What is mined in the Atlantic Ocean. Mineral resources and minerals of the Atlantic Ocean

South Atlantic Ocean. This includes areas adjacent to the east coast. South America and the southwestern coast of Africa, as well as the Antarctic regions, has a total area

more than 40 million km 2 , of which only about 3 million km 2 (7.5%)

occupied by depths of less than 1000 m, with the largest shallow water plateau (about 1.4 million km 2) called the Patagonian-Falkland shelf adjacent to the Atlantic coast of Uruguay and Argentina. A large latitudinal extent, which includes both warm subtropical and cold Antarctic zones, leaves its mark on the commercial fauna, represented here as warm water (tuna, marlin, swordfish, sciene, sardines, etc.) and cold water (blue whiting, merluea, notothenia, silverfish, toothfish, etc.) by the inhabitants. The intensity of fishing here is quite high only off the southwestern and southern coasts of Africa, where in some years (1968-1970) sardine (up to 1.7 million tons), anchovy (0.4-0.6 million tons) and hake (0.5-0.7 million tons), while on the Patagonian shelf, whose raw materials allow to catch at least 5-6 million tons of fish, the fishery is extremely poorly developed (only about 1.0 million tons). The total catch within the South Atlantic only in last years reached 4 million tons, while the possible exceeds 10 million tons.

The Antarctic regions are of significant importance for fishing, where whales, seals, some fish, squids live in commercial quantities, and the resource of mass planktonic crustacean - Arctic krill - is of especially great potential commercial importance.

Summarizing the current assessment of the biological resources used in the Atlantic Ocean and possible prospects for the further development of fisheries, it should be considered that in this basin the catch of traditional fishery objects by all countries can be increased from 23 - 25 to 35 million tons

The Soviet Union produced 3.5 million tons in the Atlantic Ocean basin, i.e. a significant part (39%) of their catch marine fish, and in recent years Russia has been considering this vast region

as the most important for the implementation of marine and oceanic fisheries,

Lecture No. 9 Topic: "Raw resources of the Pacific Ocean".

Pacific Ocean. The Pacific basin is half

(176.7 million km 2 - 49.8%) of the entire water area of ​​the World Ocean. The predominant part of its surface (80.8%) is located above the depths from

3000 to 6000 m and only 8.7% (15.5 million km 2) is occupied by relatively shallow depths (less than 1000 m) and in this respect it is significantly inferior to the Atlantic, where about 15% is in shallow water areas.

The greatest indentation of the coastline and the largest sections of the shelf are characteristic of the northern and western parts of the ocean (4.5 million km 2), where the Bering, Okhotsk, Japanese, Yellow, East and South China Seas, etc. are located, as well as areas adjacent to the Indonesian archipelago. In addition, the shelf zones of Australia, New Zealand and Tasmania are quite extensive (more than 2 million km 2). Along the North Pacific coast and is special. but the South American shelf is poorly developed. The oceanological regime of the Pacific Ocean is significantly affected by the system of currents that create several large-scale frontal zones and gyres in the northern and southern parts ocean.

Unlike the Atlantic Northern part The Pacific is connected to the basin of the Arctic Ocean by the narrow and shallow Bering Strait, and the Pacific waters cannot warm the seas of the corresponding sector of the Arctic (East Siberian, Chukchi, etc.), which are characterized as low-productive. Here, only polar cod (polar cod) can be considered as relatively numerous commercial fish.

The Pacific Ocean basin provides more than 53 million tons (6%) of the world's production of marine water bodies. However, the relatively weak development of shallow waters leads to the fact that the catches here are sharply dominated by pelagic (89^) rather than bottom objects, while in the Atlantic Ocean the proportion of the latter is much higher. Its modern fish productivity (300 kg/km) exceeded that of the Atlantic Ocean (250 kg/km) and many times

higher than the Indian one (60 kg/km), and there are still opportunities for further development of the fishery of traditional objects within it.

