On the edge of the Arctic Ocean is the Barents Sea. It is located beyond the Arctic Circle. This sea is of great importance for Russia, since it is a navigable route to European states. In addition, the Barents Sea is the base of the Russian Navy (Northern Fleet, formed in 1933). Today it is considered the most powerful navy in the country.
Mastering the sea
People began to explore the Barents Sea, like the White Sea, a long time ago. The first boats of Russian sailors appeared in its waters in the 9th century. A little later, the Vikings began to swim there. During the period of the Great Geographical Discoveries (15-17 centuries), the first attempts were made to study the Barents Sea. Mariners from Europe were looking for new sea routes and inevitably ended up in the waters of this sea. Barents (a navigator from Holland) was the first to explore Svalbard, the Oran Islands and Bear Island. The sea was named Barents in 1853. Earlier it was designated as Murmansk. Murmansk is currently the largest Russian port. Vessels can reach its shores at any time of the year, since the southwestern coast of the Barents Sea, where Murmansk is located, is not covered with ice even in winter. The map of the Barents Sea will help you understand where this port is located.
Geographic details
The Barents Sea has conditional boundaries, which are drawn along the Novaya Zemlya and Spitsbergen archipelagos, as well as along the shores of the northern countries of Europe. The water depth in it is no more than 400 m. The maximum depth is 600 m, noted in the north of the sea. In winter, more than 75% of the Barents Sea surface is covered with ice. Thus, only the southwest zone remains navigable. In summer, the water temperature varies from +1 to +10 degrees. In winter, the average temperature is -25 degrees.
Dangers of the Barents Sea
This sea has always been considered impassable. Researchers faced many dangers during their travels. This is especially true of those times when people did not have the necessary equipment to work in difficult climatic conditions.
The main problem is that the Barents Sea lies entirely beyond the Arctic Circle. This ensures the preservation of the ice crust throughout the year. The coast of the Barents Sea is characterized by a special climate. In this area, the weather is influenced by Arctic cold and Atlantic warm cyclones. Therefore, the probability of storms is always very high here. It is almost always cloudy over the sea. However, the Barents Sea is considered to be the warmest in comparison with other seas located above the Arctic Circle.
