With an area of 82 million sq km, the Atlantic ocean

The Atlantic Ocean

is the second largest of the world's five oceans (after the Pacific Ocean, but larger than the Indian Ocean, Southern Ocean, and Arctic Ocean). The Kiel Canal (Germany), Oresund (Denmark-Sweden), Bosporus (Turkey), Strait of Gibraltar (Morocco-Spain), and the Saint Lawrence Seaway (Canada-US) are important strategic access waterways. The decision by the International Hydrographic Organization in the spring of 2000 to delimit a fifth world ocean, the Southern Ocean, removed the portion of the Atlantic Ocean south of 60 degrees south. It covers about one-fifth of the world's surface. At its widest point, between Spain and Mexico, the Atlantic is 9600 km across.

The Atlantic was named by the ancient Romans after the Atlas Mountains of North Africa.

Icebergs common in Davis Strait, Denmark Strait, and the northwestern Atlantic Ocean from February to August and have been spotted as far south as Bermuda and the Madeira Islands; ships subject to superstructure icing in extreme northern Atlantic from October to May; persistent fog can be a maritime hazard from May to September; hurricanes (May to December)

There are very few islands in the main part of the Atlantic Ocean. Most lie close to the continents.

On average, the Atlantic is about 3660 m deep. The deepest point in the Atlantic is the Puerto Rico Trench, which is 8648 m deep.

The Mid-Atlantic Ridge is a great undersea ridge which splits the sea-bed in half. Along this ridge, the Atlantic is growing wider by 2-4 cm every year.

Islands in the mid-Atlantic are volcanoes that lie along the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, such as the Azores and Ascension Island.