Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

500 results found

Hudson Bay

(Encyclopedia)Hudson Bay, inland sea of North America, c.475,000 sq mi (1,230,000 sq km), c.850 mi (1,370 km) long and c.650 mi (1,050 km) wide, E central Canada. Hudson Bay and James Bay (its southern extension) a...

subduction zone

(Encyclopedia)subduction zone, large-scaled narrow region in the earth's crust where, according to plate tectonics, masses of the spreading oceanic lithosphere bend downward into the earth along the leading edges o...

marine biology

(Encyclopedia)marine biology, study of ocean plants and animals and their ecological relationships. Marine organisms may be classified (according to their mode of life) as nektonic, planktonic, or benthic. Nektonic...

Nootka Sound

(Encyclopedia)Nootka Sound, inlet of the Pacific Ocean and natural harbor on the west coast of Vancouver Island, SW British Columbia, Canada, lying between the mainland and Nootka Island (206 sq mi/534 sq km). The ...

Limpopo, river, S Africa

(Encyclopedia)Limpopo lĭmpōˈpō [key], river, c.1,100 mi (1,770 km) long, rising in Limpopo prov., South Africa. It flows in a great arc, first north (forming part of the South Africa–Botswana border), then ea...

Arethusa, in Greek mythology

(Encyclopedia)Arethusa ărĭtho͞oˈsə [key], in Greek mythology, nymph favored by Artemis and loved by the river god Alpheus. While Arethusa was bathing in his stream, Alpheus rose up and tried to abduct her, but...

Sandy Hook

(Encyclopedia)Sandy Hook, low, sandy peninsula, NE N.J., projecting 5 mi (8 km) N toward New York and separating Sandy Hook Bay from the Atlantic Ocean. At the northern end is a Coast Guard station and the former F...

Santee, river, United States

(Encyclopedia)Santee săntēˈ [key], river, 143 mi (230 km) long, formed by the confluence of the Congaree and Wateree rivers, central S.C., and flowing SE to the Atlantic Ocean. The Santee-Wateree-Catawba system ...

Ifni

(Encyclopedia)Ifni ēfˈnē [key], former Spanish possession (580 sq mi/1,502 sq km), SW Morocco, on the Atlantic Ocean. The main industry is fishing. Ifni was ceded by Morocco to Spain in 1860, but Spanish adminis...

Kushiro

(Encyclopedia)Kushiro ko͞oshēˈrō [key], city (1990 pop. 205,640), SE Hokkaido, Japan, on the Pacific Ocean. The main port of E Hokkaido and the island's only ice-free trading port, it exports timber, fish, and ...

Browse by Subject