The Atlantic Ocean provides 2/5 of the world catch and its share decreases over the years. In subantarctic and antarctic waters, notothenia, blue whiting and others are of commercial importance, in the tropical zone - mackerel, tuna, sardine, in areas of cold currents - anchovies, in temperate latitudes ah northern hemisphere - herring, cod, haddock, halibut, sea ​​bass. In the 1970s, due to overfishing of some fish species, the volume of fishing fell sharply, but after the introduction of strict limits, fish stocks are gradually recovering. In the Atlantic Ocean there are several international conventions on fisheries, which aim at the efficient and rational use of biological resources, based on the application of scientifically based measures to regulate fishing. The shelves of the Atlantic Ocean are rich in deposits of oil and other minerals. Thousands of wells have been drilled offshore in the Gulf of Mexico and in the North Sea. Phosphorite deposits discovered in the area of ​​deep water rise off the coast North Africa in tropical latitudes. Placer deposits of tin off the coast of Great Britain and Florida, as well as diamond deposits off the coast of South-West Africa, were found on the shelf in sediments of ancient and modern rivers. Ferromanganese nodules have been found in bottom basins off the coasts of Florida and Newfoundland.
In connection with the growth of cities, the development of shipping in many seas and in the ocean itself in Lately there is deterioration natural conditions. Water and air are polluted, conditions for recreation on the shores of the ocean and its seas have deteriorated. For example, the North Sea is covered with many kilometers of oil slicks. Off the coast of North America, the oil film is hundreds of kilometers wide. The Mediterranean Sea is one of the most polluted on Earth. The Atlantic is no longer able to clean up waste on its own.

124.Physical-geographical zoning of the Atlantic Ocean. At the level of physical and geographical zones, the following divisions are distinguished: 1. Northern subpolar belt (north-western part of the ocean adjacent to Labrador and Greenland). In spite of low temperatures water and air, these areas are distinguished by high productivity, have always been of great commercial importance.2. Northern temperate belt (spreads far beyond the Arctic Circle into the waters of the Arctic Ocean). The coastal regions of this belt have a particularly rich organic world and have long been famous for the productivity of the fishing regions.3. Northern sub tropical belt(narrow). It is distinguished, first of all, by high salinity and high water temperature. Life here is much poorer than in higher latitudes. Commercial value small, except for the Mediterranean (the pearl of the entire belt =)4. Northern tropical belt. It is characterized by a rich organic world within the neritic zone of the Caribbean Sea and very sparse within the open water area.5. equatorial belt. Distinguished by constancy temperature conditions, abundance precipitation and the general wealth of the organic world.6. The southern tropical, subtropical and temperate belts, in general, are similar to those of the same name in the northern hemisphere, only the boundaries of the southern tropical and southern subtropical pass in the western part of approx. to the south (influence of the Brazilian current), and in the east - to the north (influence of the cold Benguela current) .7. Southern subpolar - important commercial value.8. South polar! (it is absent in the north), they are distinguished by the greatest severity of natural conditions, ice cover and much less populated.

125. Geographical position, size, boundaries, configuration of the Pacific Ocean. Pacific Ocean - greatest ocean of the earth. It accounts for about half (49%) of the area and more than half (53%) of the volume of the waters of the World Ocean, and the surface area is equal to almost a third of the entire surface of the Earth as a whole. In terms of the number (about 10 thousand) and the total area (more than 3.5 million km 2) of islands, it ranks first among the rest of the oceans of the Earth. Pacific Ocean to the northwest and west limited coasts of Eurasia and Australia, in the northeast and east - the coasts of North and South America. Border with the North Arctic Ocean is carried out through the Bering Strait along the Arctic Circle. southern border The Pacific Ocean (as well as the Atlantic and Indian) is considered the northern coast of Antarctica. When identifying the Southern (Antarctic) Ocean, its northern boundary is drawn along the waters of the World Ocean, depending on the change in regime surface water from temperate latitudes to Antarctic. Area The Pacific Ocean from the Bering Strait to the coast of Antarctica is 178 million km 2, the volume of water is 710 million km 3. Borders with other oceans south of Australia and South America are also conditionally drawn along the water surface: with the Indian Ocean - from Cape South East Point at about 147 ° E, with the Atlantic Ocean - from Cape Horn to the Antarctic Peninsula. In addition to a wide connection with other oceans in the south, there is communication between the Pacific and the northern part of the Indian Ocean through the interisland seas and the straits of the Sunda archipelago. Northern and western (Eurasian) coasts of the Pacific Ocean dismembered seas (there are more than 20 of them), bays and straits that separate large peninsulas, islands and entire archipelagos of continental and volcanic origin. The coasts of Eastern Australia, the southern part of North America and especially South America are usually straight and difficult to access from the ocean. With a huge surface area and linear dimensions(more than 19 thousand km from west to east and about 16 thousand km from north to south) the Pacific Ocean is characterized by a weak development of the margins of the continents (only 10% of the bottom area) and a relatively small number of shelf seas. Within the intertropical space for the Pacific Ocean clusters of volcanic and coral islands are characteristic.

organic world The Atlantic and the Pacific have much in common (Fig. 37). Life in the Atlantic Ocean is also distributed zonally and is concentrated mainly off the coast of the continents and in surface waters.

