use:arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0%
meadows and pastures: 0%
forest and woodland: 0%
other: 100% (all grass and sand)
Irrigated land: 0 sq km
Environment:
current issues: NA
natural hazards: surrounded by shoals and reefs that can pose
maritime hazards
international agreements: NA
Geographic note: Ashmore Reef National Nature Reserve established
in August 1983
People———
Population: no indigenous inhabitants; note - there are only
seasonal caretakers
Government—————
Name of country:
conventional long form: Territory of Ashmore and Cartier Islands
conventional short form: Ashmore and Cartier Islands
Data code: AT
Type of government: territory of Australia administered by the
Australian Ministry for the Environment, Sport, and Territories
Capital: none; administered from Canberra, Australia
Administrative divisions: none (territory of Australia)
Independence: none (territory of Australia)
Legal system: relevant laws of the Northern Territory of Australia
Diplomatic representation in US: none (territory of Australia)
US diplomatic representation: none (territory of Australia)
Flag: the flag of Australia is used
Economy———
Economic overview: no economic activity
Transportation———————
Ports: none; offshore anchorage only
Defense———
Defense note: defense is the responsibility of Australia; periodic
visits by the Royal Australian Navy and Royal Australian Air Force
======================================================================
@Atlantic Ocean———————
Map—
Location: 0 00 N, 25 00 W—body of water between Africa, Europe,
Antarctica, and the Western Hemisphere
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 area: 82.217 million sq km
comparative area: 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)
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
Coastline: 111,866 km
International disputes: some maritime disputes (see littoral states)
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 lowest point: Puerto Rico Trench −8,605 m highest point: 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
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
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
international agreements: NA
Geographic note: major choke points include the Dardanelles,
Strait of Gibraltar, access to the Panama and Suez Canals; strategic
