A sea in Northern Europe with brackish water, surrounded by the Scandinavian Peninsula and the mainland of east and central Europe. It drains into Kattegat and the North Sea through Öresund and the Big and Little Belt of Denmark.
The Baltic Sea contains the big islands
- Gotland, Öland belonging to Sweden,
- Bornholm (belonging to Denmark),
- Åland (belonging to Finland),
- Saaremaa and Hiiumaa belonging to Estonia.
Contries with access to the Baltic Sea:
Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Finland, Russia, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Germany.
Water paths that drain into the Baltic Sea include (clockwise from Öresund:
- Svartån (at Svarte near Ystad),
- Tommarpaån (at Simrishamn),
- Helgeån (at Nyehusen near Kristianstad),
- Hemån (at Karlskrona),
- Ljungbyån (at Ljungby near Kalmar),
- Göta Kanal (at Mem near Söderköping),
- Motala ström (at Norrköping),
- Stockholm ström (at Stockholm),
- Dalälven (at Gävle),
- Indalsälven (at Sundsvall),
- Ångermanälven (at Härnösand),
- Ume älv,
- Skellefte älv (at Skellefteå),
- Lule älv (at Luleå),
- Kalix älv (at Kalix),
- Torne älv (at Haparanda/Tornio),
- Kemijoki (at Kemi),
- Oulujoki (at Oulu),
- Kokemäenjoki (at Pori),
- Kymijoki (at Kotka),
- Neva (at St Petersburg),
- ??? (at Tallinn),
- Daugava (at Riga),
- Russ-Memel-Njemen at Heydekrug
- Pregel at Koenigsberg/Kaliningrad
- Passarge at Braunsberg/Brniewo?
- Nogat betw Gdansk and Elblag
- Vistula betw Gdansk and Elblag
- Radaune at Gdansk
- Rheda near Neustadt
- Leba at Lebasee
- Stolpe at Stolpmuende
- Wipper at Ruegenwalde
- Persante at Kolberg
- Rega near Treptow
- Oder/Odra at Stettin/Szczecin
- Uecker at Ueckermuende
- Peene at Anklam
- Recknitz at Ribnitz-Baumgarten
- Warnow at (Rostock) , Warnemuende
- ??? at Wismar
- Trave at Lübeck Travemuende)
- Schlei near Schleswig and Kappeln