Map of the Southwest Pacific. Where are the oceans

The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest in terms of area and depth. deep ocean our Planet. Its area is 178.684 million km? (which exceeds the area of ​​\u200b\u200bthe entire land by almost 30 million km?), And the greatest depth in the Mariana Trench is 10994 +/- 40 m. Average depth- 3984 m. From north to south, the length of the ocean is approximately 15.8 thousand km, and the width from east to west is 19.5 thousand km. "Quiet" it was called by Fernand Maggelan (Portuguese and spanish navigator who first crossed this huge ocean) because during his journey, which lasted three months and twenty days, the weather was calm all the time.

Location of the Pacific Ocean

The share of the Pacific Ocean in the surface of the World Ocean is 49.5%, and the volume of water is 53%. It is divided into two regions - northern and southern, the boundary of which is the equator. Since the Pacific Ocean is very large, its borders run along the coasts of several continents. In the north, the border with the Arctic Ocean is a line that connects two capes: Cape Dezhnev and Cape Prince of Wales.

In the west, the waters of the ocean wash Eurasia and Australia, then its border runs along the eastern side of Bass Strait, connecting Australia and the island of Tasmania, and drops south along the meridian 146 ° 55 'E. to Antarctica.

In the east, the Pacific Ocean washes the coasts of North and South America, and to the south, the border between it and the Atlantic Ocean runs from Cape Horn along the meridian 68 ° 04 'W. to the Antarctic Peninsula.

But part southern waters The Pacific Ocean, which is located south of the 60th parallel of south latitude, belongs to the Southern Ocean.

Seas and bays of the Pacific Ocean

The sea is a part of the ocean that differs from it in currents, the properties of water and the organisms living in it. The seas are inland and marginal. They are separated from the ocean by islands, peninsulas or underwater uplifts.

Seas located along the coasts of Eurasia

The Bering Sea - washes the shores of Russia and the United States. Previously, on the maps of the 18th century, it was called the Beaver or Kamchatka Sea. Later it was named after the navigator Vitus Bering. Area 2.315 million sq. km. The maximum depth is 4151 m. The peculiarity of this sea is that for 10 months its surface is covered with ice. It is inhabited by common seals, walruses, bearded seals, 402 species of fish, several species of whales. The sea has 28 bays.

Sea of ​​Okhotsk - washes the shores of Russia and Japan. Named after the river - Hunt. It used to be called Lamsky and Kamchatsky. Area - 1603 thousand km?. Maximum depth 3916m. IN winter time Northern part the sea is covered with ice. The sea has 26 bays.

The Sea of ​​Japan is a marginal sea separated from the ocean by Sakhalin Island and Japanese islands. Washes the shores of Japan, Russia, North Korea and the Republic of Korea. Area - 1062 thousand km?. Greatest depth- 3742m. In winter, its northern part freezes over. Under water world in the northern and southern regions of the sea is very different. In the northern part, flora and fauna characteristic of temperate latitudes have formed, while in the southern part, warm-water fauna predominates. There are squids and octopuses here. It has 57 bays.

Inland Sea of ​​Japan - connects with Sea of ​​Japan Shimonoseki Strait. It includes the seas of Bingo, Hiuchi, Suo, Iyo and Harima. The area is 18,000 km². Maximum depth 241m.

The Yellow Sea is a shallow marginal sea located on the east coast of Asia. The name is due to its color. The Huanghai River brings a lot of silt into the sea and thus makes it brown-yellow. Sometimes the coasts of the Yellow Sea are simply covered with algae.

Washes the sea of ​​the DPRK, China and the Republic of Korea. Area - 416 thousand km?. The maximum depth is 106 m. Bays: Dalyanvan, West Korean, Bohaivan, Liaodong, Laizhouvan, Jiaozhouvan.

Here you can see very interesting phenomenon- "Moses' miracle" - the phenomenon of water parting between the two islands of Chindo and Modo.

At low tide between these islands, the water parted several times a year and only for one hour. A road up to 2.8 km long and up to 40 meters wide appears. A huge number of tourists come to these parts to see this phenomenon and follow this path. If someone does not have time to complete their journey, the boats and the police will help them.

The East China Sea is a semi-enclosed sea located between the Japanese Islands and the Chinese coast. Area - 836 thousand km?. The maximum depth is 2719 m.

