Gulf of Mexico facts for kids

The Gulf of Mexico

The Gulf of Mexico is a round sea, called a gulf. Land in North America is around much of it. The United States of America, Mexico, and Cuba are the countries around it. The Straits of Florida connect to the Atlantic Ocean, and the Yucatán Channel connects to the Caribbean Sea.

Petroleum is found near the north and west coast of this gulf. Many hurricanes hit this area, for example, Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Rita hurt many of the oil wells in 2005 in the United States. There is also a big fishing industry in the gulf.

Images for kids

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  Galveston harbor by Verner Moore White

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  Ship and oil rigs in the Gulf

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  Cantarell Field

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  Sediment in the Gulf of Mexico

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  Richard Mount and Thomas Page's 1700 map of the Gulf of Mexico, A Chart of the Bay of Mexico

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  Graph showing the overall water temperature of the Gulf between Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. Although Katrina cooled waters in its path by up to 4 °C, they had rebounded by the time of Rita's appearance.

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  Fishing boats in Biloxi

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  Gulf beach near Sabine Pass

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  The Mississippi River watershed is the largest drainage basin of the Gulf of Mexico Watershed.

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  Map of northern part of Gulf of Mexico

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  The shaded relief map of the Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean area.

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  Dead zone in the Gulf of Mexico

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  Deepwater Horizon in flames after the explosion

See also

In Spanish: Golfo de México para niños