[1] : The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

pacific \pacif"ic\, a. l. pacificus: cf. f. pacifique. see
   pacify.
   of or pertaining to peace; of a peaceful character; not
   warlike; not quarrelsome; as, a pacific nature or condition.
   wordnet sense 3

   syn: peaceable.
        1913 webster

   2. promoting peace; suited to make or restore peace;
      conciliatory; as, pacific words or acts. wordnet sense 1

   syn: irenic.
        wordnet 1.5

   3. of or pertaining to the pacific ocean; as, pacific
      islands.
      wordnet 1.5

   pacific ocean, the ocean between america and asia, so
      called by magellan, its first european navigator, on
      account of the exemption from violent tempests which he
      enjoyed while sailing over it; -- called also, simply, the
      pacific, and, formerly, the south sea.
      1913 webster

   syn: peacemaking; appeasing; conciliatory; tranquil; calm;
        quiet; peaceful; reconciling; mild; gentle.
        1913 webster
see also:
pacify pacific ocean pacific south sea 

[2] : WordNet (r) 2.0

pacific ocean
     n : the largest ocean in the world syn: pacific
see also:
pacific 

[3] : CIA World Factbook 2002

pacific ocean

   introduction pacific ocean
   --------------------------
                            background: the pacific ocean is the largest of
                                        the world's five oceans followed by
                                        the atlantic ocean, indian ocean,
                                        southern ocean, and arctic ocean.
                                        strategically important access
                                        waterways include the la perouse,
                                        tsugaru, tsushima, taiwan,
                                        singapore, and torres straits.
  
   geography pacific ocean
   -----------------------
                              location: body of water between the southern
                                        ocean, asia, australia, and the
                                        western hemisphere
                geographic coordinates: 0 00 n, 160 00 w
                        map references: political map of the world
                                  area: total: 155.557 million sq km
                                        note: includes bali sea, bering sea,
                                        bering strait, coral sea, east china
                                        sea, flores sea, gulf of alaska,
                                        gulf of tonkin, java sea, philippine
                                        sea, savu sea, sea of japan, sea of
                                        okhotsk, south china sea, tasman
                                        sea, timor sea, and other tributary
                                        water bodies
                    area - comparative: about 15 times the size of the us;
                                        covers about 28 of the global
                                        surface; larger than the total land
                                        area of the world
                             coastline: 135,663 km
                               climate: planetary air pressure systems and
                                        resultant wind patterns exhibit
                                        remarkable uniformity in the south
                                        and east; trade winds and westerly
                                        winds are well-developed patterns,
                                        modified by seasonal fluctuations;
                                        tropical cyclones hurricanes may
                                        form south of mexico from june to
                                        october and affect mexico and
                                        central america; continental
                                        influences cause climatic uniformity
                                        to be much less pronounced in the
                                        eastern and western regions at the
                                        same latitude in the north pacific
                                        ocean; the western pacific is
                                        monsoonal - a rainy season occurs
                                        during the summer months, when
                                        moisture-laden winds blow from the
                                        ocean over the land, and a dry
                                        season during the winter months,
                                        when dry winds blow from the asian
                                        landmass back to the ocean; tropical
                                        cyclones typhoons may strike
                                        southeast and east asia from may to
                                        december
                               terrain: surface currents in the northern
                                        pacific are dominated by a
                                        clockwise, warm-water gyre broad
                                        circular system of currents and in
                                        the southern pacific by a
                                        counterclockwise, cool-water gyre;
                                        in the northern pacific, sea ice
                                        forms in the bering sea and sea of
                                        okhotsk in winter; in the southern
                                        pacific, sea ice from antarctica
                                        reaches its northernmost extent in
                                        october; the ocean floor in the
                                        eastern pacific is dominated by the
                                        east pacific rise, while the western
                                        pacific is dissected by deep
                                        trenches, including the mariana
                                        trench, which is the world's deepest
                    elevation extremes: lowest point: challenger deep in the
                                        mariana trench -10,924 m
                                        highest point: sea level 0 m
                     natural resources: oil and gas fields, polymetallic
                                        nodules, sand and gravel aggregates,
                                        placer deposits, fish
                       natural hazards: surrounded by a zone of violent
                                        volcanic and earthquake activity
                                        sometimes referred to as the
                                        "pacific ring of fire"; subject to
                                        tropical cyclones typhoons in
                                        southeast and east asia from may to
                                        december most frequent from july to
                                        october; tropical cyclones
                                        hurricanes may form south of
                                        mexico and strike central america
                                        and mexico from june to october
                                        most common in august and
                                        september; cyclical el nino/la nina
                                        phenomenon occurs in the equatorial
                                        pacific, influencing weather in the
                                        western hemisphere and the western
                                        pacific; ships subject to
                                        superstructure icing in extreme
                                        north from october to may;
                                        persistent fog in the northern
                                        pacific can be a maritime hazard
                                        from june to december
          environment - current issues: endangered marine species include
                                        the dugong, sea lion, sea otter,
                                        seals, turtles, and whales; oil
                                        pollution in philippine sea and
                                        south china sea
                      geography - note: the major chokepoints are the bering
                                        strait, panama canal, luzon strait,
                                        and the singapore strait; the
                                        equator divides the pacific ocean
                                        into the north pacific ocean and the
                                        south pacific ocean; dotted with low
                                        coral islands and rugged volcanic
                                        islands in the southwestern pacific
                                        ocean
  
