Pacific Ocean

The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest ocean on Earth. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean—or, in some definitions, to Antarctica—in the south, and lies between Asia and Australia on the west and the Americas on the east. It is the largest division of the World Ocean, covering about 165,250,000 square kilometers, or roughly 46% of Earth’s water surface and about one-third of the planet’s total surface.

The Pacific is commonly divided into the North Pacific Ocean and South Pacific Ocean, which meet near the Equator. It is also often described in east–west terms, with northeastern, northwestern, southeastern, and southwestern sectors. Its mean depth is about 4,000 meters, and its deepest known point is the Challenger Deep in the Mariana Trench, which reaches more than 10,900 meters. Other major deep areas include the Horizon Deep in the Tonga Trench and the Sirena Deep.

The ocean contains numerous marginal seas, including the Philippine Sea, South China Sea, East China Sea, Sea of Japan, Sea of Okhotsk, Bering Sea, Gulf of Alaska, Gulf of California, Tasman Sea, and Coral Sea. Its western and eastern margins are lined by major island arcs, archipelagos, and coastal regions across Oceania, East Asia, and the Americas.