The Atlantic ocean is the world’s second largest ocean it makes up a quarter of Earth’s water. It has been a major route for exploration and trade over the past centuries. The Atlantic lies between the Americas in the west and the continents of Europe and Africa in the East. The North Atlantic has several smaller seas that are part of it: the gulf of Mexico, the North Sea, the British Isles, the Mediterranean Sea, along with several others. The Atlantic is divided in three main areas. The continental shelf extends up to a few hundred km into the oceans around 100-200 meters deep. Beyond the shelf the continental slope drops to about 4,000 meters, where the ocean floor spreads across most of the Atlantic. There are many islands including - Cuba, Great Britain, Ireland, and Newfoundlands. The Mid Atlantic Ridge, rises in the middle of the Atlantic, new seafloor is created here constantly. Most of the Atlantic has a mild and moderate. Sometimes hurricanes or tropical cyclones arise and can be brought into the coastline causing dramatic change in the shape and form of the coastline. When cold air mixes with warm water it causes fog, which sometimes poses problems for ships. In the Northern Atlantic icebergs break away from ice sheets and drift southwards. There is a large diversity of animal and plant life in the Atlantic. Plankton is the basic form in the shelf regions, it provides food for fish and other sea animals. Corals thrive in the Caribbean Sea and other warm areas. More than half the world’s fishing grounds are located in the Atlantic; for many years overfishing has threatened many species, some are even endangered.