Editing Barents Sea (section)

==Geography==
[[Image:Tabularussiae.jpg|thumb|250px|Shores of the Barents (''Murman'') Sea. From "Tabula Russiae", Joan Blaeu's, Amsterdam, 1614.]]
The southern half of the Barents Sea, including the ports of [[Murmansk]] (Russia) and [[Vardø (town)|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. From 1920 to 1944, [[Finland]]'s territory also reached the Barents Sea. The [[Liinakhamari]] harbour in the [[Pechengsky District]] was Finland's only ice-free winter harbour until 1944 when it was ceded to the [[Soviet Union]].

There are three main types of [[water mass]]es in the Barents Sea: Warm, salty [[Atlantic Ocean|Atlantic]] water (temperature >3 °C, [[salinity]] >35) from the [[North Atlantic drift]]; cold Arctic water (temperature <0 °C, salinity <35) from the north; and warm, but not very salty, coastal water (temperature >3 °C, salinity <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 [[Bear Island (Norway)|Bear Island]]), this front is determined by the bottom topography and is therefore relatively sharp and stable from year to year, while in the east (towards [[Novaya Zemlya]]), it can be quite diffuse and its position can vary markedly between years.

The lands of Novaya Zemlya attained most of their early Holocene coastal deglaciation approximately 10,000 years before the present.<ref name="Ref_b">J. Zeeberg, 2001.</ref>

===Extent===
The [[International Hydrographic Organization]] defines the limits of the "Barentsz Sea" {{sic}} as follows:<ref name="Ref_1953">{{cite web |url=https://iho.int/uploads/user/pubs/standards/s-23/S-23_Ed3_1953_EN.pdf |title=Limits of Oceans and Seas, 3rd edition |year=1953 |publisher=International Hydrographic Organization |access-date=28 December 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111008191433/http://www.iho.int/iho_pubs/standard/S-23/S-23_Ed3_1953_EN.pdf |archive-date=8 October 2011 }}</ref>

:''On the west'': The northeastern limit of the [[Norwegian Sea]] [A line joining the southernmost point of [[Spitsbergen|West Spitzbergen]] {{sic}} to North Cape of [[Bear Island (Norway)|Bear Island]], through this island to Cape Bull and thence on to [[North Cape, Norway|North Cape]] in [[Norway]] (25°45'E)].

:''On the northwest'': The eastern shore of West Spitzbergen {{sic}}, [[Hinlopen Strait]] up to [[80th parallel north|80° latitude north]]; south and east coasts of North-East Land [the island of [[Nordaustlandet]]<nowiki>]</nowiki> to Cape Leigh Smith ({{coord|80|05|N|28|00|E|display=inline}}).

:''On the north'': Cape Leigh Smith across the Islands Bolshoy Ostrov (Great Island) <nowiki>[</nowiki>[[Storøya]]<nowiki>]</nowiki>, Gilles <nowiki>[</nowiki>[[Kvitøya]]<nowiki>]</nowiki> and [[Victoria Island (Russian Arctic)|Victoria]]; [[Cape Mary Harmsworth]] (southwestern extremity of [[Alexandra Land]]) along the northern coasts of [[Franz Josef Land|Franz-Josef Land]] as far as [[Cape Kohlsaat]] ({{coord|81|14|N|65|10|E|display=inline}}).

:''On the east'': Cape Kohlsaat to [[Cape Zhelaniya]] (Desire); west and southwest coast of [[Novaya Zemlya]] to Cape Kussov Noss and thence to western entrance Cape, Dolgaya Bay ({{coord|70|15|N|58|25|E|display=inline}}) on [[Vaygach Island|Vaigach Island]]. Through Vaigach Island to Cape Greben; thence to Cape Belyi Noss on the mainland.

:''On the south'': The northern limit of the [[White Sea]] [A line joining Svyatoi Nos ([[Murmansk Oblast|Murmansk]] Coast, 39°47'E) and Cape Kanin].

Other islands in the Barents Sea include Chaichy and Timanets.