The Philippine Sea is an inter-island sea located near the Philippine archipelago. It ranks second in size after Sargasso Sea. The area is 5726 thousand km². Maximum depth - 10 994 ± 40 m ( Mariana Trench or it is also called the Mariana Trench).

The Mariana Trench is one of mysterious places our planet, which is inhabited by the most unusual creatures.

Seas located between the islands of Southeast Asia

The South China Sea is a semi-enclosed sea off the coast of the South China Sea. East Asia. The area is 3,537,289 km?, and the maximum depth is 5560 m. Great danger in this sea are monsoons and typhoons. The sea has 7 bays. Part of this sea is Gulf of Thailand.

The Java Sea is an inter-island sea located to the north of the island of Java. The area is 552 thousand km?, and the average depth is 111 m. The main straits are the Sunda and Makassar. The fauna of this sea is very diverse.

Sulu is a sea clearly defined by islands. This sea is unique in the presence of coral reefs. Here is the Tubbataha Atoll, which is world heritage UNESCO and protected by a marine reserve.

Sulawesi is an inter-island sea. The area of ​​the sea is about 453 thousand km?, the depth is up to 6220 m. Mangrove forests grow on the shores of the island of Kalimantan, and there are a lot of coral reefs in the Sulu archipelago.

This list also includes the following seas: Flores, Savu, Seram, Halmahera, Bali, Banda, Moluccas.

Seas along the east coast of Australia

The New Guinea or Bismarck Sea is an inter-island sea with an area of ​​310 thousand km2 and a maximum depth of 2665 m. Underground earthquakes often occur in this sea.

Solomon - interisland sea of ​​the Pacific Ocean. The area of ​​the sea is about 755 thousand km², the average depth is 2652 m. It has three bays: Velha, Kula, Huon.

Coral - the sea of ​​the Pacific Ocean, whose area is 4791 thousand km², and the maximum depth is 9140 m. This sea is famous for the fact that it contains the largest coral reef of our planet.

Fiji is an inter-island sea with an area of ​​3177 thousand km?. Maximum depth 7633m. It has a complex bottom relief: ridges and volcanoes. Undersea world of this sea is very rich and varied.

Tasmanovo - the sea that separates Australia and New Zealand. The maximum depth is 5200 m. It has 9 bays.

The eastern part of the ocean, located along the coasts of North and South America, does not have seas, but there are such large bays such as: Alaskan, Californian and Panama.

Islands of the Pacific.

The ocean is located from 20-30 thousand islands and the world's largest Malay archipelago. In the Pacific Ocean, there are the second (New Guinea, with an area of ​​​​785,753 thousand km?) And the third (Kalimantan, whose area is 743,330 km?) The largest islands. The largest island is Greenland, with an area of ​​2,130,800 km?, which is washed by the Arctic and Atlantic oceans.

New Guinea is the second largest island separated from Australia by the Torres Strait. The climate here is dominated by equatorial and subequatorial. Wet grow on the island rainforests. West Side the islands belong to Indonesia, and the East belongs to the state of Papua New Guinea. On the island are located mountain ranges. Since the island is tropical, the flora and fauna are very diverse here. animal world. In 2005, American researchers discovered a place on this island, which they called the "Garden of Eden". This place, located on the slopes of the mountains of Fiji and occupying 300 thousand hectares, has long been isolated from the influence of the outside and the world. Scientists have discovered here unknown species of frogs, butterflies, palm trees and other plants.

Kalimantan is the third largest island, which is divided between three states: Malaysia, Brunei and Indonesia. It was discovered by Magellan's expedition in 1521. It is located in the center Malay Archipelago and is considered the largest skeleton of Asia. The climate here is equatorial. There are many on the island low mountains, highest point is Mount Kinabalu (4095 m). The entire territory of the island is occupied by dense forests. There is a huge variety of animals and plants. Just as many unknown places. Here grows one of interesting plants- Rafflesia Arnold. There are a lot of orchids on the island. Oil and diamonds are mined on the island of Kalimantan.

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The ocean is the largest object and is the part that covers about 71% of our planet's surface. The oceans wash the shores of the continents, have a system of water circulation and have other specific features. The oceans of the world are in constant interaction with everyone.

