Government
Country name:
conventional long form: Territory of Ashmore and Cartier Islands
conventional short form: Ashmore and Cartier Islands
Data code: AT
Dependency status: territory of Australia; administered from
Canberra by the Australian Department of the Environment, Sport, and
Territories
Legal system: relevant laws of the Northern Territory of Australia
Diplomatic representation in the US: none (territory of Australia)
Diplomatic representation from the US: none (territory of
Australia)
Flag description: the flag of Australia is used
Economy
Economy—overview: no economic activity
Transportation
Ports and harbors: none; offshore anchorage only
Military
Military—note: defense is the responsibility of Australia; periodic visits by the Royal Australian Navy and Royal Australian Air Force
Transnational Issues
Disputes—international: none
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@Atlantic Ocean———————
Geography
Location: body of water between Africa, Europe, Antarctica, and the Western Hemisphere
Geographic coordinates: 0 00 N, 25 00 W
Map references: World
Area:
total: 82.217 million sq km
note: includes Baltic Sea, Black Sea, Caribbean Sea, Davis Strait,
Denmark Strait, Drake Passage, Gulf of Mexico, Mediterranean Sea,
North Sea, Norwegian Sea, Scotia Sea, Weddell Sea, and other
tributary water bodies
Area—comparative: slightly less than nine times the size of the
US; second-largest of the world's four oceans (after the Pacific
Ocean, but larger than Indian Ocean or Arctic Ocean)
Coastline: 111,866 km
Climate: tropical cyclones (hurricanes) develop off the coast of Africa near Cape Verde and move westward into the Caribbean Sea; hurricanes can occur from May to December, but are most frequent from August to November
Terrain: surface usually covered with sea ice in Labrador Sea, Denmark Strait, and Baltic Sea from October to June; clockwise warm-water gyre (broad, circular system of currents) in the northern Atlantic, counterclockwise warm-water gyre in the southern Atlantic; the ocean floor is dominated by the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, a rugged north-south centerline for the entire Atlantic basin
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Puerto Rico Trench −8,605 m
highest point: in the Milwaukee Deep at sea level 0 m
Natural resources: oil and gas fields, fish, marine mammals
(seals and whales), sand and gravel aggregates, placer deposits,
polymetallic nodules, precious stones
Natural hazards: icebergs common in Davis Strait, Denmark Strait,
and the northwestern Atlantic Ocean from February to August and have
been spotted as far south as Bermuda and the Madeira Islands;
icebergs from Antarctica occur in the extreme southern Atlantic
Ocean; ships subject to superstructure icing in extreme northern
Atlantic from October to May and extreme southern Atlantic from May
to October; persistent fog can be a maritime hazard from May to
September
Environment—current issues: endangered marine species include the
manatee, seals, sea lions, turtles, and whales; drift net fishing is
hastening the decline of fish stocks and contributing to
international disputes; municipal sludge pollution off eastern US,
southern Brazil, and eastern Argentina; oil pollution in Caribbean
Sea, Gulf of Mexico, Lake Maracaibo, Mediterranean Sea, and North
Sea; industrial waste and municipal sewage pollution in Baltic Sea,
North Sea, and Mediterranean Sea
Environment—international agreements:
party to: none of the selected agreements
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Geography—note: major chokepoints include the Dardanelles, Strait of Gibraltar, access to the Panama and Suez Canals; strategic straits include the Strait of Dover, Straits of Florida, Mona Passage, The Sound (Oresund), and Windward Passage; the Equator divides the Atlantic Ocean into the North Atlantic Ocean and South Atlantic Ocean
Government
Data code: none; the US Government has not approved a standard for hydrographic codes—see the Cross-Reference List of Hydrographic Data Codes appendix
Economy
Economy—overview: The Atlantic Ocean provides some of the world's most heavily trafficked sea routes, between and within the Eastern and Western Hemispheres. Other economic activity includes the exploitation of natural resources, e.g., fishing, the dredging of aragonite sands (The Bahamas), and production of crude oil and natural gas (Caribbean Sea, Gulf of Mexico, and North Sea).
Communications
Telephone system:
international: numerous submarine cables with most between
continental Europe and the UK, between North America and the UK, and
in the Mediterranean; numerous direct links across Atlantic via
satellite networks
Transportation
Ports and harbors: Alexandria (Egypt), Algiers (Algeria), Antwerp
(Belgium), Barcelona (Spain), Buenos Aires (Argentina), Casablanca
(Morocco), Colon (Panama), Copenhagen (Denmark), Dakar (Senegal),
Gdansk (Poland), Hamburg (Germany), Helsinki (Finland), Las Palmas
(Canary Islands, Spain), Le Havre (France), Lisbon (Portugal),
London (UK), Marseille (France), Montevideo (Uruguay), Montreal
(Canada), Naples (Italy), New Orleans (US), New York (US), Oran
(Algeria), Oslo (Norway), Peiraiefs or Piraeus (Greece), Rio de
Janeiro (Brazil), Rotterdam (Netherlands), Saint Petersburg
(Russia), Stockholm (Sweden)
Transportation—note: Kiel Canal and Saint Lawrence Seaway are two
important waterways
Transnational Issues
Disputes—international: some maritime disputes (see littoral states)
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@Australia————
Introduction
Background: Australia became a British