The Argentine Basin is a region of the

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe ...

floor off the east coast of

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...

, between the

Mid-Atlantic Ridge The Mid-Atlantic Ridge is a mid-ocean ridge (a divergent or constructive plate boundary) located along the floor of the Atlantic Ocean, and part of the longest mountain range in the world. In the North Atlantic, the ridge separates the North Ame ...

to the east and the Scotia Basin to the west. To the north is the Brazil Basin, with the two basins being separated by the Rio Grande Rise. The southern edge of the Argentine Basin is formed by the Malvinas/Falkland Escarpment. The Argentine Basin has an average depth of and is characterized by low temperatures. The deepest point is the Argentine Abyssal Plain at the base of the Falkland Escarpment, which reaches a depth of . The Antarctic Bottom Water current, which dominates the circulation in the abyssal layer of the southwest Atlantic, enters the southwest part of the Argentine Basin, then is deflected northward along the continental rise. It passes into the Brazil Basin through the Vema Channel (39° 30 W) to the west of the Rio Grande Rise. Here, the current reaches velocities of 20–25 cm/s.

References

Landforms of the Atlantic Ocean {{marine-geo-stub