Map of oceans and continents of the world

Some sources indicate that the World Ocean is divided into 4 oceans, however, in 2000, the International Hydrographic Organization singled out the fifth - South ocean. This article provides a list of all 5 oceans of planet Earth in order - from the largest in area to the smallest, with the name, location on the map and main characteristics.

Pacific Ocean

The Pacific Ocean on a map of the Earth / Wikipedia

Because of big size The Pacific Ocean has a unique and varied topography. It also plays an important role in shaping the world's weather patterns and the modern economy.

The ocean floor is constantly changing through movement and subduction tectonic plates. Currently, the oldest known area of ​​the Pacific Ocean is about 180 million years old.

In terms of geology, the area surrounding the Pacific Ocean is sometimes called. The region has this name because it is the world's largest area of ​​volcanism and earthquakes. The Pacific region is subject to violent geological activity because most of its bottom is in subduction zones, where the boundaries of some tectonic plates are pushed under others after a collision. There are also some hotspot areas where magma from the Earth's mantle is forced out through the Earth's crust, creating underwater volcanoes that can eventually form islands and seamounts.

The Pacific Ocean has a diverse bottom topography, consisting of oceanic ridges and which formed in hot spots below the surface. The relief of the ocean differs significantly from large continents and islands. The most deep point Pacific Ocean is called the "Challenger Abyss", it is located in Mariana Trench, at a depth of almost 11 thousand km. The largest is New Guinea.

The climate of the ocean varies greatly depending on the latitude, the presence of land, and the types of air masses moving over its waters. Ocean surface temperature also plays a role in climate as it affects the availability of moisture in different regions. The climate in the vicinity is humid and warm during most of the year. The far north Pacific and the far south are more temperate, with large seasonal variations in weather patterns. In addition, some regions are dominated by seasonal trade winds that affect the climate. Tropical cyclones and typhoons also form in the Pacific Ocean.

The Pacific Ocean is almost the same as in other oceans of the Earth, with the exception of local temperatures and salinity of the water. The pelagic zone of the ocean is inhabited by marine animals, such as fish, marine and. Organisms and scavengers live at the bottom. Habitats can be found in sunny shallow areas of the ocean near the coast. The Pacific Ocean is the environment that hosts the greatest variety of living organisms on the planet.

Atlantic Ocean

Atlantic Ocean on a map of the Earth / Wikipedia

The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest ocean on Earth with with total area(including adjacent seas) 106.46 million km². It occupies about 22% of the planet's surface area. The ocean has an elongated S-shape and extends between North and South America in the west, as well as , and - in the east. In the north it connects with the North Arctic Ocean, with the Pacific Ocean to the southwest, the Indian Ocean to the southeast, and the Southern Ocean to the south. The average depth of the Atlantic Ocean is 3,926 m, and the deepest point is located in the Puerto Rico Ocean Trench, at a depth of 8,605 m. The Atlantic Ocean has the highest salinity of any ocean in the world.

Its climate is characterized by warm or cool water, which circulates in different currents. Water depth and winds also have a significant effect on weather on the surface of the ocean. Severe Atlantic hurricanes are known to develop off the coast of Cape Verde in Africa, heading towards the Caribbean from August to November.

The time when the supercontinent Pangea broke up, about 130 million years ago, was the beginning of the formation of the Atlantic Ocean. Geologists have determined that it is the second youngest of the world's five oceans. This ocean has played a very important role in connecting the Old World with the newly explored America since the late 15th century.

The main feature of the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean is underwater mountain range, called the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, which extends from Iceland in the north to approximately 58°S. sh. and has a maximum width of about 1600 km. The water depth above the ridge in most places is less than 2700 meters, and a few mountain peaks Ridges rise above the water, forming islands.

The Atlantic Ocean flows into the Pacific Ocean, however, they are not always the same due to water temperature, ocean currents, sunlight, nutrients, salinity, etc. The Atlantic Ocean has coastal and open ocean habitats. Its coastal areas are located along the coastlines and extend to the continental shelves. Marine life is usually concentrated in the upper layers of the ocean, and closer to the coast are located Coral reefs, forests of algae and sea grasses.

