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Timor
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Gulf of
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SOUTHEAST EUROPE
Pacific Basin
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Isla San Ambrosio
Isla San Félix (to Chile)
(to Chile)Sala y Gomez
(to Chile)Tahiti
Îles GambierMarquesas
Islands
Chatham Islands
(to NZ)Easter Island
(to Chile)East Indies
Aleutian^IslandsGalápagos Islands
(to Ecuador)Islas Juan Fernández
(to Chile)IslandsPhilippines
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(to NZ)G
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SOLOMON
ISLANDS
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MARSHALL
ISLANDS
MICRON ESIA
PALAU
FIJI
SAMOA
NORFOLK
ISLAND
(to Australia)NEW CALEDONIA
(to France)AMERICAN
SAMOA
(to US)WALLIS & FUTUNA
(to France)GUAM
(to US)NORTHERN
MARIANA
ISLANDS
(to US)PITCAIRN,
HENDERSON,
DUCIE & OENO
ISLANDS
(to UK)COOK
ISLANDS
(to NZ)JOHNSTON ATOLL
(to US)JARVIS ISLAND
(to US)BAKER &
HOWLAND ISLANDS
(to US)PALMYRA
ATOLL
(to US)KINGMAN REEF
(to US)TOKELAU
(to NZ)NIUE
(to NZ)FRENCH
POLYNESIA
(to France)CLIPPERTON
ISLAND
(to France)WAKE ISLAND
(to US)MIDWAY
ISLANDS
(to US)HAWAII
(US State)NORTH
AMERICA
ASIA
AUSTRALASIA
& OCEANIA
SOUTH
AMERICA
A
B
B
C
C
D
D
E
E F
G
G
H
H
I
I
2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
Pacific Ocean
Hawaiian conch shells, once
blown to sound a warning
Marine iguana on
black volcanic rocks,
Galápagos Islands
HAWAII
This chain of eight volcanic islands
and 124 islets forms the 50th state
of the United States, and was
admitted to the union in 1959. The
dramatic landscape and palm-
fringed beaches make Hawaii a
popular destination for tourists.
Today, native Hawaiians are a
minority in their own land.
GALÁPAGOS ISLANDS
When British naturalist Charles Darwin (1809–1882)
went to the Galápagos Islands, he found many
unusual animals. He also noticed differences between
animals of the same species living elsewhere. This
led him to believe that, over time, animals adapt, or
evolve, to suit their habitats.
Black smoker
chimney
TSUNAMI
Earthquakes beneath the
sea may cause giant waves
called tsunamis. These
can travel great distances
across the ocean, building
into a huge wall of water
as they approach the coast.
They can leave immense
damage in their wake.
SURFING
The Hawaiian sport of surfing ranks as the oldest sport
in the USA. It was first practiced by the nobility as a form
of religious ceremony until the 1820s when missionaries,
who thought it immoral, tried to ban it. Today, surfing is
one of the most popular watersports and can be seen
all over the world, from Australia to the UK.
Large
red tube
worms
DEEP-SEA VENTS
Underwater exploration has
revealed some amazing places
deep in the Pacific. Large vents,
formed by solidified minerals, act
as chimneys for super-hot steam
and gas that stream up from the
sea bed. These vents are known
as black smokers. Scientists have
found a host of new creatures
living in this hostile environment.
The largest ocean on earth, the Pacific covers
one-third of Earth’s surface. The island nations of
Japan, Indonesia, Australia, New Zealand, and many
others are completely surrounded by this enormous
ocean, which stretches from the Arctic in the north
to the Southern Ocean in the south. The Pacific is also
the world’s deepest ocean – its greatest known depth
is in the Mariana Trench, off Guam, which plunges
steeply for 36,198 ft (11,033 m). Within the Pacific,
there are many smaller seas that lie near land. These
include the Tasman Sea, the South China Sea, and
the Bering Sea. There are more than 30,000 islands
in the Pacific. Most are too small or barren to
be inhabited, but others are home to people
of many different cultures and religions. The
native island peoples fall into three main
groups—Polynesians, Melanesians, and
Micronesians. Although the word pacific
means “peaceful,” strong currents, tropical
storms, and tsunamis can all make this
ocean far from peaceful.
The Pacific is
larger than
Earth’s entire
land surface.
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