El Atlantic Ocean it is the second largest oceanic body of water in the world. It houses an immensity of species of animals and plants in it. It bathes the coasts of many countries and of several continents. Its area is about 106.4 million square kilometers. This extension occupies a fifth of the entire surface of the Earth. The importance of this ocean is very high for humanity and the rest of the living beings that inhabit it. Therefore, we are going to dedicate this article to you in depth.
If you want to know everything related to the Atlantic Ocean, here we are going to explain it to you in great detail.
Key features
This ocean has its surface in the shape of an elongated basin in S. It extends from Eurasia, Africa to the east and America to the west. It covers almost 17% of the entire surface of the earth. It is known for being the saltiest sea in the world. It has tropical areas and high evaporation due to normally high temperatures.
In almost all its areas, the average depth is about 3.339 meters. It holds a volume of 354.700.000 cubic kilometers of water. Typically, the saltiest waters are found in the areas between 25 degrees north and south latitude. On the other hand, we find more tropical areas where temperatures are higher, resulting in a high evaporation rate. Furthermore, in these areas where water evaporates in greater quantities, there is usually little rainfall. The lowest salinity levels are found north of the equator, since the evaporation rate is lower. For more information on salinity, you can visit our article on salinity. Arctic Ocean acidification.
As for its temperature, it varies more depending on the latitude in which we are. As usual, is at 2 degrees, but there are parts where it is more and in others where it is less. In the polar regions or close to them, the temperature of the water, especially on the surface, is lower, while in the tropical areas they are higher.
Relief and climate
In the time of August and November, in the Atlantic Ocean the hurricane stage beginsThis is due to the rise of much of the warm air found on the surface and its subsequent condensation upon encountering cold air masses. The hurricane feeds on its own water until it breaks onto the Earth's surface, where it loses strength. Little by little, it becomes a tropical storm until it finally disappears. Typically, hurricanes form off the coast of Africa and move westward until they end up in the Caribbean Sea. For more information on this phenomenon, you can review the article on the Atlantic hurricane season.
In an extended way, This ocean has a fairly flat seabed. However, it does have some mountain ranges, depressions, plateaus and canyons. What is most abundant are the abyssal plains where some species more adapted to extreme environments live. One of its most famous mountain ranges is the Mid-Atlantic. It extends from northern Iceland to 58 degrees south latitude. This mountain range has a width of about 1.600 km.
The Atlantic Ocean is divided by climatic zones that depend mostly on the latitude where we are. The warmest climatic zones are those in the Atlantic north of the equator. While the coldest areas are at high latitudes where the ocean surface is covered in ice, the effects of sandstorms on the oceans are another interesting phenomenon that can be explored further.
The Ocean currents that are in the Atlantic Ocean help to control the climate of practically the world. This is because it transports the warm and cold waters to other territories to be able to distribute them better. Should this conveyor belt break, the world's climate would suffer almost irreparable damage. There is much talk of a ice Age.
The areas around this ocean are affected by circulating winds that are cooling or heating when blowing in these ocean currents. The wind, when transporting humidity and hot or cold air, it acts as a thermal and energy exchange regulator. Furthermore, ocean warming is a critical phenomenon that we need to study further.
Flora and fauna
Starting with the fauna, we find an ocean with quite a variety of marine animals. We find both vertebrates and invertebrates. Among the animals with the largest distribution area in this ocean we have:
- Walruses
- Spinner dolphin
- sea cow
- Spotted stingray
- Bluefin tuna
- Great white shark
- Green turtle and leatherback
- Humpback Whale
- Orca or killer whale
On the other hand, we have millions of different species of plants. The vast majority of them live on or near the surface, since they need sunlight to carry out photosynthesis. In the ocean, there is a very important variable to take into account for the survival of plants. It's about irradiance. This variable is what measures the amount of solar radiation that affects the plants. Deeper, we find a smaller amount of solar radiation that affects the plants. In this way, photosynthesis cannot occur and the plants do not survive. This variable is also greatly affected by the turbidity of the water. In cloudy or moving water that carries mud particles, the amount of sunlight that penetrates is less, so the plants will suffer more.
We can also find a large number of plants in the background. They can survive well as they float freely in the water. We also have species of seaweed, phytoplankton or sea grass. This phytoplankton is a very basic plant form that serves as food for millions of fish and other marine animals.Coral reefs are also common in the Caribbean. These are severely damaged by the effects of climate change. To learn more about these effects, we invite you to read about the consequences of the cooling of the Atlantic.
Importance of the Atlantic Ocean
This ocean is of great importance for being a means of communication between continents. It has important deposits of oil and natural gas, sedimentary rocks that are located in the continental shelves and obtain a great immensity of fishery resourcesSome precious stones are also extracted from it. With oil spills, there is concern about its future and the quality of its waters. This aspect highlights the importance of studying the human impact on the oceans, as you can see in our article on the ocean warming.
I hope that with this information you can learn more about the Atlantic Ocean and all its characteristics.