  
  
   economy pacific ocean
   ---------------------
                    economy - overview: the pacific ocean is a major
                                        contributor to the world economy and
                                        particularly to those nations its
                                        waters directly touch. it provides
                                        low-cost sea transportation between
                                        east and west, extensive fishing
                                        grounds, offshore oil and gas
                                        fields, minerals, and sand and
                                        gravel for the construction
                                        industry. in 1996, over 60 of the
                                        world's fish catch came from the
                                        pacific ocean. exploitation of
                                        offshore oil and gas reserves is
                                        playing an ever-increasing role in
                                        the energy supplies of us,
                                        australia, nz, china, and peru. the
                                        high cost of recovering offshore oil
                                        and gas, combined with the wide
                                        swings in world prices for oil since
                                        1985, has slowed but not stopped new
                                        drillings.
  
  
   transportation pacific ocean
   ----------------------------
                     ports and harbors: bangkok thailand, hong kong, kao-
                                        hsiung taiwan, los angeles us,
                                        manila philippines, pusan south
                                        korea, san francisco us, seattle
                                        us, shanghai china, singapore,
                                        sydney australia, vladivostok
                                        russia, wellington nz, yokohama
                                        japan
                 transportation - note: inside passage offers protected
                                        waters from southeast alaska to
                                        puget sound washington state
  
  
   transnational issues pacific ocean
   ----------------------------------
              disputes - international: some maritime disputes see littoral
                                        states
  
                                       

Pacific Ocean >> P Words
Pacific Ocean, definition of term: Pacific Ocean
pacific+ocean_pag1.html

Ocean >> O Words
Ocean, definition of term: Ocean
ocean_pag1.html

Pacific >> P Words
Pacific, definition of term: Pacific
pacific_pag1.html

Ocean Springs >> O Words
Ocean Springs, definition of term: Ocean Springs
ocean+springs_pag1.html

Ocean Sunfish >> O Words
Ocean Sunfish, definition of term: Ocean Sunfish
ocean+sunfish_pag1.html

Ocean View >> O Words
Ocean View, definition of term: Ocean View
ocean+view_pag1.html

Pacific Standar >> P Words
Pacific Standar, definition of term: Pacific Standar
pacific+standar_pag1.html

Ocean Ridge >> O Words
Ocean Ridge, definition of term: Ocean Ridge
ocean+ridge_pag1.html

Ocean Current >> O Words
Ocean Current, definition of term: Ocean Current
ocean+current_pag1.html

Ocean Floor >> O Words
Ocean Floor, definition of term: Ocean Floor
ocean+floor_pag1.html

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