What continents is the Atlantic? Which countries are washing the Atlantic Ocean?

The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest. It is present in all hemispheres of the Earth. From the article you will learn which shores of the continents are washed by the Atlantic Ocean and how it affects them.

Characteristics of the Atlantic Ocean

The ocean covers an area of 91.66 million square kilometers. Km, making it the second largest after the Pacific. More than 16% of its total area falls on the straits, seas and bays. Salinity of water is approximately 34-37 ppm. The deepest point is the Puerto Rico trough, 8742 meters deep. The average depth of the Atlantic Ocean is about 4 kilometers, and this is less than that of the Pacific and Indian.

The Atlantic is located in all four hemispheres and is washed by 5 continents. The Danish strait and Davis Strait in the north connect it to the Arctic Ocean. The Drake Passage in the south communicates it with the Pacific Ocean, and with the Indian, it is connected by a water space between Antarctica and Africa.

Previously, the Atlantic Ocean was called the Western, Outer, North Sea, now for its designation the term "Atlantic" is often used. On the European map, authored by the Dutchman Varenius, the modern name of the ocean appeared in 1650.

The origin of the name "Atlantic Ocean" is associated with the African Atlas Mountains. Scientists suggest that even with the ancient Greeks this name literally meant "the sea beyond the mountains of Atlas". There are two more versions of the name - one connects it with the sunken Atlantis, the other - with the name of the titanium Atlanta.

Studies of the Atlantic

Described water spaces people began to develop before other oceans, through the water area of the Mediterranean Sea. Even before our era, on the shores of the Mediterranean, ancient cities were founded by cities and states. Watching the ebb and flow, animal and plant life, they were the first explorers of these waters.

Of course, in ancient times, people did not know exactly which continent washes the Atlantic Ocean. Their geographical knowledge markedly different from modern. Nevertheless, navigation on the North Atlantic Pifei made in the IV century BC. And in the 10th century AD Eric the Red came from Normandy to make the first voyage across the Atlantic Ocean, arriving to the shores of the island of Newfoundland.

In the era of the Great Geographical Discoveries , a large number of travels through the waters of the Atlantic took place. At the same time, the first descriptions of depths, soil, tropical hurricanes were made, and the Northern Passat, the Brazilian, the Guiana currents and the Gulf Stream were discovered. This era gave impetus to the study of the depths of the sea, as well as the territories that are washed by the Atlantic Ocean. Nowadays, much is known about it, but research continues to this day.

Which continent ishes the Atlantic Ocean

All the oceans on our planet constitute a continuous World Ocean. Between them there are no clear boundaries, and all the divisions are, in fact, conditional. After all, the Atlantic did not exist 200 million years ago, and all the terrestrial continents were one part of the land.

About 180 million years ago the process of the split of the common continent into separate territories was launched. In the northern part of the Atlantic, parts of the earth increasingly moved away from each other. Approximately 140 million years ago, the plate movement began in the South Atlantic. Gradually, Greenland separated from Europe, and the Mid-Labrador Ridge began to die.

So, what continents is the Atlantic? In the course of large-scale world processes, the waters of this ocean stretched for almost 16 thousand kilometers from north to south. The ocean is now washing:

• North and South America;
• Eurasia;
• Africa;
• Antarctica.

The list does not fall only to Australia. In the north it is located between the shores of Greenland and Iceland, in the south - near Antarctica. Africa and Europe are on the eastern side of the ocean, both Americas are located in the west.

Coastline

We have already learned which coasts are washed by the Atlantic Ocean. Now you can talk about their features. The ocean stretched out on two terrestrial hemispheres, therefore all its territory conditionally divide into northern and southern. The border for them is the equator.

The North Atlantic is characterized by a strong rugged shoreline. In this part there are many inland seas. So, in the north-east is the Norwegian Sea, occupying the territory between Norway and Iceland.

Near the coast of Denmark and Great Britain is the North Sea. In the east it passes into the Baltic, which has the Finnish and the Gulf of Bothnia. A much to the south begins the system of internal seas - the Mediterranean communicates with the ocean through the Strait of Gibraltar, followed by the Black and the Azov.

In the southwest of the North Atlantic, the Strait of Florida connects the ocean with the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea. On the coast of North America are the bays of Barnegat, Long Island, Delaware, Pamliko.

The beaches washed by the southern Atlantic waters are much less numerous. There are no internal seas in this part. The African continent has a landlocked Guinea Bay - the largest gulf of the South Atlantic. Near the coast of South America, they are few. The southern part of this continent is considerably divided, in the area of Tierra del Fuego there are many small islands.

The influence of Atlantic waters

It is possible to list which countries are washed by the Atlantic Ocean for a very long time. In addition to the water area of all its seas, about 50 states are washing the Atlantic waters. All of them experience a powerful oceanic influence. An important climate-forming factor for coastal areas is the currents and zoning of the Atlantic Ocean. In the northern part, the water temperature is noticeably colder (about 5 degrees).

Warm ocean currents warm the coast, make it soft and moist. They also contribute to a lot of precipitation. The largest and most powerful current in the Atlantic is the warm Gulf Stream. This current affects the climate of North America and Western Europe. Thanks to him, for example, the winter temperature of Reykjavik is higher than the temperature in New York.

Warm currents of the Atlantic Ocean :

• Brazilian;
• Guiana;
• The Gulf Stream;
• Norwegian.

Cold currents of the Atlantic contribute to the colder and dry climate on the coasts. Thus, the Labrador Current forms a severe climate on the island of Labrador, and the Bengel and Canary currents make the climate of the West African coast dry. The collision of the Gulf Stream with the Labrador Current provides long-lasting fogs on the shores of Newfoundland.

Cold currents of the Atlantic Ocean:

• Greenland;
• Labrador;
• Canary;
• Bengelskoe.

Conclusion

Now we know which continents the Atlantic Ocean is washing and what impact it has on them. Stretching from north to south, this watery expanse has long been of great importance for people. The waters of the Atlantic connect five continents and significantly affect their weather conditions.