Depth of the Red Sea, underwater world, countries, coordinates. Why is the Red Sea called the Red Sea

Red sea- the inland sea of ​​the Indian Oceanlocated between the Arabian Peninsula and Africa in a tectonic depression. One of the warmest and saltiest seas.

Washes the shores of Egypt, Sudan, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, and Jordan.

Resorts: Hurghada, Sharm el-Sheikh, Safaga, El Gouna (Egypt), Eilat (Israel)

The Red Sea is connected to the north by the Suez Canal. mediterranean sea, in the south - the Bab el-Mandeb Strait with the Arabian Sea.

The peculiarity of the Red Sea is that not a single river flows into it, and rivers usually carry silt and sand with them, significantly reducing the transparency of sea water. Therefore, the water in the Red Sea is crystal clear.

The climate on the Red Sea coast is dry and warm, the air temperature in the coldest period (December-January) during the day is 20-25 degrees, and in the hottest month - August, does not exceed 35-40 degrees. Due to the hot climate off the coast of Egypt, the water temperature even in winter does not drop below +20 degrees, and in summer it reaches +27.

Strong evaporation of warm water has turned the Red Sea into one of the most salty on the globe: 38-42 grams of salt per liter.

The length of the Red Sea today is 2350 km, the width is 350 km (in its widest part), maximum depth reaches 3000 meters in its central part. The area of ​​the Red Sea is 450 thousand sq. km.

The Red Sea is very young. Its formation began about 40 million years ago, when a crack appeared in the earth's crust and the East African Fault was formed. The African continental plate separated from the Arabian one, and a gap formed between them in the earth's crust, which gradually filled over thousands of years. sea ​​water. The plates are constantly moving, so the relatively flat shores of the Red Sea diverge in different directions at a rate of 10 mm per year, or 1 m per century.

In the north of the sea there are two bays: Suez and Aqaba, or Eilat. It is along the Gulf of Aqaba (Eilat) that the fault passes. Therefore, the depth of this bay reaches large values ​​(up to 1600 meters). The two gulfs are separated from each other by the Sinai Peninsula, in the south of which is located famous resort Sharm El Sheikh.

There are few islands in the northern part of the sea, and only to the south of 17°N. they form numerous groups, the largest of them is Dahlak in the southwestern part of the sea.

Where is the Red Sea you can see on the map above. The sea is located between the Arabian Peninsula and Africa in a tectonic depression. Through the Suez Canal in the north, the sea connects with the Mediterranean, in the south the sea enters the Indian Ocean.

Of all the seas, the Red Sea is the most salty, yes yes, surprisingly, but it is considered to be more salty than even the Dead Sea. This happens due to the fact that the Dead Sea is closed, and the Red Sea has an influx of salt water through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait where it connects to the Indian Ocean and at the same time, in a hot climate, has evaporation from the surface of about 2000 mm per year with precipitation of only about 100 millimeters .

The sea into which no river flows

In addition to the hot climate, the Red Sea has another feature - not a single river flows into the sea, and it is the rivers that carry fresh water to the seas. These are the main factors due to which the Red Sea is considered the most salty sea In the world, in one year, 1,000 cubic kilometers more water is brought into the Red Sea than flows out of it.

One liter of Red Sea sea water contains about 41 grams of salt. Although in the depths of the sea there are places where there are more than 260 grams of salt per liter. The maximum depth of the sea, according to various estimates, does not exceed three kilometers, officially 2211 meters.

Where is the Red Sea

The Red Sea is an inland sea indian ocean and is located between the Arabian Peninsula and Africa. This is one of the warmest and saltiest seas in the world. The Red Sea washes the shores of Egypt, Sudan, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Israel and Jordan.

In the north, the Red Sea is connected by the Suez Canal with the Mediterranean Sea, in the south - by the Bab el-Mandeb Strait with the Arabian Sea. The peculiarity of the Red Sea is that not a single river flows into it, and rivers usually carry silt and sand with them, significantly reducing the transparency of sea water. Therefore, the water in the Red Sea is perfectly clean and transparent.

The shores of the Red Sea are low, in the north they adjoin deserts, in the southern part the western coast adjoins mountainous Abyssinia. Many coral reefs, scattered throughout the coast, especially the Arabian, and in some places stretching for a long distance from the coast, make up distinguishing feature coast of the Red Sea.

You can also get acquainted with the map of the Red Sea in more detail and find out the location of the main resorts:

A narrow trough - a rift - runs through the center of the sea, with depths exceeding 1000-1500 m, and in the north this trough breaks up into a series of depressions filled with brines that differ in temperature and salinity.

The discovery of hot brine troughs in the Red Sea was a real scientific discovery of the sixties of the twentieth century. To date, more than 20 such depressions have been discovered in the deepest regions. Great amount exotic fish of the Red Sea and the beauty of coral reefs attract diving enthusiasts here.

