Bering Sea
|
Bering Sea and the North Pacific Ocean |
The
Bering (or
Imarpik)
Sea is a body of water north of, and separated from, the north
Pacific Ocean by the
Alaska Peninsula and
Aleutian Islands. Covering over two million
square kilometers (
775,000 sq. miles), it is bordered on the east and northeast by
Alaska, on the west by
Russia's
Siberia and
Kamchatka Peninsula, on the south by the
Alaska Peninsula and the
Aleutian Islands and on the far north by the
Bering Strait which separates the Bering Sea from the
Arctic Ocean's
Chukchi Sea. It is named for the first white discoverer to sail its waters, the
Danish navigator
Vitus Bering.
During the most recent
ice age, the
sea level was thought to be low enough to allow
humans and other animals to
migrate from
Asia to
North America on foot across what is now the
Bering Strait, located on the northern side of the sea. This is commonly referred to as the "
Bering land bridge" and is believed by some scholars (in dispute by others) to be the first entry of humans into
the Americas.
The
Bering Sea is one of the world's richest fisheries, and landings from Alaskan waters represents half the U.S. catch of fish and shellfish. Because of the
changes going on in the Arctic, future evolution of the Bering Sea climate/ecosystem is more uncertain. This is a symmetric problem: climate change impacts ecosystems, and ecosystems serve as indicators for climate change. Track the
current State of the Bering Sea with [
1]near-realtime ecological and climatic indicators.
Islands of the Bering Sea include:
*
Pribilof Islands*
Komandorski Islands, including
Bering Island*
St. Lawrence Island*
Diomede Islands*
King Island*
St. Matthew Island*
Bering Sea Arbitration*
Bristol Bay*
Alaska Peninsula*
Timeline of environmental events*
Bering Sea Climate and Ecosystem Comprehensive resource on the physical and biological factors affecting life in the Bering Sea, with maps, photos, essays on key Bering Sea issues, organizations, ecosystem information, and viewable data with narratives on trends and ecosystem relevance.
*
North Pacific Ocean theme page
