--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The Arctic is an ocean. The southern pole…" description: "\"The Arctic is an ocean. The southern pole is a continent surrounded by ocean. The North Pole is an ocean, or northern waters. It's an ocean surrounded ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/32e/sylvia-earle-1756_arctic_the-arctic-is-an-ocean-the-southern-pole_327496.jpg" --- # The Arctic is an ocean. The southern pole is a continent… ![“The Arctic is an ocean. The southern pole is a continent surrounded by ocean. The North Pole is an ocean, or northern waters. It's an ocean surrounded by land, basically.” quote by Sylvia Earle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/32e/sylvia-earle-1756_arctic_the-arctic-is-an-ocean-the-southern-pole_327496.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/32e/sylvia-earle-1756_arctic_the-arctic-is-an-ocean-the-southern-pole_327496.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/32e/sylvia-earle-1756_arctic_the-arctic-is-an-ocean-the-southern-pole_327496.jpg) > “The Arctic is an ocean. The southern pole is a continent surrounded by ocean. The North Pole is an ocean, or northern waters. It's an ocean surrounded by land, basically.” [Sylvia Earle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-earle/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The Arctic and North Poles are primarily oceanic regions, with land encircling the southern pole. **In simple terms:** Arctic is ocean; South Pole is continent; North Pole is ocean. Key Takeaway Recognize the oceanic nature of polar regions. Themes geography climate environment science Mood informative analytical Type educational scientific When to use this quote - climate policy - educational curricula - media reporting - travel planning Key Concepts Oceanography polar studies earth science Questions to Reflect On - What implications does this view have for climate policy? - How does oceanic classification affect resource claims? A Different Perspective Simplifies complex geography; may overlook ice dynamics and political boundaries. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Arctic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/arctic/) [North pole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/north-pole/) [Ocean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ocean/) [Water](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/water/) ## Related quotes > [If substantial methyl hydrate melt begins to occur in the Arctic Ocean basin, then the (carbon) accelerator will be jammed, and there will be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-lynas/if-substantial-methyl-hydrate-melt-begins-to-occur-in-the-arctic/) [Mark Lynas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-lynas/) > [“The word ‘arctic’ comes from the Greek artikos, which means ‘near the bear’, and is a reference to the Ursa Major constellation whose last…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-marshall/the-word-arctic-comes-from-the-greek-artikos-which-means-near-the/) [Tim Marshall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-marshall/) > [The Arctic Ocean is completely unprotected, so technically, people can do with it whatever they like.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludovico-einaudi/the-arctic-ocean-is-completely-unprotected-so-technically-people-can/) [Ludovico Einaudi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludovico-einaudi/) > [Some studies suggest that the Arctic Ocean may be ice-free by the end of the century.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-goodell/some-studies-suggest-that-the-arctic-ocean-may-be-ice-free-by-the-end/) [Jeff Goodell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-goodell/) > [The Arctic Ocean encircles with a belt of eternal ice the desert confines of Siberia and North America--the uttermost limits of the Old and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-sue/the-arctic-ocean-encircles-with-a-belt-of-eternal-ice-the-desert/) [Eugene Sue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-sue/) > [Tundra is a huge, forever frozen wetland covering the entire coast of the Arctic Ocean.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/palmer-cox/tundra-is-a-huge-forever-frozen-wetland-covering-the-entire-coast-of/) Palmer Cox > [The North Pole will be ice-free during summer in years to come, and that itself will put the Arctic Sea basin on a very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aleqa-hammond/the-north-pole-will-be-ice-free-during-summer-in-years-to-come-and/) [Aleqa Hammond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aleqa-hammond/) > [On 15 July 2007, I swam across an open patch of sea at the North Pole to highlight the melting of the Arctic sea ice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-gordon-pugh/on-15-july-2007-i-swam-across-an-open-patch-of-sea-at-the-north-pole/) [Lewis Gordon Pugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-gordon-pugh/) > [We were working under very harsh conditions on 'Zero Kelvin.' We were up there in the Arctic, closer to the North Pole than to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stellan-skarsgard/we-were-working-under-very-harsh-conditions-on-zero-kelvin-we-were-up/) [Stellan Skarsgard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stellan-skarsgard/) > [The Antarctic ice sheet has reached record levels in the midst of so-called climate change and global warming. It's the same thing at the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rush-limbaugh/the-antarctic-ice-sheet-has-reached-record-levels-in-the-midst-of-so/) [Rush Limbaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rush-limbaugh/) > [If the world were an orange with 18 segments meeting at the top (the North Pole), roughly 8 of them would be in Russia,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-shoumatoff/if-the-world-were-an-orange-with-18-segments-meeting-at-the-top-the/) [Alex Shoumatoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-shoumatoff/) > [“I’m sitting in the prow-shaped dining room of a tourist steamer, the Georgi Zhukov, on the Yenisei River, which flows from the foothills of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-amis/i-m-sitting-in-the-prow-shaped-dining-room-of-a-tourist-steamer-the/) [Martin Amis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-amis/) > [The Arctic is a place that historically, during all preceding human history, has largely been an icy realm with an impact on ocean currents.