Egypt Tourism

Sights and interesting facts about the Red Sea.

Where is the Red Sea?

The Red Sea is a natural water boundary between the continents of Eurasia and Africa. Considered an inland sea of ​​the Indian Ocean, it separates the northeastern side of the African continent from the southern shores of the Middle East with its almost parallel shores. The geological origin of the sea is associated with the divergence (drift) of the continents and the resulting series of faults - troughs that pass one into another. The artificial Suez Canal completes the "official" division of the continents and connects the Mediterranean to the Red Sea, providing a short shipping route from the Mediterranean to the Indian Ocean.

Why is the sea called Red?

Historians find out where the sea got its name from. Several versions have the right to exist (although there is not much evidence):

1. In spring, the water acquires a reddish hue due to the excessive reproduction of red unicellular algae.
2. In ancient times, the cardinal points had “colored” names: “northern” was called “black”, “southern” - “red”, “eastern” - “white”. The "Red" Sea was called so, perhaps because it was south of the "Middle Sea".
3. The Arabs could have misread the ancient cuneiform records and instead of the name of the sea from the Himyarite tribe, who considered the sea to be theirs, they called it the Arabic word Ahmar (red).

The ancient Greek geographer and writer-historian Agatarchides of Cnidus wrote the book "On the Red Sea (Eritrean)", for the first time describing the waters far from Greece.

Features of the Red Sea: climate, geology, water and a unique living world

Both coasts of the Red Sea are characterized by a dry desert climate, only closer to the north it becomes mild Mediterranean, as on the coast of Turkey. In summer, the temperature above the sea reaches +50, in winter it drops to +22-25. Over the sea, precipitation is only 100 mm per year, which is considered an extremely small amount even for deserts. But 15 times more evaporates from the surface, and if it were not for the Indian Ocean, whose current replenishes and renews the water volume of the sea, it would dry up.

The Red Sea is considered the saltiest sea in the Indian Ocean (in which living organisms can live). 41 grams of salt / liter (and even more at the bottom thanks to salt springs) do not frighten animals, on the contrary, they attract, since there is more oxygen in sea water.

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The coastal shelf gently descends to 200 meters, abruptly breaking off with faults, the deepest of which reaches 3 kilometers. Very clean salty water not polluted by any fresh river.

The fauna of the Red Sea is considered unique. The kingdom of corals is so diverse that the sea has been declared a world-class nature reserve. Growing at a rate of a few millimeters per year, coral shoals and ridges have grown into many meters of limestone deposits along the coast. On the border of the coral shores abruptly dropping down, life is in full swing: coral fish, sea ​​urchins and coral-eating stars inhabit every square meter of coastal shallows.

In the Red Sea, unique inhabitants of the sea are often found: giant whale sharks, sea turtles and hammerhead sharks, giant rays and moray eels. To protect these animals in countries with developed tourism, strict laws have been introduced to protect the underwater world.

Copular resorts of Egypt Hurghada, Sharm al-Sheikh, Dahab, Taba attract diving enthusiasts and beach holiday, windsurfing and sailing yachts. Comfortable hotels and Egyptian exoticism provide tourists from all over the world with an unforgettable vacation.

The RED SEA, the Mediterranean Sea of ​​the Indian Ocean, connects with it in its southern part through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait and the Gulf of Aden. In the north, through the Suez Canal, it is connected to the Mediterranean Sea. It is located between the northeastern margin of Africa and the Arabian Peninsula in the southwestern part of Asia.

The area is 460 thousand km 2, the volume is 201 thousand km 3. The greatest depth is 3039 m. The sea is significantly elongated from northwest to southeast (length 1932 km, width up to 306 km). The Red Sea, due to the narrow Bab el-Mandeb Strait, is the most isolated sea in the Indian Ocean. The shores are mostly flat, sandy, sometimes rocky. Coastline slightly indented, the eastern and western coasts of the sea along its main length run almost parallel to each other. In the north, there are two large elongated gulfs - the shallow Gulf of Suez and the deep-sea Aqaba, separated by the Sinai Peninsula. In the coastal zone, numerous small islands and coral reefs, major islands in the northern part they are rare, most of them are located in the south, where they form groups, the most significant of which are Dahlak and Farasan.

