Norwegian Sea

The Norwegian Sea stretches between Norway and the northern Atlantic, opening toward the colder waters of the Greenland Sea. Relatively warm Atlantic water enters from the south and flows northward; as it cools and becomes denser, some sinks and returns south at depth. Across this broad sea, water from the Atlantic and the Arctic circulates around the islands and ridges of the northern ocean. Its vast open reaches separate the coasts of Scandinavia from Iceland and Greenland.