As James Cameron's recent excursion to the bottom of the Mariana Trench reminds us, human beings know surprisingly little about the deepest parts of the world's seas and oceans. The major reason for that lack of knowledge is the incredible depth of some of those bodies of water, and the intense pressure exerted on anyone or anything that travels down that deep.

Luckily Randall Munroe, a cartoonist who runs xkcd.com, has done some virtual exploring via this infographic, which shows the relative depth of various bodies of water around the world, along with some fun facts, and some ... less than factual additions (like the "Mysterious door which James Cameron built his sub to reach and open. He will not say what he found within").

It's a diverting way to explore some of the least-understood places on Earth. Click the image below for a full-size version:

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