The Atlantic Ocean is poorer than the Pacific biological resources. This is due to his relative youth. But still, the ocean provides 20% of the world's catch of fish and seafood. This is first of all herring, cod, sea ​​bass, hake, tuna.

There are many whales in temperate and polar latitudes, in particular sperm whales and killer whales. Characteristic of sea crayfish - lobster, lobsters.

The economic development of the ocean is also connected with mineral resources(Fig. 38). A significant part of them is mined on the shelf. Over 100 oil and gas fields have been discovered in the North Sea alone, hundreds of boreholes have been built, and oil and gas pipelines have been laid along the seabed. Over 3,000 special platforms from which oil and gas are extracted operate on the shelf of the Gulf of Mexico. Coal is mined in the coastal waters of Canada and Great Britain, and diamonds are mined off the southwestern coast of Africa. Long since sea ​​water salt is mined.

Recently, not only on the shelf, but also at considerable depths of the Atlantic Ocean, huge reserves of oil and natural gas. In particular, the coastal zones of Africa turned out to be rich in fuel resources. Other areas of the Atlantic floor are also extremely rich in oil and gas - off the northeastern coast of North America, not far from the eastern coast of South America.

The Atlantic Ocean is crossed in different directions by important sea ​​routes. It is no coincidence that there are major ports world, among them Ukrainian - Odessa. material from the site

Active economic activity man in the Atlantic Ocean basin caused a significant pollution his waters. It is especially noticeable in some seas of the Atlantic Ocean. So, the Mediterranean Sea is often called the "gutter" because industrial enterprises dump waste here. A large amount of pollutants also comes with river runoff. In addition, every year about a hundred thousand tons of oil and oil products get into its waters as a result of accidents and other reasons.

Oil dilutes the waters of the Atlantic Ocean. That sort of thing happens from time to time. In 1980, as a result of a disruption in oil production, 0.5 million tons of oil spilled into the Gulf of Mexico, and the oil slick stretched for 640 km. In 1997, as a result of a collision between two ships in the Caribbean Sea, 287 thousand tons of oil fell into the water.

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Coastal marine placers rich in ilmenite, rutile, zircon, and monocyte are represented by large deposits on the coasts of Brazil and the Florida peninsula (USA). On a smaller scale, minerals of this type are concentrated off the coast of Argentina, Uruguay, Denmark, Spain, and Portugal. Tin-bearing and ferruginous sands are found on the Atlantic coast of North America and Europe, and coastal-marine placers of diamonds, gold, platinum are found off the coast of South-West Africa (Angola, Namibia, South Africa). On the shelf of the Atlantic coast of North and South America and Africa (Blake Plateau, near Morocco, Liberia, etc.), phosphorite formations and phosphate sands have been found (the extraction of which is still unprofitable due to more Low quality compared to land phosphorites). Extensive fields of ferromanganese nodules are located in the northwestern part of the ocean, in the North American Basin and on the Blake Plateau. The total reserves of ferromanganese nodules in the Atlantic Ocean are estimated at 45 billion tons. The level of concentration of non-ferrous metals in them (with a low content of manganese) is close to that of ore-bearing land rocks. In the Atlantic Ocean and its seas openly a large number of offshore oil and gas fields that are being intensively developed. The richest offshore oil and gas regions in the world include the Gulf of Mexico, the Maracaibo lagoon, the North Sea, the Gulf of Guinea, which are being intensively developed. Three large oil and gas provinces have been identified in the Western Atlantic: 1) from the Davis Strait to the latitude of New York (commercial reserves near Labrador and south of Newfoundland); 2) offshore Brazil from Cape Kalkanyar to Rio de Janeiro (more than 25 fields have been discovered); 3) in the coastal waters of Argentina from the Gulf of San Jorge to the Strait of Magellan. According to estimates, promising oil and gas areas make up about 1/4 of the ocean, and the total potential recoverable oil and gas resources are estimated at more than 80 billion tons. Some areas of the Atlantic shelf are rich in coal (Great Britain, Canada), iron ore (Canada, Finland) .

