What is the smallest ocean in the world? The answer to this question can be found in this article. In addition, it tells about where it is located, what is its territory, who lives in it, what interesting facts are associated with it.
Oceans
Two thirds of the surface of our planet is occupied by water. Its total area is about 370 million km 2. Today, the geographic community identifies five world oceans:
- Quiet;
- Indian;
- Southern
- Atlantic;
- Arctic.
This classification was adopted by the International Hydrographic Organization in 2000, when the oceans were officially divided into the five above.
The line separating one huge reservoir from another is conditional. Water can flow freely from one ocean to another. At their borders, climate differences, peculiarities of currents, and some other phenomena arise.
Let's see what is the smallest ocean in the world, what makes it interesting, who inhabits it. The answers to these difficult questions are given by the science of oceanography.
Arctic
The smallest ocean in the world is the Arctic Ocean. A thick layer of Arctic ice covers most of its territory year-round.
The ocean first appeared on a German map in the seventeenth century. At first it was called Hyperborean. In general, during the history of its existence, it had many names, many of which note its geographical location.
The modern name for the ocean was fixed at the beginning of the nineteenth century, after the research of the navigator Admiral F.P.
It is the coldest of all the oceans on earth, bordering the waters of the Pacific and Atlantic. Depth ranges from 350 m to 5527 km, the average - more than 1200 meters, the volume of water - 18 million km 3. The water in the ocean is multi-layered: different in temperature and degree of salinity. Often there are mirages that are formed due to the collision of warm and cold air masses.
The water area of the Arctic Ocean includes twelve seas. The most famous of them: White, Chukchi, Laptev, Barents and others.
Geographical position
The Arctic Ocean is the smallest ocean in the world. The name is determined by its geographical location. Its territory covers the North Pole, as well as most of the Arctic and subarctic bands of the globe. The shores of the two largest continents are washed by its waters.
Very low temperatures, the dominance of cold arctic winds, long polar nights and, as a result of this, a lack of solar heat and light, very little rainfall - all this makes the climate very harsh. In addition, this smallest ocean in the world due to lack of heat is mostly covered with huge ice slabs.
These plates are in constant motion, and therefore huge ice piles are formed.
Dimensions
The Arctic Ocean is the smallest ocean in the world by area. It accounts for 3.5% of the total world water supply. In total, it is almost 15 million km 2. If you compare with the Pacific Ocean, which is the largest in the world, the Arctic Ocean is only one tenth of it.
Almost half of the area is occupied by continental shelves. The depth here is shallow, about 350 meters.
In the central part there are several deep depressions up to 5000 meters. They are separated from each other by transoceanic ridges (Haeckel, Mendelev, Lomonosov).
The inhabitants
Most of the Arctic Ocean is covered with ice almost all year, therefore it does not attract the attention of sailors and fishermen. There are also a few marine inhabitants and plants. Although representatives and lovers of a cold climate still meet.
Where the water area is more or less free from ice, seals, walruses, polar bears, whales, small fish and mollusks are found.
For the fauna of the Arctic Ocean, as, however, for all the northern territories, some features are characteristic. One of them is gigantism. This is confirmed by the presence of the largest mussels and jellyfish, corals, sea spiders.
Another feature is longevity. His secret is that at low temperatures all life processes slow down.
Mussels live here up to twenty-five years, and in the Black Sea - only six; cod survives to the age of twenty, and halibut generally to thirty to forty years.