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Relief and geological structure of the bottom. In the bottom topography, a shelf with numerous coral structures, a continental slope and a bed are distinguished, which is almost entirely occupied by a narrow abyssal trough, elongated along the longitudinal axis of the sea and divided by a number of transform faults into separate deep sea trenches , which received individual names (Albatross, Atlantis, Valdivia, Discovery, Oceanographer, etc., about 20 in total). The width of the shelf in the northern part is from 1 to 20 km, gradually increasing in the south to 100 km or more. In the southernmost part of the sea, adjacent to the Babel-Mandeb Strait, the shelves near the opposite coasts are separated only by a small trench about 200 m deep. overlain by Pliocene-Quaternary calcareous and silty-calcareous silts. The cover rests on folded-metamorphic rocks and granites of the African-Arabian platform broken by faults. The underwater slopes of the Red Sea depression are ledges composed of continental rocks built on coral limestones. According to morphology and structure, the bottom of the deep basin of the Red Sea is divided into two parts: a wide and even northwestern one (up to about 23 ° north latitude) and a narrow and strongly dissected southeastern one. In the northwestern part, the bottom of the basin is occupied by a wide (about 100 km) accumulative plain, bordered by steps with steep mountains, the tops of which often form reefs, shoals, and islets. Within the lateral steps, the bottom is composed of horizontal or gently folded, mainly carbonate deposits, which are underlain by a layer of limestones and evaporites. Sediments overlap the granite-metamorphic basement, which wedges out in the direction of the trough axis; the thickness of the sedimentary layer decreases in the same direction. The southeastern part of the basin is characterized by a large (2000-3000 m) depth, the presence of an axial trench, complicated by numerous depressions, one of which is associated with the greatest depth of the Red Sea. In the mid-1960s, in a number of depressions (Atlantis I, Discovery, Chain, etc.), bottom waters with a very high temperature (over 60 ° C) and salinity (over 260‰) were discovered - the so-called hot brines, similar in chemical composition to with relict brines from oil wells. The bottom of the depressions is lined with Pliocene-Quaternary metal-bearing silts with very high concentrations of compounds of iron, zinc, copper and other metals. Bottom sediments overlie basalts and basic igneous rocks of the dike complex (the second layer of the oceanic crust). In the southeastern part of the basin, modern underwater volcanism is manifested, the heat flux is increased compared to the average level characteristic of the ocean floor; earthquake epicenters are concentrated near the axial trench.

Geotectonically, the Red Sea basin is an intercontinental rift structure, which is a link in the East African rift system and is connected through the Gulf of Aden rift with the Arabian-Indian spreading ridge of the Indian Ocean. In the north, the Red Sea rift continues into the Gulf of Aqaba and is connected by a regional strike-slip to the Dead Sea and Jordan Valley rift basin. In the rift zone of the Red Sea, beginning from the late Miocene, a new formation of the oceanic crust occurs, accompanied by the growth of the seabed (spreading), as a result of which the Arabian Peninsula moves away from Africa, and the oceanic basin opens. The rate of sliding apart of lithospheric plates is estimated to be about 1-2 mm per year.

Climate. Climatic conditions The Red Sea are determined, first of all, by the fact that its basin belongs to one of the most pronounced arid regions of the Earth. The presence of the deserts surrounding the sea in the northeastern part of Africa and the Arabian Peninsula leads to the predominance of dry and hot weather here, characteristic of the continental tropical climate.

The main mechanism of weather formation is the regional system of atmospheric circulation in the space surrounding the Red Sea, determined by the presence of stationary and seasonal centers of atmospheric action: an anticyclone in northern Africa, a low pressure area in central Africa, and a sign-alternating atmospheric pressure extremum over Central Asia.

Their interaction leads to the fact that for most of the year north-north-west winds dominate over the entire area of ​​the Red Sea, and only south of 20 ° north latitude from October to April, during the winter Indian Ocean monsoon, south-south-east winds prevail. In coastal areas, daily breezes are developed. Significant daily and seasonal fluctuations in air temperature are characteristic. The average daily temperature in the middle of summer in the north is about 27 °C, in the south about 33 °C, in winter 17 and 23 °C, respectively. The observed maximum temperature in the south is about 47 °C, the minimum temperature in the north is below 6 °C. Rain over the sea is extremely rare, the average annual number of days with precipitation is no more than 10. Precipitation is observed mainly in winter - from a few mm in the north to 200 mm in the south. With the exception of some areas, relative humidity does not exceed 70% on average. In some cases (during the action of the winds of the Khamsin and Samum deserts), the humidity can decrease to 5%. The Red Sea is characterized by dusty fogs and mirages. Evaporation from the sea surface due to the high average temperature and high dryness of the air is very significant - more than 200 cm / year, which is much higher than the corresponding figures for all other areas of the World Ocean located in the same latitude zone. The highest frequency of clear skies averages 250 days a year. From May to October 20-28 days with minimal cloud cover, from November to April - 13-22.

Hydrological regime. Not a single river flows into the Red Sea. Only in the north, sometimes after the passage of the next Mediterranean cyclone, the beds of dried-up rivers are filled with rainwater pouring into the sea in the form of short-term muddy streams; the river runoff does not actually matter for the marine hydrological regime. Level fluctuations in the Red Sea are caused by the seasonal course of evaporation from its surface, tides, which are mainly semi-diurnal in nature, and surge phenomena under the influence of seasonal winds in the southern part of the basin.

