Indian Ocean
The warmest ocean, the monsoon sea whose seasonal winds organised trade from East Africa to Indonesia for two millennia.
Specifications & Metrics
- area
- ~70 million km²
Core Principles & Analysis
- Monsoon reversals set its sailing calendar: dhows rode the summer winds northeast and the winter winds home.
- It is the only ocean named for a country, after India's centrality to its trade.
- Its rim gates carry the busiest container routes on Earth, between East Asia and Europe through the Suez.
Sources