Southern Ocean | Location, Map, Depth, & Facts (2025)

FAQs

What is the area and depth of the Southern Ocean? ›

The Southern Ocean has an average depth of 10,728 feet (3,270 meters) and a maximum depth of 24,383 feet (7,432 meters) in the South Sandwich Trench, southeast of the island of South Georgia.

Today the term South Seas, or South Sea, most commonly refers to the portion of the Pacific Ocean south of the equator. The term South Sea may also be used synonymously for Oceania, or even more narrowly for Polynesia or the Polynesian Triangle, an area bounded by the Hawaiian Islands, New Zealand and Easter Island.

Ans : The Pacific Ocean is the deepest ocean in the world which extends from 60° latitude towards the south and in the North Pacific Ocean reach out to the Arctic.

The layers are defined as main water masses of the Southern Ocean: Subtropical Water (TW), Mode Water (MW), Intermediate Water (IW), Circumpolar Deep Water (CDW), and Bottom Water (BW).

The deepest place in the ocean measures 10,935 meters (35,876 feet) and is found in the Pacific Ocean's Mariana Trench, at a place called Challenger Deep.

The Southern Ocean connects three major ocean basins, and is vitally important in driving global ocean circulation and climate. It is the only ocean that completely encircles the planet uninterrupted by any significant land mass and is strongly affected by sea ice coverage.

The Southern Ocean, also known as the Antarctic Ocean, comprises the southernmost waters of the world ocean, generally taken to be south of 60° S latitude and encircling Antarctica.

Despite the harsh conditions, the Southern Ocean is home to many unique and fascinating species such as penguins, seals and whales, and more mysterious creatures like glass sponges and the giant squid.

Answer and Explanation: No countries border the Southern Ocean. The only landmass that border the Southern Ocean is Antarctica.

Historically, there are four named oceans: the Atlantic, Pacific, Indian, and Arctic. However, most countries - including the United States - now recognize the Southern (Antarctic) as the fifth ocean. The Pacific, Atlantic, and Indian are the most commonly known.

How many islands are in the Southern Ocean? ›

D'Urville Island

Wednesday Island

Trinity Island

Somerville Island

Saddle Island

Link Island

Black Sea. The Black Sea boasts some of the roughest waters globally, characterized by strong currents and unpredictable storms. Its treacherous nature poses a significant challenge for ships, and with an average depth exceeding 2 miles, it stands as one of Earth's deepest seas.

The Arctic Ocean is the smallest and shallowest of the world's five major oceans. This water body is completely surrounded by the continents of Asia, North America, Europe and the island of Greenland.

Data published in Geoscience Data Journal shows the deepest point of the Indian Ocean at 7187 m, within the Java Trench, and the deepest point of the Southern Ocean at 7432 m, within the South Sandwich Trench.

The main reason why the Drake Passage is so beset by storms is because the Southern Ocean, which encircles the frozen continent of Antarctica, is unbroken by land, meaning that mighty winds can rush around the globe unimpeded.

With a size of 20,327,000 km² (7,848,000 sq mi), it is the second-smallest of the five principal oceanic divisions, smaller than the Pacific, Atlantic and Indian oceans, and larger than the Arctic Ocean.

The average depth of the Southern Ocean is 3,200 meters, which translates to around 10,700 feet. While this is the average, the Southern Ocean's deepest point is the South Sandwich Trench, an area with a maximum depth of 7,000 meters, or 23,000 feet.

Below the epipelagic zone lies the mesopelagic, extending down to around 1000 metres (Gr.: mésos = middle). Below this, the bathypelagic zone encompasses depths from 1000 to 4000 metres (Gr.: bathýs = deep).