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-earle/the-arctic-is-a-place-that-historically-during-all-preceding-human/) [Sylvia Earle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-earle/) > [For humans, the Arctic is a harshly inhospitable place, but the conditions there are precisely what polar bears require to survive - and thrive.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-earle/for-humans-the-arctic-is-a-harshly-inhospitable-place-but-the/) [Sylvia Earle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-earle/) > [The most important thing for people to know about the governance of the Arctic is that we have a chance now to act to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-earle/the-most-important-thing-for-people-to-know-about-the-governance-of/) [Sylvia Earle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-earle/) ## More by Sylvia Earle > [We still have 10 percent of the sharks. We still have half of the coral reefs. However, if we wait another 50 years, opportunities…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-earle/we-still-have-10-percent-of-the-sharks-we-still-have-half-of-the/) [Sylvia Earle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-earle/) > [Health to the ocean means health for us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-earle/health-to-the-ocean-means-health-for-us/) [Sylvia Earle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-earle/) > [Evolution is not something to be feared. It's to be celebrated, embraced, and understood.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-earle/evolution-is-not-something-to-be-feared-it-s-to-be-celebrated/) [Sylvia Earle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-earle/) > [We are depleting this immense diversity and abundance of life, and it matters tremendously for the future of the planet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-earle/we-are-depleting-this-immense-diversity-and-abundance-of-life-and-it/) [Sylvia Earle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-earle/) > [My mother was known as the 'bird lady' of the neighborhood. Anything injured, or any unusual creature somebody found, they would always come to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-earle/my-mother-was-known-as-the-bird-lady-of-the-neighborhood-anything/) [Sylvia Earle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-earle/) > [There is this sweet spot in time when we have an opportunity to stop killing sharks and tunas and swordfish and other wildlife in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-earle/there-is-this-sweet-spot-in-time-when-we-have-an-opportunity-to-stop/) [Sylvia Earle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-earle/) > [The sudden release of five million barrels of oil, enormous quantities of methane and two million gallons of toxic dispersants into an already greatly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-earle/the-sudden-release-of-five-million-barrels-of-oil-enormous-quantities/) [Sylvia Earle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-earle/) > [I've always said, 'Underwater or on top, men and women are compatible.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-earle/i-ve-always-said-underwater-or-on-top-men-and-women-are-compatible/) [Sylvia Earle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-earle/) > [With respect to the ocean being the heart of our blue planet: We are often asked, 'How much protection is enough?' We can only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-earle/with-respect-to-the-ocean-being-the-heart-of-our-blue-planet-we-are/) [Sylvia Earle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-earle/) > [If the sea is sick, we'll feel it. If it dies, we die. Our future and the state of the oceans are one.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-earle/if-the-sea-is-sick-we-ll-feel-it-if-it-dies-we-die-our-future-and-the/) [Sylvia Earle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-earle/) > [The ocean seemed like a sea of Eden. But now we are facing paradise lost.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-earle/the-ocean-seemed-like-a-sea-of-eden-but-now-we-are-facing-paradise/) [Sylvia Earle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-earle/) > [When you think about the real cost of so-called cheap energy that has driven our prosperity to unprecedented levels, for some of us, to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-earle/when-you-think-about-the-real-cost-of-so-called-cheap-energy-that-has/) [Sylvia Earle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-earle/) > [When I arrived on the planet, there were only two billion. Wildlife was more abundant, we were less so; now the situation is reversed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-earle/when-i-arrived-on-the-planet-there-were-only-two-billion-wildlife-was/) [Sylvia Earle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-earle/) > [I've had the joy of spending thousands of hours under the sea. I wish I could take people along to see what I see,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-earle/i-ve-had-the-joy-of-spending-thousands-of-hours-under-the-sea-i-wish/) [Sylvia