An increase in the density of sea water due to its winter cooling also plays a small role. All these factors affect level fluctuations to one degree or another, but since the stability of the sea volume is largely regulated by water exchange with the Indian Ocean through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, the resulting fluctuations in the average monthly water level for the sea as a whole are small, up to 30-35 cm. In the middle part of the sea, the value of the spring tide is about 25 cm, in the extreme southern and northern regions— up to 1–1.5 m. region.

The circulation of waters in the Red Sea is characterized by significant seasonal variability. In the southern part, from November to March, the surface current is directed north-north-west along east coast at a speed of about 50 cm/s. From June to September, currents of the opposite direction prevail here. In summer, under the influence of winds that dominate the entire water area, the transfer of surface waters towards the Bab el-Mandeb Strait at a speed of 20-30 cm/s develops. In the central part of the sea, at 20-21° north latitude, under certain wind conditions, large-scale gyres are observed.

The hydrological structure of the sea is characterized by the presence of three main water masses. The upper layer (0-150 m) is occupied by water with a relative low salinity of Indian Ocean origin. Deeper (up to 300-350 m) lies the intermediate Red Sea proper water mass, which was formed in the north under the influence of winter vertical convection. Finally, the lower layer is also a deep water mass formed in the north with high salinity (>40‰) and a constant temperature of about 20 °C. The average surface water temperature in winter ranges from 22°C in the north to 26°C in the south. In the central part of the sea in winter and spring, due to the peculiarities of circulation, an increase in water temperature up to 27 °C is noted. In summer, the average surface water temperature in the north is about 27 °C, and in the south it can exceed 32 °C. small tributary fresh water and intense evaporation from the sea surface lead to a significant increase in water salinity, which in the north reaches the highest value in the seas of the World Ocean, 42‰ (Gulf of Suez), the lowest average salinity of surface water here is about 37‰. Its values ​​gradually decrease towards the Bab-el-Mandeb Strait. Water exchange through this strait plays an important role in the hydrological regime of the sea. Salty deep Red Sea waters enter the Indian Ocean through it and spread at the depth of their density over large areas. In turn, from the Gulf of Aden to the north, as a rule, in winter, there is a surface gradient and wind current, compensating for the decrease in the volume of sea water due to evaporation.

History of research. The sea got its name, apparently, from the presence of planktonic algae in it, which have a reddish tint during the flowering period. According to another version, this name was given under the impression of the reddish coastal mountains. Sinai Peninsula reflected on the water surface. The proximity of the Red Sea to the centers of ancient Afro-Asian civilizations made it famous many millennia ago. The sea has long served the peoples of North Africa and Arabia as an important transport artery along which their trade routes passed. Modern scientific research of the Red Sea actually began only in the 19th century, after it was visited by European expeditions exploring the Indian Ocean. One of the first among them, which passed by sea after the creation of the Suez Canal in 1869, was the Russian round the world expedition on the "Vityaz" under the command of Captain 1st Rank S. O. Makarov and the German - on the "Valdivia". In March 1889, 4 oceanographic stations were carried out on board the Vityaz in the Red Sea to a depth of 600 m. The main studies that made it possible to obtain the existing ideas about the nature and resources of the sea were carried out in the 20th century. Among them, the expeditions of European countries and the USA during the International Geophysical Year (1957-58), the work of the International Indian Ocean Expedition (1960-1965) should be especially noted. Several special oceanographic expeditions in the Red Sea in the 1960-80s were carried out by scientific vessels of the USSR. Particularly interesting were the results obtained by the expedition of the Institute of Oceanology of the Academy of Sciences named after P.P. Shirshov in 1979-80 using underwater manned vehicles "Pisys", from which the first visual observation of the surface of the brine layer, water sampling and geological survey of the bottom were carried out.

Economic use.

The Red Sea is the most important transport route after the construction and commissioning of the Suez Canal. On the coasts of the Red Sea there are large modern ports that handle large flows of various cargoes: Suez, Bur Safaga (Egypt), Port Sudan (Sudan), Jeddah (Saudi Arabia), Massawa (Eritrea), Hodeidah (Yemen) and others. oil fields are being developed on the shelf of the northern part of the sea, in the Gulf of Suez (Egypt), several fields have been discovered on the southern shelf (Eritrea, Saudi Arabia). Of great economic importance are the phosphorite deposits being developed in the Red Sea (Egypt). At the bottom of the rift zone, reserves of non-ferrous and precious metals are concentrated. Gradually, fish production is increasing and fishing for other seafood is carried out - crustaceans, mollusks (mainly squid), etc. At the end of the 20th century, the tourism business developed rapidly, a network sea ​​resorts of various classes, the largest of which are Sharm el-Sheikh, Hurghada (Egypt), Aqaba (Jordan), Eilat (Israel).

Ecological state. Active industrial and resort development of the Red Sea coast and water area, especially oil production and transportation, pose a real threat to the security of its unique ecosystem. The most polluted areas of the sea are located in its northern part, in the Gulf of Suez. Almost all coastal states take certain measures to protect and control the marine environment. International conventions provide for serious sanctions against anthropogenic pollution of the Red Sea with household waste and oil products, which pose a particular danger here due to the large number of transit transport vessels.

