The '''Arctic Ocean''' (5.4 million square miles)<ref>The New American Desk Encyclopedia, Penguin Group, 1989</ref> is the smallest of the world's oceans; surrounds the [[North Pole]], and much of it is seasonally or permanently icebound. | The '''Arctic Ocean''' (5.4 million square miles)<ref>The New American Desk Encyclopedia, Penguin Group, 1989</ref> is the smallest of the world's oceans; surrounds the [[North Pole]], and much of it is seasonally or permanently icebound. |