Doreen Gonzales - The Frigid Arctic Ocean

THE OCEAN AT THE TOP OF THE WORLD

The Arctic Ocean is a hard place to live. Frigidly cold, the ocean freezes during the long, dark winters. In summer, you can still find ice there. Discover the plants and animals that live in, on, and near this special place, and the scientists who explore its mysteries.

About the Author

Doreen Gonzales is an elementary school teacher who enjoys writing in her free time. She has written several nonfiction books for young readers. Gonzales lives in Colorado and likes to hike, ski, garden, and read.

The Arctic Ocean lies at the top of the world. Most of its waters are within a line called the Arctic Circle. This area is known as the Arctic. It surrounds the North Pole, so it is sometimes called polar.

The Arctic is the smallest ocean on earth. It covers about 5.5 million square miles (14 million square kilometers).

Temperatures in the Arctic are very cold. During July, the average temperature is 29F (1.5C). In January, the average temperature drops to 28F (33C). Winds can make the air feel even colder.

Cold temperatures keep much of the ocean frozen. Frozen seawater is called sea ice. Arctic sea ice can be ten feet (three meters) thick. In the summer, it stretches from the North Pole toward the continents. During these warmer months, open water is found near the continents.

Each winter the sea ice doubles in size. It reaches land in many places. The ice is not one solid sheet, though. It is made up of several pieces separated by water. Each piece is called a floe.

Water moves under the floes and breaks up the ice on top. Sea ice that is broken apart and crushed back together again is called pack ice. Pack ice can be six feet (two meters) thick.

Much of the Arctic Ocean is frozen. Frozen seawater is called sea ice.

Glacier ice is also found in the Arctic Ocean. Glacier ice is frozen freshwater that has broken off glaciers on land. These chunks are called icebergs.

These floes make up ice covering the northern Bering Sea.

Icebergs can be several miles long and hundreds of feet tall. Yet only a small part of any iceberg lies above the water. The largest portion is hidden under the sea. Sunlight can make icebergs look pink, blue, gray, or green.

Many icebergs stay in the Arctic for years. Others float into warmer waters and melt. In 1912, a ship called the Titanic struck an Arctic iceberg that had floated into the Atlantic Ocean. The Titanic sank, and over fifteen hundred people died.

Currents are like rivers in the ocean. They move in a regular pattern.

The position and brightness of the sun can make an iceberg look blue, pink, gray, or green.

Two main currents bring water into the Arctic Ocean. The first brings water from the Atlantic Ocean. The second brings Pacific water into the Arctic.

A third current takes water out of the Arctic Ocean. It flows south along Greenland into the Atlantic Ocean.

The aurora borealis, also known as the northern lights, flashes in the sky above the frozen Arctic.

The Arctic Ocean is tilted toward the sun for about half of each year. During this time, the sun never sets at the North Pole. It is a time of constant daylight. For the next six months, though, the Arctic is tilted away from the sun. At this time, the sun never rises. The Arctic Ocean is dark all day and night.

Another unique event over Arctic waters is the aurora borealis, or northern lights. These are green, red, and purple lights that appear in the sky. They occur when electrical particles from the sun get trapped in the earths magnetic field.

For half the year, the sun does not set at the Arctic.

The Arctic Ocean is full of natural resources. People have depended on them as far back as prehistoric times.

Different groups of people have lived around the Arctic Ocean for millenia. Each has a specific name. For example, the people in northern Alaska are the Inupiat. The Saamis live in northern Europe.

Since prehistoric times, the Arctic's native peoples have relied a great deal on the ocean to provide what they need.

These native groups hunted their food. They ate fish, seals, walrus, and whales. They used every part of any animal they killed. Animal hides were used for clothing, boats, and shelters. Their fat was used for cooking and heating.

Descendants of these people live around the Arctic Ocean today. Many still depend on ocean fish and sea mammals for food.

Other people who live near the ocean also depend on sea life. Many earn a living fishing.

There are also large fishing operations in Arctic waters. Thousands of tons of fish are caught in the ocean each year.

The Arctic Ocean is a source of oil and natural gas. These fuels are used to heat homes and power engines. Much oil comes from Prudhoe Bay, Alaska. This oil is sent through an 800-mile-long (1,300-kilometer-long) pipeline to Valdez, Alaska. Ships take the oil from Valdez to other places. About one-tenth of all the oil used in the United States comes from Alaska.

Much of the Arctic Ocean is covered with sea ice most of the year.However, some experts say that global warming has made sea ice three to six feet thinner than normal, a 40 percent decrease in the total amount.

The Arctic Ocean provides two important sea routes for moving goods around the world. The first is the Northwest Passage. Ships use it to travel north from Greenland, then west through the islands of northern Canada. Once they reach Alaska, they pass through the Bering Strait to the Pacific Ocean. This passage is free of ice for only four months each year.