Eurasian Basin

The Eurasian Basin, also called the Eurasia Basin, is one of the two main parts of the Arctic Basin in the Arctic Ocean. It is separated from the other part, the Amerasia Basin, by a underwater mountain range called the Lomonosov Ridge. The Eurasian Basin can be thought of as an extension of the North Atlantic Basin that reaches through a water passage called the Fram Strait.

This basin is further divided by another underwater mountain range, the Gakkel Ridge, into two smaller basins: the Nansen Basin and the Amundsen Basin. The Amundsen Basin is the deepest part of the entire Arctic Ocean, and it is where the geographic North Pole is located.

The Eurasian Basin is bordered by Greenland, the Lomonosov Ridge, and the shallow areas, called shelves, of the Laptev Sea, Kara Sea, and Barents Sea. The deepest point in this basin is called the Litke Deep.

Today, the Gakkel Ridge is where new ocean floor is being created very slowly. This process, called seafloor spreading, happens at a rate of about 10 millimeters per year near the Fram Strait and 6 millimeters per year near the Laptev Sea. The Eurasian Basin began to form about 53 million years ago during a time period known as the Cenozoic.