Earle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-earle/) > [The observations that have developed over the years have given us perspective about where we fit in. We are newcomers, really recent arrivals on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-earle/the-observations-that-have-developed-over-the-years-have-given-us/) [Sylvia Earle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-earle/) [Explore all 211 Sylvia Earle quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-earle/) ## More Arctic quotes > [Some have suggested that ideally there must be some international body that would treat areas like the Arctic as a global commerce, a bit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kofi-annan/some-have-suggested-that-ideally-there-must-be-some-international/) [Kofi Annan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kofi-annan/) > [The Earth's population will be culled from today's 6.6 billion to as few as 500 million, with most of the survivors living in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-lovelock/the-earth-s-population-will-be-culled-from-today-s-6-6-billion-to-as/) [James Lovelock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-lovelock/) > [The undisturbed coastal plain is home to a wide variety of plants and animals and is the only wilderness sanctuary in North America that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-lipinski/the-undisturbed-coastal-plain-is-home-to-a-wide-variety-of-plants-and/) [Dan Lipinski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-lipinski/) > [I did a show in this tiny town called Longyearbyen. We went snowmobiling around Svalbard and saw Arctic foxes, snow bunting, polar bear footprints…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bailey/i-did-a-show-in-this-tiny-town-called-longyearbyen-we-went/) [Bill Bailey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bailey/) > [If the world were an orange with 18 segments meeting at the top (the North Pole), roughly 8 of them would be in Russia,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-shoumatoff/if-the-world-were-an-orange-with-18-segments-meeting-at-the-top-the/) [Alex Shoumatoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-shoumatoff/) > [A good salesman, as the old (and politically incorrect) saying goes, can sell a refrigerator to an Eskimo. It's a cliché, but there's some…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josh-kaufman/a-good-salesman-as-the-old-and-politically-incorrect-saying-goes-can/) [Josh Kaufman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josh-kaufman/) > [It came to me that hell would not be fire and smoke after all but arctic, everything white and frigid. Hell would be not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-cormier/it-came-to-me-that-hell-would-not-be-fire-and-smoke-after-all-but/) [Robert Cormier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-cormier/) > [The Arctic is the planet's air conditioner and it's starting to break down.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eban-goodstein/the-arctic-is-the-planet-s-air-conditioner-and-it-s-starting-to-break/) [Eban Goodstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eban-goodstein/) > [Filming for 'MasterChef' with the Royal Marine Commandos in the Arctic was the only time I've felt like planet Earth was trying to kill…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregg-wallace/filming-for-masterchef-with-the-royal-marine-commandos-in-the-arctic/) [Gregg Wallace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregg-wallace/) > [I listen to 50 Cent, Jay-Z, Stereophonics, Arctic Monkeys; also the musical Oliver - I can sing every tune.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wayne-rooney/i-listen-to-50-cent-jay-z-stereophonics-arctic-monkeys-also-the/) [Wayne Rooney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wayne-rooney/) > [The Arctic is going to be an area of intense interest. Russia has the longest coastline in the world with the Arctic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-clinton/the-arctic-is-going-to-be-an-area-of-intense-interest-russia-has-the/) [Hillary Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-clinton/) > [Before we left, Grandmother talked a lot about the arctic night we would fly through. 'Isn't it a mystical word, "arctic"? Pure and quite…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tove-jansson/before-we-left-grandmother-talked-a-lot-about-the-arctic-night-we/) [Tove Jansson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tove-jansson/) > [We can look forward to the day when the free flow of trade, from the southern reaches of Tierra del Fuego to the northern…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-reagan/we-can-look-forward-to-the-day-when-the-free-flow-of-trade-from-the/) [Ronald Reagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-reagan/) > [By the end of this century, climate change will reduce the human population to a few breeding pairs surviving near the Arctic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-lovelock/by-the-end-of-this-century-climate-change-will-reduce-the-human/) [James Lovelock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-lovelock/) > [“We have even broken the shackles of the Earth’s gravity. In our newly globalised world we can use that technology to give us all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-marshall/we-have-even-broken-the-shackles-of-the-earth-s-gravity-in-our-newly/) [Tim Marshall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-marshall/) [Browse all 232 Arctic quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/arctic/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The Arctic is an ocean. The southern pole is a continent surrounded by ocean. The North Pole is an ocean, or northern waters. 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