The Astounding Atlantic Facts

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Did you know???

Some people say the Atlantic Ocean got its name from the lost city of Atlantis.

Other people like the Romans say it got its name from the Atlas mountains which surrounds the Atlantic Ocean.

The largest ocean is the Pacific. The second largest is the Atlantic. The third largest is the Indian.

The width of the Atlantic Ocean is 31,660,446 square miles.

The Atlantic Ocean takes up one fifth of the earth's surface. The deepest point of the ocean is 28,374 feet.

The Atlantic Ocean holds 17 quadrillion gallons of water.

Under the Atlantic Ocean there are plates about 3 to 4 miles thick. These plates are always forming so when more plates come the old ones fall into the middle of the earth and melt into magma. The magma then floats up and goes into volcanoes. That's why volcanoes erupt.

Inside the Atlantic Ocean there is a sea about 9,000 miles long called the Sargasso Sea. It is thought of as the "Deadly Sea" because there are thousands of pounds of seaweed. It is believed by people that when ships would go there that the seaweed would strangle the boats and make them sink. 

In the northern part of the Atlantic Ocean there are icebergs. Parts of the iceberg break off and they float into the water.

Three / Fourths of an iceberg is under the water.

3/4 of the earth's surface is water.

Dr. Ballard explored the Atlantic Ocean and he also worked on bringing up the Titanic. If you want to learn more about the Titanic and Dr. Ballard, go to Shipwrecks.