sea
 This article is about the body of water. For other uses, see SEA and seas. For the ancient Jewish unit of volume, see Seah (unit). For the Smirnoff advertising campaign, see Sea (Smirnoff advert)
A sea is either a large expanse of saline water connected with an ocean, or a large, usually saline, lake that lacks a natural outlet such as the Caspian Sea and the Dead Sea. Colloquially, the term is used synonymous with ocean. Large lakes, such as the Great Lakes, are sometimes referred to as inland seas. Marginal seas are those that have currents caused by ocean winds, and mediterranean seas are those in which currents are caused by differentials in salinity and temperature.
International Hydrographic Organization
The International Hydrographic Organization (IHO) is the international authority that sets forth nomenclature and definition of bodies of water.
Nomenclature
Some bodies of water that are called "seas" are not actually seas; there are also some seas that are not called "seas". The following is an incomplete list of such potentially confusing names.
The Sea of Galilee is a small freshwater lake with a natural outlet, which is properly called Lake Tiberias or Lake Kinneret on modern Israeli maps, but its original name remains in use.
The Sea of Cortés is more commonly known as the Gulf of California.
The Persian Gulf is a sea.
The Dead Sea is actually a lake, as is the Caspian Sea.
Extraterrestrial seas
See also Extraterrestrial liquid water
Lunar maria are vast basaltic plains on the Moon that were thought to be bodies of water by early astronomers, who referred to them as "seas".
Liquid water may have existed on the surface of Mars in the distant past, and several basins on Mars have been proposed as dry sea beds. The largest is Vastitas Borealis; others include Hellas Planitia and Argyre Planitia.
Liquid water is thought to be present under the surface of several moons, most notably Europa.
Liquid hydrocarbons are thought to be present on the surface of Titan, though it may be more accurate to describe them as "lakes" rather than "seas".
Science
The term "sea" has also been used in quantum physics. Dirac sea is an interpretation of the negative energy states that comprises the vacuum.
See also
Oceanography
Inlet
International Maritime Organization
List of places on land with elevations below sea level
Pole of inaccessibility: the locations farthest from any coastline
Marine debris
Sea level
Sea level rise
Sea salt
Seven Seas
References
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