South Atlantic Ocean

region, Atlantic Ocean

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July 14, 2026

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The South Atlantic Ocean is a vast body of water south of the Equator, extending to Antarctica. It is characterized by prevailing westerlies in its southern reaches and a high-pressure area around 30° S, which generates southeast trade winds. These winds meet the northeast trades in the Intertropical Convergence Zone near the Equator, an area of heavy rainfall and calm conditions known as the doldrums.1

The South Atlantic supports rich marine life, with productive waters feeding abundant plankton, krill, fish, whales, seals, and seabirds. However, many Atlantic fisheries are overexploited, with fish stocks near collapse due to intensive fishing. Efforts to manage fishing within territorial waters and exclusive economic zones have had limited success.23

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Atlantic Ocean
The South Atlantic
Over the South Atlantic the belt of prevailing westerlies extends from about latitude 40° S southward into the Southern Ocean almost to Antarctica, and the South Atlantic high-pressure area is centred around 30° S. This anticyclone (circulation of winds around a central region…
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Over the South Atlantic the belt of prevailing westerlies extends from about latitude 40° S southward into the Southern Ocean almost to Antarctica, and the South Atlantic high-pressure area is centred around 30° S. This anticyclone (circulation of winds around a central region…
Read More

South America
Events in the Mesozoic
The opening of the South Atlantic Ocean is recorded in a series of Mesozoic and Cenozoic basins that developed along the present Atlantic margin. Most of those basins have clastic red beds that date to the Late Jurassic and Early Cretaceous epochs (about 160 to 100 million years ago).…
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The opening of the South Atlantic Ocean is recorded in a series of Mesozoic and Cenozoic basins that developed along the present Atlantic margin. Most of those basins have clastic red beds that date to the Late Jurassic and Early Cretaceous epochs (about 160 to 100 million years ago).…
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Atlantic Ocean
The South Atlantic
The currents of the South Atlantic correspond in many respects to those of the North Atlantic. The southeast trade winds maintain the South Equatorial Current, which flows toward the west where it divides into two branches: one that continues to the Northern Hemisphere…
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The currents of the South Atlantic correspond in many respects to those of the North Atlantic. The southeast trade winds maintain the South Equatorial Current, which flows toward the west where it divides into two branches: one that continues to the Northern Hemisphere…
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Atlantic Ocean
Extent
…the northern but also the southern limits of the Atlantic Ocean. There are no universally accepted boundary conventions. In the north the situation is further complicated by the fact that the Arctic Ocean frequently is considered to be a dependent sea of the Atlantic. This is because the Arctic basin—which…
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…the northern but also the southern limits of the Atlantic Ocean. There are no universally accepted boundary conventions. In the north the situation is further complicated by the fact that the Arctic Ocean frequently is considered to be a dependent sea of the Atlantic. This is because the Arctic basin—which…
Read More