. Rather, it is a widely dispersed area consisting primarily of microscopic particles in the upper water column, known as microplastics. These microplastics are often "fingernail-sized or smaller" and are suspended in the water, making the water look like a cloudy soup. This perception of the GPGP as a trash island is further dispelled by the fact that its low density (4 particles per cubic meter) prevents detection by satellite imagery or even by casual boaters or divers in the area.
The GPGP is a gyre of marine debris particles, spanning waters from the West Coast of North America to Japan. It is formed by the North Pacific Subtropical Gyre, a large system of swirling ocean currents, including the California Current, the North Equatorial Current, the Kuroshio Current, and the North Pacific Current. These currents rotate clockwise around an area of 20 million square kilometers, creating a calm and stable center where debris becomes trapped. The GPGP is actually comprised of two patches: the Western Garbage Patch, located near Japan, and the Eastern Garbage Patch, located between Hawaii and California.
The plastic in the GPGP comes from countries in Asia, North America, and South America. It includes items such as plastic lighters, toothbrushes, water bottles, pens, baby bottles, cell phones, plastic bags, and nurdles. Some of the plastic is over 50 years old, and it does not easily biodegrade but instead breaks into smaller and smaller pieces. This has led to a high concentration of microplastics in the GPGP, with 92% of the mass consisting of larger objects. The patch is rapidly accumulating, with an estimated increase of "10-fold each decade" since 1945.
The GPGP has serious ecological consequences. There is 180 times more plastic than marine life in the patch, and animals migrating through or inhabiting the area are likely to consume plastic. For example, sea turtles and Laysan albatross chicks have been found with a significant percentage of their diets composed of ocean plastics, which often contain toxic chemicals. Additionally, fishing nets account for 46% of the mass in the GPGP and pose a danger to marine life that cannot extract themselves from the nets.
Efforts have been made to clean up the GPGP, with organizations like The Ocean Cleanup removing millions of kilograms of trash from the patch. However, the GPGP is not a continuous patch of easily visible marine debris, and the term Great Pacific Garbage Patch does not accurately portray the marine debris problem in the North Pacific Ocean. The public perception of the GPGP as a trash island has led to a misunderstanding of the true nature of the issue, which is the widespread dispersion of microplastics in the ocean.
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The patch is a collection of marine debris in the North Pacific
The Great Pacific Garbage Patch (GPGP) is a collection of marine debris in the North Pacific Ocean. It is also known as the Pacific Trash Vortex and spans waters from the west coast of North America to Japan. The GPGP is the largest accumulation of plastic in the open ocean.
The GPGP was discovered in 1997 by Captain Charles Moore, who noticed a steady stream of plastics while sailing from Hawaii to California. The patch is located in the North Pacific Subtropical Gyre, an area of ocean currents formed by the California Current, the North Equatorial Current, the Kuroshio Current, and the North Pacific Current. These currents draw debris into the center of the gyre, where it becomes trapped. The GPGP is made up of the Western Garbage Patch, located near Japan, and the Eastern Garbage Patch, located between Hawaii and California.
The GPGP is not a solid mass of plastic but rather a widely dispersed area of microplastics, with larger items such as fishing gear and shoes interspersed. Microplastics are tiny pieces of plastic that are often microscopic and cannot be seen with the naked eye. Despite this, the GPGP is still visible to those passing through; the ocean takes on a cloudy or murky "soup-like" appearance due to the presence of microplastics.
The patch covers 1.6 million square kilometres (0.62 million square miles) and contains an estimated 80,000 metric tons of debris, with 1.8 trillion plastic pieces. While the majority of the mass is made up of larger objects, microplastics dominate the area by count, and the patch is believed to be rapidly accumulating. The impact of the GPGP on marine life is significant, with animals migrating through or inhabiting the area likely consuming plastic. For example, Laysan albatross chicks from Kure Atoll and Oahu Island have around 45% of their wet mass composed of plastics from the GPGP.
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It is often referred to as the Pacific Trash Vortex
The Great Pacific Garbage Patch, often referred to as the Pacific Trash Vortex, is a gyre of marine debris particles in the central North Pacific Ocean. It is located roughly from 135°W to 155°W and 35°N to 42°N. The collection of plastic and floating trash originates from the Pacific Rim, including countries in Asia, North America, and South America.
The Great Pacific Garbage Patch is the largest accumulation of plastic in the open ocean. It is not a single, continuous patch of easily visible marine debris but a widely dispersed area consisting primarily of "fingernail-sized or smaller"—often microscopic—particles in the upper water column known as microplastics. These microplastics can simply make the water look like a cloudy soup, intermixed with larger items such as fishing gear and shoes.
The patch is formed by the North Pacific Subtropical Gyre, a large system of swirling ocean currents. The gyre's rotational pattern draws in waste material from across the North Pacific, incorporating coastal waters off North America and Japan. As the material is captured in the currents, wind-driven surface currents gradually move debris toward the centre, trapping it. The entire Great Pacific Garbage Patch is bounded by this gyre.
