Barents Sea the Norwegian Sea to the west, and the archipelagos of Svalbard to the northwest, Franz Josef Land to the northeast and Novaya Zemlya to the east. The islands of Novaya Zemlya, an extension of the northern end of the Ural Mountains, separate the Barents Sea from the Kara Sea. Despite being part of the Arctic Ocean, the Barents Sea has been characterized as "turning into the Atlantic" because of its status as "the Arctic warming hot spot." Hydrologic changes due to global warming have led to a reduction in sea ice and in stratification of the water column, which could
Zemlya Georga Zemlya Georga Zemlya Georga, or Prince George Land (; "Zemlya Georga", "George Land"), is an island in Franz Josef Land, Arkhangelsk Oblast, Russian Arctic. Zemlya Georga was named by Benjamin Leigh Smith after Prince George. With a total surface of , Zemlya Georga is the largest island of the Franz Josef Archipelago. It is also the longest, with a distance of between its northernmost and its southernmost ends. The highest point of the island is the summit of Brusilov Ice Dome, the northeastern ice dome, at . The island has a complex coastline, with many bays, deep inlets and capes.