Mid-ocean ridges across the planet
 

Mid-ocean ridges, are the youngest and most active zones between the continental plates, where new ocean floor is built. They are by far the largest topographic features on the planet stretching continuously for 74.000 km in length – that is almost twice the circumference of the earth! Among these the Mid-Atlantic Ridge is a huge mountain system that extends for 10.000 km from the Arctic Basin to the Southern Ocean. With elevations of the scale of the European Alps the ridge has a profound impact on ocean currents and greatly increases the diversity of ocean habitats.