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From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Patagonian Shelf is part of the South American continental shelf on the Atlantic seaboard, south of about 35°S. It adjoinins the coasts of Uruguay, Argentina and the Falkland Islands. Various authorities quote different dimensions of the shelf, depending on how they define its limits. Quoted statistics cites its area as being from 1.2 to 2.7 million square kilometres and its maximum width as being between 760 and 850 kilometres.[1][2]
The Falklands Trough separates the Patagonian Shelf from the Scotia Arc.[3]
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The Falkland Islands are located in the South Atlantic Ocean between 51°S and 53°S on a projection of the Patagonian Shelf. In ancient geological time this shelf was part of Gondwana, which around 400 million years ago broke from what is now Africa and drifted westwards relative to Africa.[4] Today the islands are subjected to the Roaring Forties, winds that shape both their geography and climate.
The Falklands comprise two main islands, West Falkland and East Falkland (in Spanish Isla Gran Malvina and Isla Soledad respectively), and about 776 small islands.[5]