The Great Pacific Garbage Patch is actually made up of two distinct patches: the Western Garbage Patch, located near Japan, and the Eastern Garbage Patch, located between the US states of Hawaii and California. These areas of spinning debris are linked together by the North Pacific Subtropical Convergence Zone, located a few hundred kilometres north of Hawaii.
The amount of debris in the Great Pacific Garbage Patch is rapidly accumulating. While microplastics dominate the area by count, 92% of the mass of the patch consists of larger objects. Some of the plastic is over 50 years old and includes items such as plastic lighters, toothbrushes, water bottles, pens, baby bottles, cell phones, plastic bags, and nurdles.
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The patch is made up of microplastics and larger items
The Great Pacific Garbage Patch (also known as the Pacific Trash Vortex) is a collection of marine debris in the North Pacific Ocean. It spans waters from the west coast of North America to Japan. The patch is made up of microplastics and larger items.
Microplastics are tiny bits of plastic that are often microscopic and cannot be seen by the naked eye. They are formed from the breakdown of larger plastic debris, both at sea and on land, into smaller and smaller pieces. This process is known as fragmentation and is caused by a combination of physical, biological, and photochemical degradation, including photo-oxidation from sunlight exposure. Microplastics can also come from resin pellets used for plastic manufacturing or microbeads, which are small manufactured plastic beads used in health and beauty products. These microbeads can pass through water filtration systems and end up in the ocean, posing a threat to aquatic life. While microplastics dominate the Great Pacific Garbage Patch by count, larger objects make up 92% of the patch's mass.
The larger items found in the patch include objects such as fishing gear, shoes, plastic lighters, toothbrushes, water bottles, pens, baby bottles, cell phones, and plastic bags. Some of the plastic in the patch is over 50 years old. The patch is not a solid mass but is instead widely dispersed, with buoyant plastic distributed within the top few meters of the ocean. The patch covers 1.6 million square kilometres, with an estimated 80,000 metric tons of trash.
The Great Pacific Garbage Patch was discovered in 1997 by Charles Moore, who continues to raise awareness through his environmental organization, the Algalita Marine Research Foundation. The patch is a significant environmental concern, with plastic pollution estimated to reduce the value of marine ecosystem services by $500 to $2500 billion per year.
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It is the largest accumulation of plastic in the open ocean
The Great Pacific Garbage Patch, also known as the Pacific Trash Vortex, is the largest accumulation of plastic in the open ocean. It is located in the central North Pacific Ocean, halfway between Hawaii and California, and spans waters from the West Coast of North America to Japan. The patch is formed by the Western Garbage Patch, near Japan, and the Eastern Garbage Patch, located between Hawaii and California. These areas of spinning debris are linked by the North Pacific Subtropical Convergence Zone, a few hundred kilometres north of Hawaii.
The Great Pacific Garbage Patch is a gyre of plastic debris, with a concentration of 10-100 kilograms per square kilometre. It covers 1.6 million square kilometres, with an estimated 80,000 metric tons of plastic. The patch is believed to have increased tenfold each decade since 1945, and it is rapidly accumulating. This is due to the fact that much of the debris is not biodegradable. Plastics do not wear down; they simply break into smaller and smaller pieces, known as microplastics.
Microplastics dominate the Great Pacific Garbage Patch by count, but 92% of the mass of the patch consists of larger objects. Some of the plastic is over 50 years old and includes items such as plastic lighters, toothbrushes, water bottles, pens, baby bottles, cell phones, plastic bags, and nurdles. The buoyant plastic mass is distributed within the top few metres of the ocean, with larger pieces resurfacing more rapidly than smaller pieces.
The Great Pacific Garbage Patch has a significant impact on marine life. Floating at the surface of the patch is 180 times more plastic than marine life, and animals migrating through or inhabiting this area are likely to consume plastic. Sea turtles, for example, can mistake floating plastic garbage for food, and birds such as Laysan albatross chicks have been found with high percentages of plastic in their bodies. Fishing nets, which account for 46% of the mass in the patch, are also dangerous for animals, which can become entangled and trapped.
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Frequently asked questions
The Great Pacific Garbage Patch, also known as the Pacific Trash Vortex, is located in the central North Pacific Ocean, halfway between California and Hawaii. It spans an area twice the size of Texas and cannot be seen from space.
The Great Pacific Garbage Patch covers 1.6 million square kilometres (0.62 million square miles) with a concentration of 10-100 kilograms per square kilometre. It is the largest accumulation of plastic in the open ocean.
The Great Pacific Garbage Patch is made up of marine debris, including microplastics and larger objects such as fishing gear, shoes, plastic lighters, toothbrushes, water bottles, pens, baby bottles, cell phones, and plastic bags.
