Situated at the northernmost tip of our planet, the Arctic Ocean is the smallest and shallowest of the oceans. It is surrounded by North America, Europe, and Asia, and is covered by a heavy sheet of ice that never completely melts. In the summer, the ice, which is 7 to 10 ft (2 to 3 m) thick, becomes thinner and breaks up in places. As these enormous plates of partially drift apart, rivers and lakes are created between them.

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