24. Transport system and ports of the Atlantic Ocean.

Leading place among other sea basins of the world. The world's largest cargo flow of oil from countries Persian Gulf on the way to the Atlantic, it is divided into two branches: one goes around Africa from the south and heads to Western Europe, North and South America, and the other - through the Suez. Oil from North African countries to Europe and, in part, to North America, from the countries of the Gulf of Guinea to the USA and Brazil. From Mexico and Venezuela to the USA via the Caribbean, and from Alaska via the Panama Canal to ports on the Atlantic coast. Liquefied gas from North Africa (Algeria, Libya) to Western Europe and the USA. In transportation of dry bulk - iron ore(from Brazilian and Venezuelan ports to Europe), grain (from USA, Canada, Argentina to European ports), phosphorites (from USA (Florida), Morocco - Western Europe), bauxite and alumina (from Jamaica, Suriname and Guyana to USA ), manganese (from Brazil, Western and South Africa), chromium ore (from South Africa and the Mediterranean), zinc and nickel ores (from Canada), timber (from Canada, Scandinavian countries and northern ports of Russia to Western Europe). General cargo, 2/3 of which is carried by liner ships. Universal ports with high level mechanization. Western Europe-1/2 cargo turnover. English Channel to the Kiel Canal, East Coast Great Britain, Mediterranean port complexes along the coast of the Gulf of Lion and the Ligurian Sea. United States from the Gulf of Maine to the Chesapeake Bay: New York - New Jersey, Ameriport and Hampton Rhodes. Gulf of Mexico, where three main port-industrial complexes stand out (New Orleans and Baton Rouge; Galveston Bay and Houston Canal; ports of Beaumont, Port Arthur, Orange associated with Gulf of Mexico channels through Lake Sabin). oil (Amuay, Cartagena, Tobruk) and chemical (Arzev, Alexandria, Abidjan) plants, al (Belen, San Luis, Puerto Madryn), metallurgy (Tubaran, Maracaibo, Varrij), cement (Freeport) industries. southeast coast of Brazil (Santos, Rio de Janeiro, Victoria) and in La Plata Bay (Buenos Aires, Rosario, Santa Fe). (Port Harcourt, Lagos, Niger Delta). North African ports are widely open towards the sea, and their universal nature requires significant costs for the modernization of port facilities (Algiers, Tripoli, Casablanca, Alexandria and Tunisia). On a number of islands in the Caribbean (Bahamas, Caymans, Virgin Islands) the deepest transshipment terminals in this part of the ocean for large tankers (400-600 thousand deadweight tons) have been built.

Atlantic Ocean

Geographical position.The Atlantic Ocean stretches from north to south for 16 thousand km from subarctic to antarctic latitudes. The ocean is wide in the northern and southern parts, narrowing in equatorial latitudes to 2900 km. In the north it communicates with the Arctic Ocean, and in the south it is widely connected with the Pacific and Indian Oceans. It is bounded by the shores of North and South America - in the west, Europe and Africa - in the east and Antarctica - in the south.

The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest among the oceans of the planet. Coastline ocean in the northern hemisphere is strongly dissected by numerous peninsulas and bays. There are many islands, inland and marginal seas near the continents. The Atlantic consists of 13 seas, which occupy 11% of its area.

Bottom relief. Through the entire ocean (approximately at an equal distance from the coasts of the continents) passes Mid-Atlantic Ridge. The relative height of the ridge is about 2 km. Transverse faults divide it into separate segments. In the axial part of the ridge there is a giant rift valley with a width of 6 to 30 km and a depth of up to 2 km. Both underwater active volcanoes and volcanoes of Iceland and the Azores are confined to the rift and faults of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. On both sides of the ridge there are basins with a relatively flat bottom, separated by elevated elevations. The shelf area in the Atlantic Ocean is larger than in the Pacific.

Mineral resources. Oil and gas reserves discovered on the shelf North Sea, in the Gulf of Mexico, Guinea and Biscay. Phosphorite deposits have been discovered in the area of ​​deep water rise off the coast of North Africa in tropical latitudes. Placer deposits of tin off the coast of Great Britain and Florida, as well as diamond deposits off the coast of South-West Africa, have been found on the shelf in the sediments of ancient and modern rivers. Iron-manganese nodules have been found in bottom basins off the coasts of Florida and Newfoundland.

Climate.The Atlantic Ocean is located in all climatic zones Earth. The main part of the ocean area is between 40°N. and 42° S - is located in subtropical, tropical, subequatorial and equatorial climatic zones. Here all year round high positive air temperatures. The most severe climate is in the subantarctic and antarctic latitudes, and to a lesser extent in the subpolar, northern latitudes.

currents.In the Atlantic, as in the Pacific Ocean, two rings are formed surface currents . In the northern hemisphere, the North Equatorial Current, the Gulf Stream, the North Atlantic and Canary Currents form the movement of waters in a clockwise direction. In the southern hemisphere, the South Equatorial, Brazilian, Current Western winds and Benguela form the movement of the waters counterclockwise. Due to the considerable length of the Atlantic Ocean from north to south, meridional water flows are more developed in it than latitudinal ones.

