What is the largest ocean on Earth, covering more than 30% of the planet’s surface?

The Pacific Ocean is the largest ocean on Earth, covering more than 30% of the planet’s surface.

It stretches from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, between Asia and Australia on one side and the Americas on the other. Its name comes from the Latin pacificus, meaning “peaceful,” a name associated with Ferdinand Magellan’s relatively calm crossing in 1521.

The Pacific contains more than half of the world’s ocean surface area and includes thousands of islands, including Polynesia, Micronesia, and Melanesia. It is also home to the Mariana Trench, whose Challenger Deep is the deepest known point in Earth’s oceans.

A common mix-up is confusing the Pacific with the Atlantic, which is the second-largest ocean. The Pacific is also a major part of the Ring of Fire, a zone of frequent earthquakes and volcanic activity around its margins.