Sea

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The term sea refers to certain large amounts of water, but there is inconsistency as to its precise definition and application. Most commonly, a sea may refer to a large expanse of saline water connected with an ocean, but it is also used sometimes for a large saline lake that lacks a natural outlet, e.g. the Caspian Sea. Colloquially, the term is used as a synonym for ocean. Additionally, large lakes, such as the Great Lakes of North America, are occasionally referred to as "inland seas".

Contents

[edit] List of seas

[edit] Atlantic Ocean

[edit] Arctic Ocean

[edit] Antarctic Ocean

[edit] Indian Ocean

[edit] Pacific Ocean

[edit] Landlocked seas

(Alphabetical (June 2009))

[edit] Bodies of water and their sizes

Rank Body of water Square miles (square kilometres)
1 Pacific Ocean 64,196,000 sq mi (166,266,877 km²)
2 Atlantic Ocean 33,400,000 sq mi (86,505,603 km²)
3 Indian Ocean 28,400,000 sq mi (73,555,662 km²)
4 Arctic Ocean 5,100,000 sq mi (13,208,939 km²)
5 Arabian Sea 1,491,000 sq mi (3,861,672 km²)
6 South China Sea 1,148,000 sq mi (2,973,306 km²)
7 Caribbean Sea 971,000 sq mi (2,514,878 km²)
8 Mediterranean Sea 969,000 sq mi (2,509,698 km²)
9 Bering Sea 873,000 sq mi (2,261,060 km²)
10 Gulf of Mexico 582,000 sq mi (1,507,373 km²)
11 Sea of Okhotsk 537,000 sq mi (1,390,824 km²)
12 Sea of Japan 391,000 sq mi (1,012,685 km²)
13 Hudson Bay 282,000 sq mi (730,377 km²)
14 East China Sea 257,000 sq mi (665,627 km²)
15 Andaman Sea 218,100 sq mi (564,876 km²)
16 Red Sea 175,000 sq mi (453,248 km²)
17 North Sea 165,000 sq mi (427,348 km²)
18 Baltic Sea 147,000 sq mi (380,728 km²)
19 Yellow Sea 113,500 sq mi (293,964 km²)
20 Persian Gulf 88,800 sq mi (229,991 km²)
21 Gulf of California 59,000 sq mi (152,809 km²)

[edit] Nomenclature

  • The Sea of Galilee is a small freshwater lake with a natural outlet, which is called Lake Tiberias or Lake Kinneret on modern Israeli maps, but its original name remains in use.
  • The Sea of Cortés is more commonly known as the Gulf of California.
  • The Persian Gulf is a sea.
  • The Dead Sea is actually a lake, as is the Caspian Sea.

[edit] Science

The term "sea" has also been used in quantum physics. Dirac sea is an interpretation of positron emission states that comprises the vacuum.

[edit] See also

[edit] References

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