The Barents Sea is part of the Arctic Ocean located north of Norway and Russia.
The ports of Murmansk (Russia) and Vardø (Norway) remain ice-free year round due to the warm North Atlantic drift. Islands on the sea include Novaya Zemlya (Russia) and Svalbard (Norway).
It is named after the Dutch navigator Willem Barents. Nuclear contamination from dumped Russian naval reactors is an important environmental concern.