From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

A country's Pacific coast is the part of its coast facing the Pacific Ocean.

Contents 1 Geography 1.1 The Americas 1.1.1 North America 1.1.2 Central America 1.1.3 South America 1.2 Asia 1.3 Australia and New Zealand 2 Geology 3 Wildlife 4 See also

Countries on the western side of the Americas have a Pacific coast as their western border.

• West Coast of the United States
  • Alaska Panhandle
  • South Central Alaska
  • Pacific Northwest
    • Oregon Coast
• Geography of Canada
  • Sunshine Coast, British Columbia

• Geography of El Salvador
• Geography of Guatemala
• Geography of Honduras
• Geography of Mexico
  • Baja California Peninsula
• Geography of Nicaragua
• Geography of Panama

• Geography of Ecuador
• Geography of Chile
• Geography of Peru
• Geography of Colombia

In Japan, the Pacific (East) coast area is one of six climate zones. Winters are cold and wet, whilst summers are hot and humid.

Australia's population is largely centred on the fertile land along its east-facing Pacific coast, where the cities of Sydney and Brisbane are situated. Its northern section is dominated by the Great Barrier Reef. Tourism is an important industry along this coast, with many surfing, diving, game fishing, and swimming locations may be found.

In New Zealand, the east coast of both main islands is met by the waters of the Pacific. In the North Island, much of this coast is covered by two large bays, the Bay of Plenty and Hawke Bay. In the South Island, a long and mostly straight coastline is broken by two peninsulas, Banks Peninsula and the Otago Peninsula. As with Australia, surfing and game fishing are major tourist attractions, while whale watching is a popular attraction at Kaikoura.

The geology of the coast around the Pacific is dominated by the Pacific Ring of Fire, a ring of volcanic and seismic activity that encircles the ocean. Active and dormant volcanoes exist in many Pacific Rim countries, such as Mount St. Helens in the United States, Mount Ruapehu in New Zealand, Mount Erebus in Antarctica, and Mount Pinatubo in the Philippines. This ring is also noted for earthquakes, with regions such as Japan, Indonesia, New Zealand and California being particularly prone to seismic tremors.

Subduction along geologic faults surrounding the Pacific gave rise to island arcs such as Japan and the Aleutian Islands. It has also produced the high mountain ranges surrounding much of the ocean's rim, notably the Rocky Mountains, the Andes (Cordillera de la Costa), Southern Alps, Australian Alps, Owen Stanley Range, the mountains of Japan and the Kamchatka Peninsula.

Pacific coast wildlife includes (but is certainly not limited to):

• seals
• humpback whales
• coral
• cassowarys
• sea otters
• California sea lions
• abalones

• Pacific Coast Highway (California)