Black Sea

The anoxic inland sea between Europe and Asia Minor/Oceans & Seas

The Black Sea is an inland sea bounded by six countries: Turkey, Bulgaria, Romania, Ukraine, Russia, and Georgia. It covers about 436,000 square kilometers with a maximum depth of 2,212 m. The Black Sea is remarkable for being the world's largest meromictic (permanently stratified) body of water: below about 150 m, the water is anoxic (devoid of oxygen), creating a 'dead zone' that preserves ancient shipwrecks in extraordinary condition. It connects to the Mediterranean through the narrow Bosphorus strait.