A ocean is a body of saline water that covers 70% of Earth’s surface. Life on Earth is believed to be originated in the ocean and it continues to be home to diverse species of life. The oceans affect the weather and temperature of a place by absorbing solar radiations. Ocean contribute to water cycle and is a major source of rainfall. Though generally described as several ‘separate’ oceans, these waters comprise one global, interconnected body of salt water sometimes referred to as the World Ocean or global ocean. The area of the World Ocean is 361 million square kilometres (139 million square miles).
The Earth’s oceans are all connected to one another. The major oceanic divisions are defined in part by the continents, and other criteria. These divisions are:
Pacific Ocean: It is the largest of all the oceans which separates Asia and Oceania from Americas. It is spread over 64.1 million square miles in area and bounded by Asia and Australia in the west and the Americas in the east. It extends from the Arctic in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south
Atlantic Ocean: This is the second largest of the world’s oceanic division with an area of 33.4 million square miles. The Atlantic Ocean occupies an elongated, S-shaped basin extending longitudinally between Europe and Africa to the east, and the Americas to the west. It is connected in the north to the Arctic Ocean, to the Pacific Ocean in the southwest, the Indian Ocean in the southeast, and the Southern Ocean in the south.
Indian Ocean: The Indian Ocean is the third largest of all the oceans covering the area of 28.3 million square miles. It is bounded on the north by the Indian Subcontinent and Arabian Peninsula; on the west by eastern Africa; on the east by Indochina, the Sunda Islands, and Australia; and on the south by the Southern Ocean. The ocean is named after the geographic location of India.
Southern Ocean: The Southern Ocean comprises the southernmost waters of the World Ocean. It is regarded as the fourth largest ocean of the world, spread over 7.8 million square miles.
Arctic Ocean: The Arctic Ocean is the smallest and the shallowest of the world’s five major oceans; spread over 5.1 million square miles. It is surrounded by Eurasia and North America and is partly covered by sea ice throughout the year. The Arctic Ocean’s temperature and salinity vary seasonally as the ice cover melts and freezes; its salinity is the lowest on average of the five major oceans, due to low evaporation, heavy freshwater inflow from rivers and streams, and limited connection and outflow to surrounding oceanic waters with higher salinities.
Image Source: https://danforthbiomeproject.pbworks.com/f/1264184305/k3oceans.gif
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