No, this video does not show a meeting point of the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
February 2, 2022
A video is being shared on social media claiming it as the visuals of the meeting point of the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. This post claims that though the Atlantic and Pacific oceans meet at a point, they do not mix with each other. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: Video showing the meeting point of the Atlantic and Pacific oceans.
Fact: The video shared in the post shows the Fraser River flowing into the Pacific Ocean water at the Strait of Georgia in Vancouver, Canada. This video was filmed by Steve Pearson while crossing the Strait of Georgia on a BC Ferries boat in July 2015. During early summer when the Fraser River carries high sedimented loads, a plume edge is easily distinguishable at the meeting point with the ocean water at the Strait of Georgia. The Ocean Network Canada and other research institutes confirmed that Fraser River mixes with the Pacific Ocean water. The video does not show the meeting point of the Atlantic and the Pacific Oceans. Hence, the claim made in the post is False.
On reverse image search of the screenshots in the video, an extended version of the same video was found published by a YouTube channel named Maryan Pearson on 05 July 2015. This YouTube user described it as the visuals of Fraser River flowing into the Strait of Georgia in Vancouver, Canada. This video was shot while travelling on the BC Ferries boat from Nanaimo on Vancouver Island. Also, in the description of the video, the uploader also alerted that the video was circulating with false information and emphasised that he is the copyright holder of this video.
This YouTube channel had shared a link of the AFP fact-check article about a similar claim. According to the article, Steve-Pearson, a Seattle resident had filmed this video. Speaking to the AFP fact-check team, Steve-Pearson said, “It’s terrible that people would steal a video and make false claims about it”. On comparing the images of BC Ferries boat with the one seen in the video, it is confirmed that the video was shot from this very boat at the meeting point of Fraser River and the Strait of Georgia.
When we searched for further details regarding the Fraser River plume in the Strait of Georgia, we found details of the reasons for the plume formation in an article published by the NASA Earth Observatory website. According to the article, Fraser is a snowmelt fresh-water river that flows alongside the Rocky Mountains, coast mountains and Fraser canyon before reaching a 130-kilometer-wide floodplain that empties into the Strait of Georgia. Along its journey, the river picks up and carries a huge load of silt about 20 million tons each year. These abundant sediments in the Fraser River form a distinct water plume extending across the Strait of Georgia.
The Fraser River plume is the brackish surface layer formed when the Fraser River discharges into the Strait of Georgia. According to an article published by the Ocean Network Canada, during the spring or early summer season, the plume edge formed between the Fraser River and Strait of Georgia is easily distinguishable. As the river water spreads out over the Strait, its motion is strongly affected by winds and tide. Several news websites confirmed the mixing of Fraser River water with the Strait of Georgia water. They can be seen here and here. The ‘Wonder World’ YouTube channel published a detailed video explaining the mixing process of Fraser River water with the ocean waters. From all these pieces of evidence, it can be concluded that the video shared in the post does not show a meeting point of the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans.
To sum it up, this video does not show a meeting point of the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans.