There are four oceans on Earth, scientists are considering the idea of documenting the fifth. One of the largest water bodies is the Pacific Ocean. About what he is known for, what continents and countries washes, read the article.
History
It is interesting, but much more interesting to study the history of the largest body of water on the planet to know which continents the Pacific Ocean is washing. It began in 1513, when the conquistador from Spain, Vasco Nunez de Balboa, crossing the Isthmus of Panama, discovered an unknown water basin. He called it the Southern Ocean, since the Spaniard's path lay south.
Another navigator, Magellan, also discovered this space in 1520 and gave it the name that it bears to this day. Why not a noisy ocean? The fact is that that day was calm, calm weather and the water was an ideal surface.
Even later, when people also wondered which continents were washed by the Pacific Ocean, another name was suggested. In 1753 they decided to call him the Great, but this name, although it characterized the reservoir, did not take root, and geographers still call it the Pacific Ocean.
Characteristic
Before answering the question: “What is washing the Pacific Ocean?”, You need to talk more about it. So, this is the largest ocean, its area is slightly less than 180 million square kilometers, to be more precise - 178.7. Surprisingly, this is more than the sum of the areas of all continents located on the planet Earth, and this is more than one third of its surface and half the area attributable to the oceans.
This water body is fraught with many mysteries. Many unexplored places are on its territory. For example, the famous Mariana Trench is located here, its depth is eleven kilometers and twenty-two meters.
The Pacific Ocean is so huge that five of the six continents of the planet called the Earth wash its waters. The only place where its currents have not reached is Africa, which is surrounded by the Indian and Atlantic oceans. The waters of this basin in one way or another relate to other continents. This is due to the presence of marginal seas.
Outskirts - what is it?
How many continents is the Pacific Ocean washing? Five. Its waters reach them from different directions. Often this happens due to the seas, which are called marginal. These are water bodies that are separated from the ocean, in this case the Pacific, due to any peninsulas and islands. They are not deep-sea, as they are usually located on the shelves.
The total area of all marginal seas, straits, as well as bays that belong to the Pacific Ocean, is 31.64 million square kilometers. For the most part, they are located in the western region of the ocean. Not all seas have marginal seas, for example, they are absent near the continents with the general name America, but there are a large number of bays: Panama, California and others.
Neighboring oceans
Speaking about which continents is washed by the Pacific Ocean, it should be noted that some continents are washed by several water bodies at once. For example, Eurasia is immediately surrounded by four oceans - the Arctic, Atlantic, Indian and, of course, the Pacific. This continent is the only one on the planet that comes into contact with the waters of the four largest water bodies at once.
As for Australia, it is washed by the waters of not only the Pacific, but also the Indian Ocean, North America - the Atlantic, Arctic and Pacific, South America - the same, except the Arctic. Antarctica is in contact with the waters of the Southern Ocean (the conventional name for the waters of the three oceans), which includes a certain part of the Pacific.
Based on this information, it can be understood that the largest body of water is adjacent to all the oceans. Since it has a huge area and extends for many kilometers, it is connected with other open spaces.
What countries is washed by the Pacific Ocean?
Speaking about which continents is washed by the Pacific Ocean, it is necessary to mention the countries lying on its coast. This water body is the largest on our planet, it washes many continents. On their territory there are a huge number of countries, varying in size and population.
In total, it is washed by more than fifty states. Their population is almost half of all the inhabitants of the planet called Earth. So, these are the states that come into contact with the waters of the Pacific Ocean: the United States of America and Canada, Peru and Guatemala, Nicaragua and Vietnam, Chile and the People’s Republic of China, Japan and the Russian Federation.
Of course, this is not the whole list, because there are a great many countries washed by this giant pond. In addition, the Pacific Ocean states include the states of Oceania.
This water body is of great importance in the global economy. Therefore, a number of ports are located on its coast. For example, these are cities under the names Los Angeles, San Francisco, Vladivostok, Nakhodka, Shanghai, Yokohama and others.
Which Pacific seas wash Russia?
The Russian Federation occupies vast expanses that are washed by only thirteen seas. Twelve of them belong to the basins of three oceans, and only three - to the largest body of water on the planet. These are the Bering, Japanese, and also Okhotsk seas.
They are separated by Sakhalin Island and Kamchatka, while the second part of the peninsula is washed by the waters of the Pacific Ocean itself. These seas can be considered the boundary between the largest mainland and the Earth’s ocean. You can build a list of seas that wash the territory of Russia, by their size. The Bering Sea will be the deepest, and the Okhotsk Sea the smallest.