The Atlantic Ocean is important contemporary meaning. Construction panama canal located in Central America, allowed large vessels pass along waterways, from Asia across the Pacific Ocean to the east coast of North and South America across the Atlantic Ocean. This led to a revival of trade between Europe, Asia, South America and North America. In addition, there are deposits of gas, oil and precious stones at the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean.

Indian Ocean

Indian Ocean on a map of the Earth / Wikipedia

The Indian Ocean is the third largest ocean on the planet and has an area of ​​70.56 million km². It is located between Africa, Asia, Australia and the Southern Ocean. The Indian Ocean has an average depth of 3,963 m, and the Sunda Trench is the most deep depression, with a maximum depth of 7,258 m. The Indian Ocean occupies about 20% of the area of ​​the World Ocean.

The formation of this ocean is a consequence of the breakup of the Gondwana supercontinent, which began about 180 million years ago. 36 million years ago, the Indian Ocean assumed its current configuration. Although it first opened about 140 million years ago, almost all Indian Ocean basins are less than 80 million years old.

It is landlocked and does not extend into arctic waters. Him fewer islands and narrower continental shelves compared to the Pacific and Atlantic oceans. Below surface layers, especially in the north, the ocean water is extremely low oxygenated.

The climate of the Indian Ocean varies considerably from north to south. For example, monsoons dominate in the northern part, above the equator. From October to April, strong northeasterly winds are observed, while from May to October - southerly and western ones. The Indian Ocean also has the most warm weather from all five oceans of the world.

The ocean depths contain about 40% of the world's offshore oil, and seven countries currently produce from this ocean.

The Seychelles is an archipelago in the Indian Ocean, consisting of 115 islands, and most of them are granite islands and coral islands. On granitic islands, most of the species are endemic, and coral islands have a coral reef ecosystem where biodiversity marine life greatest. In the Indian Ocean there is an island fauna, which includes sea ​​turtles, seabirds and many other exotic animals. Much of the marine life in the Indian Ocean is endemic.

The entire marine ecosystem of the Indian Ocean is facing species decline as water temperatures continue to rise, which in turn results in a 20% decline in phytoplankton, on which the marine food chain is highly dependent.

South ocean

Southern Ocean on a map of the Earth/Wikipedia

In 2000, the International Hydrographic Organization identified the fifth and youngest ocean in the world - the Southern Ocean - from southern regions Atlantic, Indian and Pacific Oceans. The New Southern Ocean completely surrounds and extends from its coast north to 60°S. sh. The Southern Ocean is by far the fourth largest of the world's five oceans, only larger than the Arctic Ocean.

IN last years a large number of Oceanographic research has focused on ocean currents, first because of El Niño and then because of the wider interest in global warming. One of the studies determined that currents near Antarctica isolate the Southern Ocean as a separate one, so it was identified as a separate, fifth ocean.

The area of ​​the Southern Ocean is approximately 20.3 million km². The deepest point is 7,235 meters deep and is located in the South Sandwich Trench.

The water temperature in the Southern Ocean varies from -2° C to +10° C. It also contains the largest and most powerful cold surface current on Earth - the Antarctic Circumpolar Current, which moves eastward and is 100 times the flow of all the world's rivers.

Despite the allocation of this new ocean, it is likely that the discussion about the number of oceans will continue in the future. After all, there is only one "World Ocean" since all 5 (or 4) oceans on our planet are interconnected with each other.

Arctic Ocean

The Arctic Ocean on the map of the Earth / Wikipedia

The Arctic Ocean is the smallest of the world's five oceans and has an area of ​​14.06 million km². Its average depth is 1205 m, and the deepest point is in the underwater Nansen Basin, at a depth of 4665 m. The Arctic Ocean is located between Europe, Asia and North America. In addition, most of its waters are north of the Arctic Circle. located in the center of the Arctic Ocean.

While located on a continent, the North Pole is covered in water. During most of the year, the Arctic Ocean is almost entirely covered by drifting polar ice, which has a thickness of about three meters. This glacier usually melts during the summer months, but only partially.

Due to its small size, many oceanographers do not consider it an ocean. Instead, some scientists suggest that it is a sea that is mostly enclosed by continents. Others believe that this is a partially closed coastal body of the Atlantic Ocean. These theories are not widely held, and the International Hydrographic Organization considers the Arctic Ocean one of the world's five oceans.