Water properties. Zoning water masses in the ocean is complicated by the influence of land and sea ​​currents. This is manifested primarily in the distribution of surface water temperatures. In many areas of the ocean, the isotherms near the coast deviate sharply from the latitudinal direction.

northern half the ocean is warmer than the south, the temperature difference reaches 6°C. average temperature surface waters (16.5°C) is slightly lower than in the Pacific Ocean. The cooling effect is exerted by the waters and ices of the Arctic and Antarctic. Salinity of surface waters in the Atlantic Ocean is high. One of the reasons for increased salinity is that a significant part of the moisture evaporating from the water area does not return to the ocean again, but is transferred to neighboring continents (due to the relative narrowness of the ocean).

A lot of water flows into the Atlantic Ocean and its seas. big rivers: Amazon, Congo, Mississippi, Nile, Danube, La Plata, etc.
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Οʜᴎ carry huge masses into the ocean fresh water, suspended material and contaminants. In desalinated bays and seas of subpolar and temperate latitudes, ice forms near the western shores of the ocean in winter. Numerous icebergs and floating sea ice hinder navigation in the North Atlantic Ocean.

organic world. The Atlantic Ocean is poorer in species in the composition of flora and fauna than the Pacific. One of the reasons for this is its relative geological youth and a noticeable cooling in quaternary period during the glaciation of the northern hemisphere. At the same time, in quantitative terms, the ocean is rich in organisms - it is the most productive per unit area. This is primarily due to the wide development of shelves and shallow banks, on which many bottom and bottom fish live (cod, flounder, perch, etc.). The biological resources of the Atlantic Ocean are depleted in many areas. The share of the ocean in world fisheries has declined significantly in recent years.

natural complexes.In the Atlantic Ocean, all zonal complexes are distinguished - natural belts, except for the north polar. Water northern subpolar belt rich in life. It is especially developed on the shelves off the coasts of Iceland, Greenland and the Labrador Peninsula.
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Temperate zone characterized by intense interaction of cold and warm waters, its waters are the most productive areas of the Atlantic. Vast expanses of warm waters subtropical, two tropical and equatorial belts less productive than the waters of the northern temperate zone.

In the northern subtropical zone stands out special natural aquatic complex Sargasso Sea . It is worth saying that it is characterized by increased water salinity (up to 37.5 ppm) and low bioproductivity. IN clear water, pure blue grow brown algae - sargasso, which gave the name of the water area.

IN temperate zone southern hemisphere , as in the northern natural complexes rich in life in areas where waters mix with different temperatures and water density. In the subantarctic and antarctic belts the manifestation of seasonal and permanent ice phenomena, which are reflected in the composition of the fauna (krill, cetaceans, notothenia fish), is characteristic.

Economic use. In the Atlantic Ocean, all types of human economic activity in marine areas are represented. Among them highest value have maritime transport, then - underwater oil and gas production, only then - the catch and use of biological resources.

More than 70 coastal countries with a population of over 1.3 billion people are located on the shores of the Atlantic. Many transoceanic routes pass through the ocean with large volumes of freight and passenger traffic. On the coasts of the ocean and its seas, the most significant ports of the world in terms of cargo turnover are located.

The already explored mineral resources of the ocean are significant (examples are given above). At the same time, oil and gas fields are being intensively developed on the shelf of the Northern and caribbean, in the Bay of Biscay. Many countries that did not previously have significant reserves of these types of mineral raw materials are now experiencing an economic upswing due to their extraction (England, Norway, the Netherlands, Mexico, etc.).

biological resources oceans have long been intensively used. At the same time, in connection with the overfishing of a number of valuable commercial fish species, in recent years the Atlantic has been inferior to Pacific Ocean for fish and seafood.

Intensive human economic activity in the waters of the Atlantic Ocean and its seas causes a noticeable deterioration natural environment- both in the ocean (pollution of water, air, decrease in stocks of commercial fish species), and on the coasts. In particular, recreational conditions on the ocean coast are deteriorating. In order to prevent further and reduce the existing pollution of the natural environment of the Atlantic Ocean, scientific recommendations are being developed and international agreements on rational use ocean resources.

Atlantic Ocean - concept and types. Classification and features of the category "Atlantic Ocean" 2017, 2018.