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All Sargasso Sea

Sargasso Sea

The only sea in the world that has no land boundary.

North Atlantic Ocean

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Lew Blank
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Sargasso   Public Domain
Lines of sargassum in the Sargasso Sea.   Ocean Explorer/NOAA/Public Domain
The North Atlantic Gyre   Public Domain
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About

Every sea in the world is bordered either entirely or mostly by land. Except for one. In the North Atlantic Ocean, there lies a sea that breaks this rule—the only sea in the world to be entirely surrounded by, well, more sea.  

Named after Sargassum, a species of seaweed that covers the area’s waters, the Sargasso Sea is the only sea without shores or coastlines. Instead of being bounded by land, it is defined by four ocean currents. It borders the North Atlantic Current on the north, the Gulf Stream on the west, the North Atlantic Equatorial Current on the south, and the Canary Current on the east. These currents form a clockwise-circulating gyre that surrounds the Sargasso Sea much like a terrestrial coastline would.

In addition to giving the Sargasso Sea this unique geographical claim to fame, the gyre that surrounds the sea also makes for excellent visibility, with warm, dark blue water transparent for up to 200 feet. The Sargasso Sea was even mentioned in Jules Vernes’ Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea. More unfortunately, the stillness of the Sargasso's calm waters allows the sea to trap up to 200,000 pieces of trash per square kilometer in some areas, forming what's been dubbed the North Atlantic Garbage Patch.

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Water Sea Oceans Geographic Oddities Borders Underwater Week Recursive Places

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If you get lost then try these coordinates.. 28° 0′ 0″ N, 66° 0′ 0″ W - bang in the middle of the Sargasso Sea

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Added By

lewblank

Edited By

Shiv, MagnumPI, lampbane, Meg

  • Shiv
  • MagnumPI
  • lampbane
  • Meg

Published

May 1, 2017

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Sources
  • http://oceanservice.noaa.gov/facts/sargassosea.html
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sargasso_Sea
  • http://mysteriousfacts.com/mystery-of-sargasso-sea-sea-without-shores-or-coastline/
Sargasso Sea
North Atlantic Ocean
34.307144, -66.269531

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