The Arctic Ocean has the lowest water salinity of any of the Earth's oceans due to the low evaporation rate and fresh water coming from streams and rivers that feed the ocean, diluting the concentration of salts in the water.

The polar climate dominates this ocean. Consequently, winters exhibit relatively stable weather with low temperatures. The best known characteristics of this climate are polar nights and polar days.

It is believed that the Arctic Ocean may contain about 25% of the total natural gas and oil reserves on our planet. Geologists have also established that there are significant deposits of gold and other minerals. The abundance of several species of fish and seals also make the region attractive to the fishing industry.

There are several animal habitats in the Arctic Ocean, including endangered mammals and fish. The region's vulnerable ecosystem is one of the factors that make the fauna so sensitive to climate change. Some of these species are endemic and irreplaceable. The summer months bring an abundance of phytoplankton which, in turn, feeds the base, which eventually ends up with large terrestrial and marine mammals.

Recent developments in technology are enabling scientists to explore the depths of the world's oceans in new ways. These studies are needed to help scientists study and possibly prevent the catastrophic effects of climate change in these areas, as well as to discover new types of living organisms.

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Pacific Ocean

The Pacific Ocean is the largest ocean on Earth. It has the largest area - 178.68 million km². Here is the Mariana Trench - the deepest oceanic trench of the Earth, its depth is 11,022 m. And also, the Pacific Ocean is the oldest among all earth's oceans. He became known to Europeans relatively late. It was discovered by the Spanish conquistador Vasco Nunez de Balboa in 1513. However, he and his detachment, having passed through the American jungle, did not suspect that the body of water is the greatest ocean on earth. Balboa named it Mar del Sur or the South Sea. The real discovery of the Pacific Ocean was circumnavigation Ferdinand Magellan. In 1520, his ships rounded South America, and during all three months swimming discovered by Magellan the ocean remained exceptionally calm. Obviously, for this reason, Magellan called it the Quiet. In fact, this is the most formidable ocean on the planet - the strongest storms and hurricanes occur here, many earthquakes occur, volcanoes erupt.

The Pacific Ocean has a complex bottom topography. At the base of the ocean is the Pacific Plate, as well as the Nazca, Cocos, Juan de Fuca, Philippine plates adjacent to it, in the south - the Antarctic Plate, and in the north - the North American. Such a large number of plates leads to strong tectonic activity of the Pacific Ocean floor. On the borders of the Pacific plate is the so-called "Ring of Fire" of the planet with constant earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. As a result of the movement of plates in the ocean, thousands of continental and volcanic islands were formed, uniting into a whole independent part of the world - Oceania. There are no more islands and archipelagos in any other ocean of the Earth. At the very bottom of the Pacific Ocean there are about 10,000 individual seamounts, mostly volcanic origin, there is a complex system of mid-ocean ridges and deep-sea trenches, as well as a number of large basins: Chilean, Peruvian, Northwestern, Southern, Eastern, Central.

The climate of the ocean is extremely diverse, since the Pacific Ocean stretches from the coast of Antarctica to the coast of Alaska and Chukotka, all the climatic zones of the Earth pass through it. The greatest amount of precipitation - more than 2000 mm falls in the equatorial zone, trade winds constantly blow from the tropics to the equator, in temperate latitudes - westerly winds. A colder and harsher climate is observed in the southern part of the ocean, which is covered with ice every winter off the coast of Antarctica. The Pacific Ocean is separated from the Arctic Ocean by land and Bering Strait and therefore the climate is milder in the north. The climate of the western shores of the ocean is predominantly monsoonal. In the Pacific Ocean, the strongest hurricanes are formed, which are commonly called Typhoons (pictured). They form in the Northwest Pacific Ocean and fall on the coast of Eurasia: Indonesia, the Philippines, China, and Japan. Precipitation in the ocean, in general, prevails over evaporation, so the salinity of the water is somewhat lower than in other oceans.

The organic world of the Pacific Ocean is very rich. Half of the total mass of living organisms of the World Ocean lives in it. This is explained by his huge area and diversity natural conditions. Greatest variety life reaches here in equatorial and tropical latitudes on the shelf - in coral reefs. Subpolar waters off the coast of Russia are rich in commercial fish: pollock, herring, flounder. Salmon and king crab are harvested in the Sea of ​​Okhotsk. Off the coast of Australia is a unique natural complex- Big barrier reef. It is comparable in size to Ural mountains and is completely formed by living organisms - corals.

