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Background:
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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. |
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Location:
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body of
water between Africa, Europe, the Southern Ocean, and
the Western Hemisphere |
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Geographic coordinates:
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0 00 N,
25 00 W |
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Map references:
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Political
Map of the World |
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Area:
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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 |
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Area - comparative:
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slightly
less than 6.5 times the size of the US |
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Coastline:
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111,866
km |
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Climate:
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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 |
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Terrain:
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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 |
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Elevation extremes:
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lowest
point: Milwaukee Deep in the Puerto Rico Trench
-8,605 m
highest point: sea level 0 m |
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Natural resources:
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oil and
gas fields, fish, marine mammals (seals and whales),
sand and gravel aggregates, placer deposits,
polymetallic nodules, precious stones |
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Natural hazards:
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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) |
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Environment - current issues:
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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 |
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Geography - note:
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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
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Economy - overview:
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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). |
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Ports and terminals:
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Alexandria (Egypt), Algiers (Algeria), Antwerp
(Belgium), Barcelona (Spain), Buenos Aires (Argentina),
Casablanca (Morocco), Colon (Panama), Copenhagen
(Denmark), Dakar (Senegal), Gdansk (Poland), Hamburg
(Germany), Helsinki (Finland), Las Palmas (Canary
Islands, Spain), Le Havre (France), Lisbon (Portugal),
London (UK), Marseille (France), Montevideo (Uruguay),
Montreal (Canada), Naples (Italy), New Orleans (US), New
York (US), Oran (Algeria), Oslo (Norway), Peiraiefs or
Piraeus (Greece), Rio de Janeiro (Brazil), Rotterdam
(Netherlands), Saint Petersburg (Russia), Stockholm
(Sweden) |
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Transportation - note:
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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
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Disputes - international:
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some
maritime disputes (see littoral states) |
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