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The Barents Sea is part of the Arctic Ocean located north of Norway and Russia. It is a rather deep shelf sea (average depth 230 m), bordered by the shelf edge towards the Norwegian Sea in the west, the island of Svalbard (Norway) in the north-west, and the islands of Franz Josef Land and Novaya Zemlya (Russia) in the north-east and east. It is named after the Dutch navigator Willem Barents. The southern half of the Barents Sea, including the ports of Murmansk (Russia) and Vardø (Norway) remain ice-free year round due to the warm North Atlantic drift. In September, the entire Barents Sea is more or less completely ice-free.
Until the Winter War, FinlandSuomen TasavaltaRepubliken Finland ( In Detail) ( In Detail) National motto: None Official languages Finnish and Swedish Capital Helsinki President Tarja Halonen Prime minister Matti Vanhanen Area Total % water Ranked 64th 337,030 km² 9. 4% Population Tot's territory also reached to the Barents Sea, with the harbor at PetsamoThe area of Petsamo Pechenga in Russian) in northern Lapland, indigenously inhabited by Samis, came to Finland in 1920 and to the Soviet Union in 1944. It is now part of Russia. It contains an ice-free harbour, Liinahamari, and deposits of nickel. The har was Finland's only ice-free winter harbor.
There are three main types of water massPhysical oceanography Water mass is a group of water which has the same physical property. It means water in a water mass with the same temperature, salinity or other physical quantity. It helps researchers study oceanic phonomena in changing process.es in the Barents Sea: Warm, salty Atlantic water (temperature >3°C, salinitySalinity in Australian English may refer to soil salinity, see Salinity in Australia Salinity is the saltiness or dissolved salt content of a body of water. Definitions The salt content of most natural lakes, rivers, and streams is so small that these wat>35) from the North Atlantic drift, cold Arctic water (temperature <0°C, salinitySalinity in Australian English may refer to soil salinity, see Salinity in Australia Salinity is the saltiness or dissolved salt content of a body of water. Definitions The salt content of most natural lakes, rivers, and streams is so small that these wat<35) from the north, and warm, but not very salty coastal water (temperature >3°C, salinitySalinity in Australian English may refer to soil salinity, see Salinity in Australia Salinity is the saltiness or dissolved salt content of a body of water. Definitions The salt content of most natural lakes, rivers, and streams is so small that these wat<34,7). Between the Atlantic and Polar waters, a front called the Polar Front is formed. In the western parts of the sea (close to Bjørnøya or Bear IslandThis article is about the Norwegian island of Bjornoya (Bear Island in English). See Bear Island for other places of that name. Bjornoya ( Norwegian for Bear Island ) is a Norwegian island in the Arctic Ocean that constitutes a part of Svalbard. It is loc), this front is is determined by the bottom topography and is therefore relatively sharp and stable from year to year, while in the east (towards Novaya Zemlya), its can be quite diffuse and its position varies a lot between years.
Due to the North Atlantic drift, the Barents Sea has a high biological production compared to other oceans of similar latitude. The spring bloom of phytoplankton can start quite early close to the ice edge, because the fresh water from the melting ice makes up a stable water layer on top of the sea water. The phytoplankton bloom feeds zooplankton such as Calanus finmarchicus, Calanus glacialis, Calanus hyperboreus, Oithona spp., and krill. The zooplankton feeders include young cod, capelin, polar cod, whales and Little Auk. The capelin is a key food for top predators such as the North-East Arctic cod, harp seal s, and seabirds such as Common Guillemot and Brunnich's Guillemot. The fisheries of the Barents Sea, in particular the cod fisheries, are of great importance for both Norway and Russia.
Nuclear contamination from dumped Russian naval reactors is an environmental concern in the Barents Sea.
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