Few will have doubtswhich ocean is the coldest on our planet. Without a doubt, this is the Arctic. It lies between continents such as North America and Eurasia, occupying an area of just over 13 million square kilometers. In the southern part of the ocean is almost completely within the Arctic Circle. The average depth here is 1225 meters, while the largest is 5527 meters.
The coldest ocean on the planet is in the centralThe part has a deep-water oval hollow with a size of 2250 x 1130 kilometers. It is also known as the Polar or Arctic basin. Almost half of the ocean floor is a shelf, within which there are a large number of single islands and archipelagoes. These include Greenland, the New Siberian Islands, North and New Earth, Svalbard and others. It should be noted that the coldest ocean in the world does not have a single island of oceanic origin.
Atmospheric precipitation falls here predominantlyin the form of snow, while rains are extremely rare. Throughout the year, most of the ocean is covered with ice, which is on average three meters thick. Its western region is characterized by the northwesterly and northern winds, which are the main cause of the harsh Arctic climate. In the eastern part of the basin, south-western and southern winds prevail, and therefore the coldest ocean has a milder climate.
The air does not get very hot in summer.Its average temperature in different areas of the Arctic Ocean varies from two degrees of frost to twelve degrees of heat. In winter, it can fall below the mark at minus forty degrees. Storms also occur frequently in winter.
The coldest ocean on the planet cannotboast a rich flora and fauna. The reason for this are the harsh climatic conditions, as well as the wide distribution of ice. The organic world is most developed in the region where there is a continuous connection with the Atlantic Ocean, in other words - in the White, Barents and Kara seas. There are about two thousand species of animals (including whales), as well as a huge number of fish. In those areas where water flows from warm currents, on island coasts and rocks you can find many birds.
In the region of Alaska, Canada and Eastern Siberiathe organic world is very poor. The same situation is in the central part of the Arctic Ocean, which is covered with ice throughout the year. Here phytoplankton is represented mainly by diatoms. Some of them live on the ice surface. As for zooplankton, the coldest ocean on the planet in this part is inhabited by less than eighty species, and among the fish are navaga, Arctic Polka and cod. On the outskirts of perennial ice, seals, walruses, belugas, narwhals and other oceanic mammals are often found. Their fishing is now strictly prohibited and controlled by numerous international documents. The most prominent representative of the terrestrial animal world here is the polar bear.