Lit .: Kanaev V. F., Neiman V. G., Parin N. V. Indian Ocean. M., 1975; Monin A.S. et al. Immersion in the brines of the Red Sea depressions // Reports of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR. 1980. T. 254. No. 4; Metaliferous sediments of the Red Sea / Edited by A.P. Lisitsyn, Yu.A. Bogdanov. M., 1986; Plakhin E. A. Hydrology of the Mediterranean Seas. L., 1989; Red sea. SPb., 1992.

V. G. Neiman.

Answer left the guest

Studying the Indian Ocean, between the Arabian and Hindustan peninsulas, we will see the Arabian Sea. Its area is one of the largest in the world, it is 4832 thousand square meters. km, the most deep depression is 5803 meters.

In ancient times, this sea was called the Eritrean. The Indus River flows into the Arabian Sea. The coasts of the sea are indented by bays and bays, they are high and rocky, partly low-lying deltaic. The largest bays of the sea are Aden, it connects to the Red Sea by the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, Kutch, Cambay and Oman, it connects to the Persian Gulf by the Strait of Hormuz.

The Arabian Sea is part of the Indian Ocean. The sea is divided into two basins - Arabian, with a depth of more than 5300 meters, and Somali, the depth of which is about 4600 meters. They are framed by two underwater plateaus less than 1800 meters deep.

The expanses of water cross the Arabian-Indian mid-ocean ridge in the rift valley, the depth of which is more than 3600 meters.
The relief of the sea bottom was formed in the Mesozoic-Cenozoic, most of it in the Pliocene. Near the Indus River Delta, the shelf is cut by submarine canyons. Its width off the coast of India and Goa is 120 km, depth up to 220 meters, near the Gulf of Cambay - a depth of 90 meters and a width of 352 km. Approaching the Makran coast, the shelf narrows to 35 km, decreasing in a westerly direction. The slope of the mainland to a depth of 2750 meters is covered with terrigenous sediments, and the basins are covered with red clay.
The Arabian Sea is distinguished by the fact that there are few islands here, most of them are located off the coast, the largest are the Laccadive Islands and Socotra. The climate here is tropical, monsoon, in winter the winds of northeast directions blow, they bring clarity and coolness. In summer, southwestern directions predominate, it is determined by humidity and cloudiness. Typhoons are possible in autumn, spring and summer. In the winter months, the air temperature is 20-25 degrees Celsius, in summer - 25-29 degrees, precipitation falls from 25 to 125 mm per year, in the east their number can increase to a maximum of 3000, especially in summer. The water temperature in winter is 22-27 degrees, in summer - 23-28 degrees, the maximum occurs in May, when the temperature of the surface water layer is 29 degrees Celsius. Due to the fact that the waters of the Arabian Sea all year round stay warm, big number popular world resorts located on the coasts of the Arabian Sea. One of the most popular among them is Goa, a state in southern India. Every year a huge number of tourists arrive in Goa to relax on the sandy Goan shores, visit local excursions and swim in the soft waters of the Arabian Sea.

It was through the ancient Red Sea that the prophet Moses led his people out of Egyptian slavery. Its waters plowed the ships of the kings of Greece, Rome and Egypt. It remembers Cleopatra and Alexander the Great, Julius Caesar and King Solomon.

The sea stretches from north to south for two thousand kilometers. Its width at its widest point is about 330 kilometers. The Red Sea is located between the Arabian Peninsula and Africa. In the north, it is divided into two gulfs of Suez and Eilat by the name of the Israeli international resort Eilat. The Jordanians call this Gulf of Aqaba, after the city of Aqaba. Eilat and Aqaba are two small cities located on opposite sides of the bay in its northern part.

The Gulf of Eilat is very deep. It is located in a geological fault zone. The continuation of this fault in a northerly direction is the Arava valley, the most low point on the planet - the Dead Sea, the Jordan River, Lake Kinneret.

In the north of the Gulf of Suez is the Suez Canal, which connects the Red and Mediterranean Seas. Maritime cargo ships traveling between Asia and Europe save a lot of time and fuel by passing through the Suez Canal. For Egypt, this channel is of great importance and brings considerable income to the treasury. Attempts to build a canal have been made Egyptian pharaohs and later by Napoleon, but the project was implemented only in the middle of the last century.

Such an important strategic object more than once became the cause of international aggravation of the situation and wars.

Today, this sea washes the shores of Egypt, Sudan, Ethiopia, Yemen, Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Israel.

