How Deep Is the Arctic Ocean?

The Arctic Ocean is 17,880 feet at its deepest point.  Its average depth is 3406 feet. 

Following are the average depths of each ocean: Arctic, Pacific, Atlantic, and Indian, and their deepest point.

• The average depth of the Arctic Ocean is 1,038 meters, or 3,406 feet.  The deepest point is in the Eurasian Basin, at 5,450 meters or 17,880 feet.
• The Pacific Ocean has an average depth of 3790 meters or 12430 feet.  The Mariana Trench is the deepest point in the Pacific and in the world, reaching a depth of 10,911 meters or 35,797 feet. 
• The average depth of the Atlantic is 3,926 meters or 12,881 feet. Its deepest point is in the Puerto Rico Trench at 8,605 meters or 28,232 feet.
• The Indian Ocean’s average depth is 3,890 meters or 12,760 feet. It is deepest in the Java Trench at 7258 meters deep, or 23812 feet.

Facts About the Arctic Ocean

• Location: Located in the Northern Hemisphere and is mostly above the Arctic Circle.
• Salinity: Least salty ocean because of the small number of connections with other oceans (due to land and submarine ridges), little evaporation, and the influx of freshwater from rivers and streams.  Salinity changes during the year as the ice cap melts and freezes.  
• Temperature: Most of the year, the surface of the Arctic Ocean is covered by ice.  The temperature of the surface stays around the freezing point of water.  Since salt lowers the freezing point of water, it is -1.8 degrees Celsius which means it would have to get below 29 degrees Fahrenheit.  Winters are cold and dark, and summers have continuous sunlight with foggy and damp weather and occasionally see weak cyclones with rain or snow. 
• Wildlife: Animals in and around the Arctic Ocean include: walruses, polar bears, ringed seals, and Northern fur seals.  In the water are belugas, orcas, Northern Bottlenose Whale, Lion’s mane jellyfish, banded gunnel, and zooplankton (copepods and amphipods). 

The Arctic ice pack is thinning which increases global warming.  Recent research shows that the Arctic ice may disappear between 2015 and 2040.  That would be the first time that happened in human history.  As ice melts, the salinity of the North Atlantic would change, disrupting the flow of the warm Gulf Stream current which keeps the northern areas temperate.  This could cause huge changes in global weather patterns.  

Fun Facts About Oceans

In addition to knowing the depth of the Arctic Ocean, there's lots more to know about the oceans of the world:

• Oceans cover 71% of the earth's surface.
• Of all the water on the earth, 97% of it is in the ocean.
• The average depth of all oceans is 2 ½ miles.
• 99% of the living space of earth is in the ocean.
• 90% of the ocean’s habitat exists in the abyss (below 4000 metres).
• The ocean has the longest mountain chain (40,000 miles long) known to exist in the Universe.
• The average temperature of ocean water is 2 degrees C or 39 degrees F.
• The Great Barrier Reef is 1243 miles long, is the largest living structure on the planet, and can be seen from the moon.
• Less than 10% of the ocean has been explored by man.
• Mount Everest is over a mile shorter than the Challenger Deep, which is the deepest point in the ocean in the Mariana Trench.
• There are 20 million tons of gold in the ocean.
• 3.5 billion people depend on the ocean for their primary source of food.

For more information about oceans, check out the American Heritage Science Dictionary here on YourDictionary.