2020 Edition

Background

The Arctic Ocean is the smallest of the world's five ocean basins (after the Pacific Ocean, Atlantic Ocean, Indian Ocean, and the Southern Ocean). The Northwest Passage (US and Canada) and Northern Sea Route (Norway and Russia) are two important seasonal waterways. In recent years, the polar ice pack has receded in the summer allowing for increased navigation and raising the possibility of future sovereignty and shipping disputes among the Arctic coastal states affected (Canada, Denmark (Greenland), Iceland, Norway, Russia, US).

Area

total

15.558 million sq km

Area - comparative

slightly less than 1.5 times the size of the US

Bathymetry

abyssal plains

the following are examples of abyssal-plain features in the Arctic Ocean (see Figure 2): Baffin Basin Canada Basin Fram/Amundsen Basin Greenland Abyssal Plain Iceland Basin Makarov Basin Molloy Deep (deepest point in the Arctic Ocean) Nansen Basin Norwegian Basin

atolls

none

continental shelf

more than one quarter of the Arctic sea floor; the Eurasian shelf is very wide, extending out 1,500 km (930 mi), and is the largest continental shelf in the world the following are examples of continental-shelf features in the Arctic Ocean (see Figure 2): Barents Shelf Beaufort Shelf Davis Sill Chukchi Shelf East Siberian Shelf Kara Shelf Laptev Shelf Lincoln Shelf

continental slope

the following are examples of continental-slope features in the Arctic Ocean (see Figure 2): Litke Trough Novaya Zemlya Trough Svyataya Anna Trough (Saint Anna Trough) Voronin Trough

mid-ocean ridge

the following are examples of mid-ocean ridges in the Arctic Ocean (see Figure 2): Gakkel Ridge Mohns Ridge

ocean trenches

none

undersea terrain features

the following are examples of undersea terrain features on the floor of the Arctic Ocean (see Figure 2): Lomonosov Ridge Gakkel Ridge Alpha Ridge Mendeleev Rise Chukchi Plateau

Climate

polar climate characterized by persistent cold and relatively narrow annual temperature range; winters characterized by continuous darkness, cold and stable weather conditions, and clear skies; summers characterized by continuous daylight, damp and foggy weather, and weak cyclones with rain or snow

Coastline

45,389 km

Elevation

highest point

sea level

lowest point

Molloy Deep -5,577 m

mean depth

-1,205 m

ocean zones

the ocean is divided into three zones based on depth and light level; sunlight entering the water may travel about 1,000 m into the oceans under the right conditions, but there is rarely any significant light below 200 m euphotic zone: the upper 200 m (656 ft) is also called "sunlight" zone; only a small amount of light penetrates beyond this depth dysphotic zone: between 200 m (656 ft) and 1,000 m (3,280 ft), and also called the twilight zone; the intensity of light rapidly dissipates as depth increases, and photosynthesis is no longer possible aphotic zone: below 1,000 m (3,280 ft) and also called the midnight zone; sunlight does not penetrate to these depths

Geographic coordinates

90 00 N, 0 00 E

Geography - note

major chokepoint is the southern Chukchi Sea (northern access to the Pacific Ocean via the Bering Strait); strategic location between North America and Russia; shortest marine link between the extremes of eastern and western Russia; floating research stations operated by the US and Russia; maximum snow cover in March or April about 20 to 50 centimeters over the frozen ocean; snow cover lasts about 10 months

Location

body of water between Europe, Asia, and North America, mostly north of the Arctic Circle

Major ocean currents

two major, slow-moving, wind-driven currents (drift streams) dominate: a clockwise drift pattern in the Beaufort Gyre in the western part of the Arctic Ocean and a nearly straight line Transpolar Drift Stream that moves eastward across the ocean from the New Siberian Islands (Russia) to the Fram Strait (between Greenland and Svalbard); sea ice that lies close to the center of the gyre can complete a 360 degree circle in about 2 years, while ice on the gyre periphery will complete the same circle in about 7-8 years; sea ice in the Transpolar Drift crosses the ocean in about 3 years

Map references

Arctic Region

Natural hazards

ice islands occasionally break away from northern Ellesmere Island; icebergs calved from glaciers in western Greenland and extreme northeastern Canada; permafrost in islands; virtually ice locked from October to June; ships subject to superstructure icing from October to May

Natural resources

sand and gravel aggregates, placer deposits, polymetallic nodules, oil and gas fields, fish, marine mammals (seals and whales)

Ocean volume

ocean volume

18.75 million cu km

percent of World Ocean total volume

1.4%

Country name

etymology

the name comes from the Greek word arktikos meaning "near the bear" or "northern," and that word derives from arktos, meaning "bear;" the name refers either to the constellation Ursa Major, the "Great Bear," which is prominent in the northern celestial sphere, or to the constellation Ursa Minor, the "Little Bear," which contains Polaris, the North (Pole) Star

Transportation - note

sparse network of air, ocean, river, and land routes; the Northwest Passage (North America) and Northern Sea Route (Eurasia) are important seasonal waterways

Environmental issues

changes in biodiversity and temperature; water pollution from use of toxic chemicals; endangered marine species; ecosystem slow to recover from disruptions or damage; thinning polar icepack

Marine fisheries

the Arctic fishery region (Region 18) is the smallest in the world with a catch of only 708 mt in 2019, although the Food and Agriculture Organization assesses that some Arctic catches are reported in adjacent regions; Russia and Canada were historically the major producers; in 2017, Canada, Denmark (Greenland), Iceland, Norway, Russia, and the US, along with the People’s Republic of China, the European Union, Japan, and the Republic of Korea, agreed to a 16-year ban on fishing in the Central Arctic Ocean to allow for time to study the ecological system of these waters Regional fisheries bodies: International Council for the Exploration of the Seas; Agreement to Prevent Unregulated High Seas Fisheries in the Central Arctic Ocean