About 50 countries are located on the Pacific coast, in which almost half of the total population of the Earth lives. That is why the ocean is of great commercial importance, half of the world's fish catch falls on its territory. Minerals are also being developed on the shelf; the most important transport routes pass here.

PACIFIC OCEAN, the largest body of water in the world, with an area estimated at 178.62 million km2, which is several million square kilometers more area terrestrial land and more than twice the area of ​​the Atlantic Ocean. The width of the Pacific Ocean from Panama to the eastern coast of Mindanao Island is 17,200 km, and the length from north to south, from the Bering Strait to Antarctica, is 15,450 km. It extends from the western coasts of North and South America to east coasts Asia and Australia. From the north, the Pacific Ocean is almost completely closed by land, connecting with the Arctic Ocean through the narrow Bering Strait (minimum width 86 km). In the south it reaches the coast of Antarctica, and in the east its border with Atlantic Ocean held at 67°W. - meridian of Cape Horn; in the west, the border of the South Pacific Ocean with the Indian Ocean is drawn along 147 ° E, corresponding to the position of Cape Southeast in southern Tasmania.

Pacific ocean map

Usually the Pacific Ocean is divided into two regions - North and South, bordering on the equator. Some specialists prefer to draw the boundary along the axis of the equatorial countercurrent, i.e. approximately 5°N Previously, the waters of the Pacific Ocean were more often divided into three parts: northern, central and southern, the boundaries between which were the Northern and Southern tropics.

Separate parts of the ocean, located between islands or land ledges, have their own names. The largest water areas of the Pacific Basin include the Bering Sea in the north; the Gulf of Alaska in the northeast; Gulfs of California and Tehuantepec in the east, off the coast of Mexico; Gulf of Fonseca off the coast of El Salvador, Honduras and Nicaragua, and somewhat to the south - the Gulf of Panama. At west coast South America has only a few small bays, such as Guayaquil off the coast of Ecuador.

In the western and southwestern parts Pacific Ocean numerous major islands separate from the main water area many inter-island seas, such as the Tasman Sea southeast of Australia and the Coral Sea near her northeast coast; the Arafura Sea and the Gulf of Carpentaria north of Australia; the Banda Sea north of Timor Island; the Flores Sea north of the island of the same name; the Java Sea to the north of Java Island; the Gulf of Thailand between the peninsulas of Malacca and Indochina; Bakbo Bay (Tonkinsky) off the coast of Vietnam and China; Macassar Strait between the islands of Kalimantan and Sulawesi; the Moluccas and Sulawesi seas, respectively, to the east and north of the island of Sulawesi; finally, the Philippine Sea to the east of the Philippine Islands.

A special area in the southwest of the northern half of the Pacific Ocean is the Sulu Sea within the southwestern part of the Philippine archipelago, which also has many small bays, inlets and semi-enclosed seas (for example, the Sibuyan Sea, Mindanao Sea, Visayan Sea, Manila Bay, Lamon Bay and Leite). At east coast China has the East China and Yellow Seas; the latter forms two bays in the north: Bohaiwan and West Korean. The Japanese Islands are separated from the Korea Peninsula by the Korea Strait. In the same northwestern part of the Pacific Ocean, several more seas stand out: the Inland Sea of ​​Japan among the southern Japanese islands; the Sea of ​​Japan to their west; to the north - the Sea of ​​Okhotsk, connected with the Sea of ​​Japan by the Tatar Strait. Further north, immediately south of the Chukotka Peninsula, is the Gulf of Anadyr.

The greatest difficulty is the drawing of the border between the Pacific and Indian Oceans in the Malay Archipelago. None of the proposed boundaries could satisfy botanists, zoologists, geologists and oceanologists at the same time. Some scientists consider the so-called dividing line. the Wallace line through the Makassar Strait. Others propose drawing the border across the Gulf of Thailand, southern part South China Sea and the Java Sea.