Egypt's decision to build another canal between the Red Sea and the Mediterranean has recently been made public. The project involves costs of $4 billion, which is comparable to the annual revenue to the treasury from the existing channel. Due to the turbulent situation in Egypt, tourism profits have plummeted and the desire to connect Europe and Asia with another channel is understandable. After all, 10% of all maritime traffic passes through the Suez Canal. About 50 ships pass through it every day. One hundred and ninety kilometers along the canal are covered by ships in approximately 14 hours.

Interestingly, under the Suez Canal there is an automobile tunnel connecting Africa with the Sinai Peninsula.

Nowadays most seasoned tourists associate the Red Sea with names resort towns Sharm El Sheikh, Hurghada, Eilat.

This is one of the warmest and saltiest seas. It has ideal conditions for the reproduction of corals. The Red Sea has crystal clear water, due to the fact that not a single river flows into it, which means that silt and sand do not enter the sea.

A variety of corals, fish of unusual colors attract tourists and diving enthusiasts from all over the world to the shores of the Red Sea. Corals grow very slowly, on average 1 cm per year. Therefore, the formation of reefs takes more than one century. Dead corals are a skeleton, a base devoid of polyps. Sea urchins hide among the corals during the day and emerge from their hiding places at sunset.

Water

Most of the Red Sea is in the tropical zone. High solar activity and lack of precipitation contribute to intensive water evaporation. The exchange of water in the sea occurs only in the Bab el - Mandeb Strait. The Suez Canal, whose width is only 350 meters at the surface of the water and 50 meters at the bottom, should not be taken into account. Therefore, the salinity of the sea is twice as high as, for example, in the Black Sea. In the Black Sea - 18%, in the Sea of ​​Azov - 11%, in the Mediterranean - 38%, and the salinity of the water in the Red Sea - 41%.

During the exchange of water in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, more than 1000 cubic kilometers of water enters during the year than leaves the Indian Ocean.

Name

There are several versions of the origin of the name of the sea. Among them, historical and poetic, mentioning the exodus of the Jews from Egypt and the peculiarities of the Hebrew language, prevail. However, if you look at the seashore at sunset, the color of the mountains and their reflection in the water have an obvious red tint. Most likely, this circumstance determined the name of the sea.

The coral reef of the Red Sea stretches from Eilat and Aqaba along the coasts of Israel, Jordan, Egypt, Saudi Arabia for a distance of about 2000 kilometers. Egyptian resorts are widely known precisely because of the abundance of corals, warm climate and clear water. In the very south of the Sinai Peninsula there is a famous resort Egyptian city Sharm El Sheikh.

Hurghada is located on the opposite shore at the base of the Gulf of Suez.

Fishes

A quarter of all marine life on planet Earth can be found in the depths of the Red Sea.

Moray eels, warts, tuna, trevally, unicorn fish, triggerfish, whitetip shark, hammerhead shark, butterfly fish, snappers, barracudas, turtles, dolphins, parrot fish, lionfish, eels, manta rays inhabit this sea.

Red Sea in Egypt

Among divers, the most popular activity is "safari" - going out to sea on a small ship or boat for one or several days to famous underwater attractions. And there are many of them.

The most famous and infamous of these is the Blue Hole. A popular and extreme place for many inexperienced and arrogant divers, it has become the final dive site.

The Blue Hole in Dahab is a vertical sinkhole surrounded by corals, 130 meters deep. At a depth of 50 meters, it communicates with the sea.

Video

However, Blue Hole is far from the only thing that attracts fans of underwater sports in Egypt.

The choice is wide: Jackson Reef at the island of Thira, Yolanda Reef and Shark Reef at Cape Muhammad, Kerles Reef, Elphinstone Reef, Dedelus Reef (Abu el-Kizan), Abu Nohas Reef, Woodhouse Reef, Thomas Reef, Gordon Reef, Laguna Reef, Cape Katie, Cape Um Sid, Cape Nazran, Turtle Bay, Naama Bay, Tower, Nier Garden, Middle Garden, Fan Garden, White Knight, Brothers Islands (El Akawain).

Depending on the preparation, you can choose a place to dive, the complexity of which will correspond to the experience. For example, a dive at Jackson Reef is considered easy and safe. For the more experienced - Woodhouse reef, Thomas reef with strong undercurrents.

Of course, the Thistlegorm, Dunraven, dry cargo ship GhiannisD and the sailboat Carnetic, which sank in the Red Sea, also do not go unnoticed by diving fans.

The British Navy cargo ship Thistlegorm was sunk by German bombers in the autumn of 1941. Next to it, at a depth of about 30 meters, lies a steam locomotive, wagons, motorcycles... The ship was first discovered by Jacques Yves Cousteau.

The legendary diving pioneer Cousteau has been exploring the Red Sea for over a decade. For the first time, the world learned about the indescribable beauty of the Red Sea thanks to the books and underwater photography of Jacques Cousteau. His film In the Silent World won the Palme d'Or at Cannes.

No less bright and fantastic underwater world appears in the Gulf of Eilat where the depth reaches 1200 meters and the water is always calm.