===Geology===
{{see also|White Sea Rift System}}
The Barents Sea was originally formed from two major continental collisions: the [[Caledonian orogeny]], in which the [[Baltica]] and [[Laurentia]] collided to form [[Laurasia]], and a subsequent collision between Laurasia and Western Siberia. Most of its geological history is dominated by [[extensional tectonics]], caused by the collapse of the Caledonian and Uralian orogenic belts and the break-up of [[Pangaea]].<ref name=Dore1995>{{Cite web| publisher= [[Arctic Institute of North America]] | url= http://pubs.aina.ucalgary.ca/arctic/Arctic48-3-207.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061029185917/http://pubs.aina.ucalgary.ca/arctic/Arctic48-3-207.pdf |archive-date=2006-10-29 |url-status=live | title = Barents Sea Geology, Petroleum Resources and Commercial Potential | issue = 3 | volume = 48 | author = Doré, A.G. | date = Sep 1995}}</ref> These events created the major rift basins that dominate the Barents Shelf, along with various [[Platform (geology)|platforms]] and structural highs. The later geological history of the Barents Sea is dominated by Late Cenozoic [[Tectonic uplift|uplift]], particularly that caused by [[Quaternary glaciation]], which has resulted in erosion and deposition of significant sediment.<ref name=Dore1996>{{Cite journal | publisher= [[Global and Planetary Change]] | title = Impact of Glaciations on Basin Evolution: Data and Models from the Norwegian Margin and Adjacent Areas | issue = 1–4 | volume = 12 | author = Doré, A.G. | date = March 1996 }}</ref>

===Ecology===
[[Image:Barents Sea in Bloom.jpg|thumb|Phytoplankton bloom in the Barents Sea. The milky-blue colour that dominates the bloom suggests that it contains large numbers of [[coccolithophores]].]]
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 near the ice edge because the fresh water from the melting ice makes up a stable water layer on top of the seawater. The [[phytoplankton]] bloom feeds [[zooplankton]] such as ''Calanus finmarchicus'', ''Calanus glacialis'', ''Calanus hyperboreus'', ''Oithona'' spp., and [[krill]]. The [[zooplankton]] feeders include young [[Atlantic cod|cod]], [[capelin]], [[polar cod]], [[whales]], and [[little auk]]. The capelin is a key food for top predators such as the north-east Arctic [[Atlantic cod|cod]], [[harp seal]]s, and seabirds such as the [[common guillemot]] and [[Brunnich's guillemot]]. The fisheries of the Barents Sea, in particular the [[Atlantic cod|cod]] fisheries, are of great importance for both Norway and Russia.

SIZEX-89 was an international winter experiment in 1989 for which the main objectives were to perform sensor signature studies of different ice types to develop SAR algorithms for ice variables, such as ice types, ice concentrations and ice kinematics.<ref name="Ref_c">''Sea ice modeling in the Barents Sea during SIZEX 89'' (Haugan, P.M., Johannessen, O.M. and Sandven, S., IGARSS´90 symposium, Washington D.C., 1990)</ref> Although previous research suggested that predation by whales may be the cause of depleting fish stocks, more recent research suggests that marine mammal consumption has only a trivial influence on fisheries. A model assessing the effects of fisheries and climate was far more accurate at describing trends in fish abundance.<ref>{{cite journal | last = Corkeron | first = Peter J. | date = April 23, 2009 | title = Marine mammals' influence on ecosystem processes affecting fisheries in the Barents Sea is trivial | journal = Biology Letters | volume = 5 | issue = 2 | pages = 204–206 | publisher = [[Royal Society|The Royal Society]] | issn = 1744-957X | doi = 10.1098/rsbl.2008.0628 | pmid = 19126534 | pmc = 2665811}}</ref> There is a genetically distinct [[polar bear]] population associated with the Barents Sea.<ref name="Ref_d">C.M. Hogan, 2008</ref>

===Pollution===
The Barents Sea is "among the most polluted places on Earth" due to accumulated marine garbage, decades of Soviet nuclear tests, radioactive waste dumping and industrial pollution.<ref name=nibdr>{{cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/jul/24/russia-barents-sea-toxic-legacy-military-buildup-mining-shipping-indigenous |title='Nature is being destroyed': Russia's arms buildup in Barents Sea creating toxic legacy |work=The Guardian}}</ref> The elevated pollution has caused elevated rates of disease among locals.<ref name=nibdr/> With rising military buildup and increased use of shipping lanes heading east through the Arctic, there are concerns that a further increase in pollution is likely, not least from the increased risk of future oil spills from ships not properly equipped for the environment.<ref name=nibdr/>

===Connections to global weather===
{{excerpt|Arctic sea ice decline#Barents Sea ice}}