The shores of the Pacific Ocean vary so much from place to place that it is difficult to single out any common features. With the exception of the extreme south, the Pacific coast is framed by a ring of dormant or occasionally active volcanoes, known as the Ring of Fire. Most of the coasts are formed by high mountains, so that the absolute elevations of the surface change sharply by close range from the shore. All this testifies to the presence of a tectonically unstable zone along the periphery of the Pacific Ocean, the slightest movement within which causes strong earthquakes.

Pacific Ocean- the largest on the planet. It covers more than half of the entire water surface of the Earth, has an area of ​​178 ml. sq. km. and stretched from Japan to America. The average depth of the ocean is 4 km.

The opening of the Pacific

It is believed that the first person to visit the Pacific Ocean on a ship was Magellan . In 1520, he circled South America and saw new expanses of water. Since Magellan's team did not encounter a single storm during the entire journey, new ocean called " Quiet«.

Victoria is the only ship of Magellan's expedition to return.

But even earlier in 1513 the Spaniard Vasco Nunez de Balboa headed south from Colombia to a place he was told was a wealthy country with big sea. Having reached the ocean, the conquistador saw an endless expanse of water stretching to the west, and called it " South Sea«.

Bottom relief

The bottom relief is extremely diverse. Located in the eastEast Pacific Risewhere the terrain is relatively flat. In the center are basins and deep-sea trenches. The average depth is 4,000 m, and in some places exceeds 7 km. The bottom of the center of the ocean covers the products of volcanic activity with a high content of copper, nickel and cobalt. The thickness of such deposits in some areas can be 3 km. The age of these rocks begins with the Jurassic and Cretaceous period.

At the bottom there are several long chains of seamounts formed as a result of the action of volcanoes: g Emperor's horns, Louisville and the Hawaiian Islands. There are about 25,000 islands in the Pacific Ocean. That's more than all the other oceans combined. Most of them are located south of the equator.

Islands are classified into 4 types:

1. continental islands. Very closely related to the continents. Include New Guinea, the islands of New Zealand and the Philippines;
2. high islands. Appeared as a result of eruptions underwater volcanoes. Many of the modern high islands have have active volcanoes. For example, Bougainville, Hawaii and the Solomon Islands;
3. Coral reefs;
4. Coral raised platforms;

The last two types of islands are huge colonies of coral polyps that form coral reefs and islands.

Climate

The large extent of the ocean from north to south quite logically explains the diversity climatic zones- from equatorial to antarctic. The largest zone is the equatorial zone. Throughout the year, the temperature here does not fall below 20 degrees. Temperature fluctuations during the year are so small that we can safely say that it is always +25 there. There is a lot of precipitation, more than 3,000 mm. in year. Very frequent cyclones are characteristic.

Seasonal phenomenon in the Pacific Ocean - cyclones

The amount of precipitation is greater than the amount of evaporating water. Rivers that bring more than 30 thousand m³ to the ocean annually fresh water, make surface water less saline than other oceans.

Inhabitants of the Pacific

The ocean is famous for its rich flora and fauna. About 100 thousand species of animals live in it. There is no such diversity in any other ocean. For example, the second largest ocean, the Atlantic Ocean, is inhabited by “only” 30,000 species of animals.

There are several places in the Pacific Ocean where the depth exceeds 10 km. These are the famous Mariana Trench, the Philippine Trench and the Kermadec and Tonga depressions. Scientists were able to describe 20 species of animals that live at such a great depth.

Half of all seafood consumed by humans is caught in the Pacific Ocean. Among 3,000 species of fish, industrial-scale fishing is open for herring, anchovies, mackerels, sardines, and others.

• This ocean is so vast that it maximum width equal to half of the earth's equator, i.e. more than 17 thousand km.
• The animal world is large and varied. Even now, new animals unknown to science are regularly discovered there. So, in 2005, a group of scientists discovered about 1000 species of decapod cancer, two and a half thousand mollusks and more than a hundred crustaceans.
• The deepest point on the planet is in the Pacific Ocean in the Mariana Trench. Its depth exceeds 11 km.
• The most high mountain in the world is on Hawaiian Islands. It is called Muana Kea and represents dormant volcano. The height from the base to the top is about 10,000 m.
• At the bottom of the ocean is Pacific volcanic ring of fire, which is a chain of volcanoes located along the perimeter of the entire ocean.