Content deleted Content added
mNo edit summary |
|||
Line 1:
{{Short description|Ocean between Africa, Europe,
{{Redirect-several|Atlantic|North Atlantic|South Atlantic|Atlantic Basin}}
{{pp-move}}
{{Use American English|date=June 2017}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2020}}
{{Infobox body of water
| name = Atlantic Ocean
Line 20 ⟶ 21:
| cities = [[List of ports and harbours of the Atlantic Ocean|List]]
}}
[[File:Atlantic Ocean to Africa.ogv|thumb|This video was taken by the crew of [[Expedition 29]] on board the [[International Space Station|ISS]]. The pass starts from just northeast of the island of [[Newfoundland (island)|Newfoundland]] over the North Atlantic Ocean to central Africa, over [[South Sudan]].]]
The '''Atlantic Ocean''' is the second-largest of the world's five [[ocean]]s, with an area of about {{convert|85133000|km2|sqmi|sp=us|abbr=on}}.<ref name="Atlantic Ocean – Britannica">{{Cite encyclopedia |title=Atlantic Ocean |encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/place/Atlantic-Ocean |access-date=20 December 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170215072935/https://www.britannica.com/place/Atlantic-Ocean |archive-date=15 February 2017 |url-status=live}}</ref> It covers approximately 17% of [[Earth#Surface|Earth's surface]] and about 24% of its water surface area. During the [[Age of Discovery]], it was known for separating the [[Old World]] of [[Africa]], [[Europe]], and [[Asia]] from the [[New World]] of the [[Americas]].▼
▲The '''Atlantic Ocean''' is the second-largest of the world's five [[ocean]]s, with an area of about {{convert|85133000|km2|sqmi|sp=us|abbr=on}}.<ref name="Atlantic Ocean – Britannica">{{Cite encyclopedia |title=Atlantic Ocean |encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/place/Atlantic-Ocean |access-date=20 December 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170215072935/https://www.britannica.com/place/Atlantic-Ocean |archive-date=15 February 2017 |url-status=live}}</ref> It covers approximately 17% of [[Earth#Surface|Earth's surface]] and about 24% of its water surface area. During the [[Age of Discovery]], it was known for separating the [[Old World]] of [[Afro-Eurasia]] ([[Africa]], [[
Through its separation of Europe, Africa, and Asia from the Americas, the Atlantic Ocean has played a central role in the development of human society, globalization, and the histories of many nations. While the [[Norse exploration of North America|Norse]] were the first known humans to cross the Atlantic, it was the [[expedition of Christopher Columbus]] in 1492 that proved to be the most consequential. Columbus' expedition ushered in an [[Age of Discovery|age of exploration]] and [[colonization of the Americas by European powers]], most notably [[Portuguese Empire|Portugal]], [[Spanish Empire|Spain]], [[French colonial empire|France]], and the [[British Empire|United Kingdom]]. From the 16th to 19th centuries, the Atlantic Ocean was the center of both [[Atlantic slave trade|an eponymous slave trade]] and the [[Columbian exchange]] while occasionally hosting naval battles. Such naval battles, as well as growing trade from regional American powers like the [[United States]] and [[Brazil]], both increased in degree during the early 20th century, and while no major military conflicts took place in the Atlantic in the present day, the ocean remains a core component of trade around the world.▼
▲Through its separation of
The Atlantic Ocean occupies an elongated, S-shaped basin extending longitudinally between Europe and Africa to the east, and the Americas to the west. As one component of the interconnected [[World Ocean]], 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. Other definitions describe the Atlantic as extending southward to [[Antarctica]]. The Atlantic Ocean is divided in two parts, the northern and southern Atlantic, by the [[Equator]].<ref>[[International Hydrographic Organization]], [https://iho.int/uploads/user/pubs/standards/s-23/S-23_Ed3_1953_EN.pdf ''Limits of Oceans and Seas'', 3rd ed. (1953)], pages 4 and 13.</ref>
| |||