第49届联合国大会通过决议,1998年为国际海洋年,是世界第一个海洋年。联合国将其主题确定为“海洋——人类共同的遗产”,通过宣传活动将使青少年知道海洋在造就地球生命中所起的重要作用,认识海洋环境的整体性。为此,本刊特约请有关海洋专家撰写一组旨在普及海洋知识的文章,以飨读者。 The 49th session of the United Nations General Assembly adopted a resolution. The year 1998 was the International Year of the Ocean. It was the first year of the world’s oceans. The United Nations has identified its theme as “the ocean--the common heritage of humankind.” Through publicity activities, young people will know that the ocean plays an important role in the creation of life on the earth and recognize the integrity of the marine environment. To this end, the magazine has specifically invited relevant marine experts to write a series of articles aimed at spreading marine knowledge to readers.