Eilat

In Eilat, the coral reef comes close to the western shore of the bay.

On the beach of the Princess Hotel, near the Egyptian Taba, you can admire the corals and fish from the bridges, as they say, without getting your feet wet. The water is so clear that you can clearly see the bottom at a depth of several meters. Moray eels, rays, sharks, dolphins, crabs, starfish inhabit the waters of the Red Sea.

Corals in the Red Sea on the western beaches of Eilat begin almost at the very shore. Therefore, you can enter the water only in specially designated places.

Enough mask and snorkel to swim among the corals and their inhabitants. Often, among the heaps of reef corals, you can meet a menacing moray eel. Being in the water is absolutely safe if you do not touch anything. Sharks prefer to live in the more southerly waters of the Red Sea, off the coast of Sudan. Coming to rest in Eilat, be sure to visit the Underwater Observatory and see for yourself the riot of colors and the endless variety of shapes and colors of the underwater world of the Red Sea.

Many associate the Red Sea with a great opportunity to relax on the best, but cheap resorts with luxurious beaches, a large selection of hotels for every taste and an abundance of unforgettable entertainment.

The Red Sea on the atlas of the world in Russian

Red sea has a number of features. Thanks to them, it is largely different from other reservoirs.

What country is it in?

The Red Sea on the world map can be found where the African continent and the Arabian Peninsula diverge.

This reservoir is part of the Indian Ocean and is located in a deep tectonic basin.

On the north this water area has peculiar borders with, thanks to the Suez Canal, and on south through the Strait of Bab el-Mandeb, it connects to the Arabian Sea, which is also part of the Indian Ocean.

History

Geologically, the reservoir was formed at the junction of the African and Arabian lithospheric plates and it arose relatively recently - about 40 million years ago, when a deep crack appeared in the earth's crust. Over millions of years, the sinkhole has been filled with ocean water, forming its own vegetation and animal world. Even today, the plates continue to move, so the coasts are constantly moving apart, and its depth increases.

There are several versions of why the sea got its name:

• In ancient times south associated with red;
• Blooming corals in water they change its shade;
• Red rocks at sunset they give the sea a special shade.

More romantic legends tell that the sea began to be called red when a young man in love decorated the surface of the water for his beloved. rose petals. And according to another version, it is in this sea persecutors of Moses drowned when the waves converged again behind the backs of the Jews.

What countries is washed by?

First of all, the countries that are associated at the mention of the Red Sea coast are and. In addition, the sea is surrounded by six more countries - Jordan, where it forms the Gulf of Aqaba, as well as the coast of Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Ethiopia, Eritrea and Yemen.

Description

Once the Red Sea was only small basin on the Afro-Asian continent, but over time the plates separated more and more, and the size of the reservoir increased.

Characteristics

Today, the depth in the central part of the sea reaches a very impressive size - 3000 meters, the depression from the fault - 1000 meters, and the coastal zone - up to 200 meters.

The length of the reservoir from north to south is 2350 km, and the width is 350 km. The volume of water is 450 thousand square meters. km.

There are several features associated with the Red Sea:

1. To the body of water no river flows, so the water here is much clearer;
2. Heatwave increases the rate of evaporation by increasing the concentration of salt;
3. In the southern part of the sea there are islands, the largest archipelago - Dahlag;
4. Due to the constantly high temperature, this reservoir is considered.

The coast of the resort is very extensive, well-groomed and has a good developed infrastructure. It has several diving centers offering many dive sites. Also in Aqaba you can go to see the historical.

Coastal zones of other countries

The Red Sea resorts located in other countries are less known, but most of them are developing steadily. Already available for Massawa holidays in Eritrea.

Due to its location on the world map, the Red Sea has all the conditions to make your vacation rich and unforgettable.

Watch a video about the shores of the Red Sea in Jordan:

The Red Sea is located between Africa and the Arabian Peninsula. It occupies a deep, narrow, long depression with steep, sometimes sheer slopes. The length of the sea from northwest to southeast is 1932 km, the average width is 280 km. The maximum width in the southern part is 306 km, while in the northern part it is only about 150 km. Thus, the length of the sea is about seven times its width.

The area of ​​the Red Sea is 460 thousand km 2, the volume is 201 thousand km 3, the average depth is 437 m, the greatest depth is 3039 m.

In the south, the sea connects with the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean through the narrow Bab el-Mandeb Strait, in the north - the Suez Canal with the Mediterranean Sea. The smallest width of the Bab el-Mandeb Strait is about 26 km, the maximum depth is up to 200 m, the depth of the threshold from the Red Sea is 170 m, and in the southern part of the strait - 120 m. Due to limited communication through the Bab el-Mandeb The Red Sea Basin is the most isolated basin in the Indian Ocean.

Suez Canal

The length of the Suez Canal is 162 km, of which 39 km passes through the salt lakes Timsakh, Big Gorky and Small Gorky. The width of the channel on the surface is 100-200 m, the depth along the fairway is 12-13 m.

