Atlantic Ocean (2007) | Bassas da India (2004) | |
Area | total: 76.762 million sq km
note: includes Baltic Sea, Black Sea, Caribbean Sea, Davis Strait, Denmark Strait, part of the Drake Passage, Gulf of Mexico, Labrador Sea, Mediterranean Sea, North Sea, Norwegian Sea, almost all of the Scotia Sea, and other tributary water bodies |
total: 0.2 sq km
land: 0.2 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly less than 6.5 times the size of the US | about one-third the size of The Mall in Washington, DC |
Background | The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five oceans (after the Pacific Ocean, but larger than the Indian Ocean, Southern Ocean, and Arctic Ocean). The Kiel Canal (Germany), Oresund (Denmark-Sweden), Bosporus (Turkey), Strait of Gibraltar (Morocco-Spain), and the Saint Lawrence Seaway (Canada-US) are important strategic access waterways. The decision by the International Hydrographic Organization in the spring of 2000 to delimit a fifth world ocean, the Southern Ocean, removed the portion of the Atlantic Ocean south of 60 degrees south latitude. | This atoll is a volcanic rock surrounded by reefs and is awash at high tide. A French possession since 1897, it was placed under the administration of a commissioner residing in Reunion in 1968. |
Climate | tropical cyclones (hurricanes) develop off the coast of Africa near Cape Verde and move westward into the Caribbean Sea; hurricanes can occur from May to December, but are most frequent from August to November | tropical |
Coastline | 111,866 km | 35.2 km |
Country name | - | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Bassas da India |
Dependency status | - | possession of France; administered by a high commissioner of the Republic, resident in Reunion |
Disputes - international | some maritime disputes (see littoral states) | claimed by Madagascar |
Economy - overview | The Atlantic Ocean provides some of the world's most heavily trafficked sea routes, between and within the Eastern and Western Hemispheres. Other economic activity includes the exploitation of natural resources, e.g., fishing, dredging of aragonite sands (The Bahamas), and production of crude oil and natural gas (Caribbean Sea, Gulf of Mexico, and North Sea). | no economic activity |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Milwaukee Deep in the Puerto Rico Trench -8,605 m
highest point: sea level 0 m |
lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location 2.4 m |
Environment - current issues | endangered marine species include the manatee, seals, sea lions, turtles, and whales; drift net fishing is hastening the decline of fish stocks and contributing to international disputes; municipal sludge pollution off eastern US, southern Brazil, and eastern Argentina; oil pollution in Caribbean Sea, Gulf of Mexico, Lake Maracaibo, Mediterranean Sea, and North Sea; industrial waste and municipal sewage pollution in Baltic Sea, North Sea, and Mediterranean Sea | NA |
Flag description | - | the flag of France is used |
Geographic coordinates | 0 00 N, 25 00 W | 21 30 S, 39 50 E |
Geography - note | major chokepoints include the Dardanelles, Strait of Gibraltar, access to the Panama and Suez Canals; strategic straits include the Strait of Dover, Straits of Florida, Mona Passage, The Sound (Oresund), and Windward Passage; the Equator divides the Atlantic Ocean into the North Atlantic Ocean and South Atlantic Ocean | the islands emerge from a circular reef that sits atop a long-extinct, submerged volcano |
Irrigated land | - | 0 sq km (1998 est.) |
Land boundaries | - | 0 km |
Land use | - | arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (all rock) (2001) |
Legal system | - | the laws of France, where applicable, apply |
Location | body of water between Africa, Europe, the Southern Ocean, and the Western Hemisphere | Southern Africa, islands in the southern Mozambique Channel, about one-half of the way from Madagascar to Mozambique |
Map references | Political Map of the World | Africa |
Maritime claims | - | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of France |
Natural hazards | icebergs common in Davis Strait, Denmark Strait, and the northwestern Atlantic Ocean from February to August and have been spotted as far south as Bermuda and the Madeira Islands; ships subject to superstructure icing in extreme northern Atlantic from October to May; persistent fog can be a maritime hazard from May to September; hurricanes (May to December) | maritime hazard since it is usually under water during high tide and surrounded by reefs; subject to periodic cyclones |
Natural resources | oil and gas fields, fish, marine mammals (seals and whales), sand and gravel aggregates, placer deposits, polymetallic nodules, precious stones | none |
Population | - | uninhabited (July 2004 est.) |
Ports and harbors | - | none; offshore anchorage only |
Terrain | surface usually covered with sea ice in Labrador Sea, Denmark Strait, and coastal portions of the Baltic Sea from October to June; clockwise warm-water gyre (broad, circular system of currents) in the northern Atlantic, counterclockwise warm-water gyre in the southern Atlantic; the ocean floor is dominated by the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, a rugged north-south centerline for the entire Atlantic basin | volcanic rock |
Transportation - note | Kiel Canal and Saint Lawrence Seaway are two important waterways; significant domestic commercial and recreational use of Intracoastal Waterway on central and south Atlantic seaboard and Gulf of Mexico coast of US | - |