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 Match 16   DB Rec# - 7,468  Dataset-WOFACT

Title         :Atlantic Ocean 
Text          : 
                                 Atlantic Ocean 


 
                                    Geography 
 
Location: 
    body of water between Africa, Antarctica, and the Western Hemisphere 
Map references: 
    World 
Area: 
  total area: 
    82.217 million sq km 
  comparative area: 
    slightly less than nine times the size of the US; second-largest of the 
    world's four oceans (after the Pacific Ocean, but larger than Indian Ocean 
    or Arctic Ocean) 
  note: 
    includes Baltic Sea, Black Sea, Caribbean Sea, Davis Strait, Denmark Strait,
 
    Drake Passage, Gulf of Mexico, Mediterranean Sea, North Sea, Norwegian Sea, 
    Scotia Sea, Weddell Sea, and other tributary water bodies 
Coastline: 
    111,866 km 
International disputes: 
    some maritime disputes (see littoral states) 
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 
Terrain: 
    surface usually covered with sea ice in Labrador Sea, Denmark Strait, and 
    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; maximum depth is 8,605 meters in the Puerto Rico Trench 
Natural resources: 
    oil and gas fields, fish, marine mammals (seals and whales), sand and gravel
 
    aggregates, placer deposits, polymetallic nodules, precious stones 
Environment: 
  current issues: 
    endangered marine species include the manatee, seals, sea lions, turtles, 
    and whales; driftnet fishing is exacerbating declining 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 
  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; icebergs from Antarctica occur in the 
    extreme southern Atlantic Ocean; ships subject to superstructure icing in 
    extreme northern Atlantic from October to May and extreme southern Atlantic 
    from May to October; persistent fog can be a maritime hazard from May to 
    September 
  international agreements: 
    NA 
Note: 
    major choke points 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 
 
                                   Government 
 
Digraph: 
    ZH 
 
                                     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, the dredging of aragonite sands (The Bahamas), and production of 
    crude oil and natural gas (Caribbean Sea, Gulf of Mexico, and North Sea). 
 
                                 Transportation 
 
Ports: 
    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), Piraeus (Greece), Rio de Janeiro (Brazil), Rotterdam 
    (Netherlands), Saint Petersburg (Russia), Stockholm (Sweden) 
Note: 
    Kiel Canal and Saint Lawrence Seaway are two important waterways 
 
                                 Communications 
 
Telephone system: 
  international: 
    numerous submarine cables with most between continental Europe and the UK, 
    North America and the UK, and in the Mediterranean; numerous direct links 
    across Atlantic via INTELSAT satellite network 

This publication is also available online from the CIA (http://www.odci.gov/cia) as 1995 World Factbook (http://www.odci.gov/cia/publications/95fact/index.html).

The printed version of this item can be found under the title:
The World Factbook 1995,
SuDoc No: PREX 3.15:995

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Updated: March 12, 1996