The shores of the Red Sea are mostly flat, sandy, sometimes rocky, with sparse vegetation. In the northern part of the sea, the Sinai Peninsula separates the shallow Gulf of Suez and the deep, narrow Gulf of Aqaba, separated from the sea by a threshold.

There are many small islands and coral reefs in the coastal zone, the largest islands are located in the southern part of the sea: Dahlak off the African coast and Farasan off the Arabian coast. In the middle of the Bab-el-Mandeb Strait rises about. Perim dividing the strait into two passages.

Bottom relief

In the relief of the bottom of the Red Sea, a shelf is clearly distinguished, the width of which increases from north to south from 10-20 to 60-100 km. At a depth of 100-200 m, it gives way to a steep, well-defined ledge of the continental slope. Most of the Red Sea depression (main trough) lies in the depth range from 500 to 2000 m. Numerous seamounts and ridges rise above the undulating bottom plain, in some places there is a series of steps parallel to the margins of the sea. A narrow deep groove runs along the axis of the depression - an axial trench with maximum depths for the sea, which is a median rift valley Red Sea.

Brine depressions in the Red Sea

In the 60s. in the central part of the axial trench, at depths of more than 2000 m, several depressions were discovered with hot brines with a peculiar chemical composition. The origin of these depressions is related to the fact that modern tectonic activity is actively manifested in the rift zone of the Red Sea. Over the past decades, more than 15 depressions have been discovered in the axial zone of the sea, containing highly mineralized brines with a salinity of 250‰ or more. The temperature of brines in the hottest basin, Atlantis-II, reaches 68°.

Bottom relief and currents of the Red Sea

Climate

Meteorological conditions over the sea are formed under the influence of the following stationary and seasonal baric centers of the atmosphere: areas of high pressure over North Africa, the Central African area of ​​low pressure, centers of high pressure (in winter) and low pressure (in summer) over Central Asia.

The interaction of these baric systems determines the predominance in the summer season (from June to September) of northwestern winds (3-9 m/s) over the entire length of the sea. In the winter season (October to May) in the southern part of the sea from the Bab-el-Mandeb Strait to 19-20°N. southeasterly winds prevail (up to 7-9 m/s), and weaker north-westerly winds (2-4 m/s) persist to the north. This wind regime in the southern part of the Red Sea, when they change direction twice a year, is associated with monsoon circulation over the Arabian Sea. The direction of stable wind currents, mainly along the longitudinal axis of the Red Sea, is largely determined by the mountainous relief of the coasts and adjacent parts of the land. In the coastal areas of the sea, daytime and nighttime breezes are well developed, associated with a large daily heat exchange between the land and the atmosphere.

Storm activity in the sea is poorly developed. Most often, storms are observed in December - January, when their frequency is about 3%. In the remaining months of the year, it does not exceed 1%; storms occur no more than 1-2 times a month. In the northern part of the sea, the probability of storms is greater than in the southern part.

The location of the Red Sea in the continental tropical climate zone determines the very high air temperature and its great seasonal variability, which reflects the thermal influence of the continents.

The air temperature during the year over the northern part of the sea is lower than over the southern. In winter, in January, the temperature rises from north to south from 15-20 to 20-25°. In August, the average temperature in the north is 27.5°, and in the south 32.5° (the maximum reaches 47°). The temperature conditions in the southern part of the sea are more constant than in the northern part.

There is very little atmospheric precipitation over the Red Sea and its coast - in general, no more than 50 mm per year. Rainfall is mainly in the form of downpours associated with thunderstorms and occasional dust storms.

The amount of evaporation from the sea surface on average per year is estimated at 200 mm or more. From December to April, evaporation in the northern and southern parts of the sea is greater than in the central part; in the rest of the year, there is a gradual decrease in its value from north to south.

Hydrology and water circulation

The variability of the wind field over the sea plays a major role in level changes from season to season. The range of intra-annual level fluctuations: 30-35 cm in the northern and central parts of the sea and 20-25 cm in the southern. The level position is highest in the winter months and lowest in the summer. At the same time, in the cold season, the level surface is inclined from central region seas to the north and south, in the warm season there is a slope of the level from south to north, which is associated with the regime of prevailing winds. In the transitional months of the monsoon change, the level surface of the sea approaches the horizontal.

The northwest winds prevailing throughout the sea in summer create a surge along the African coast and a surge near the Arabian coast. As a result, the sea level off the African coast is higher than that of the Arabian coast.

The tides are mostly semi-diurnal. At the same time, level fluctuations in the northern and southern parts of the sea occur in antiphase. The tide decreases from 0.5 m in the north and south of the sea to 20 cm in its central part, where the tide becomes daily. At the top of the Gulf of Suez, the tide reaches 1.5 m, in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait - 1 m.

An important role in the formation of the hydrological regime of the Red Sea is played by water exchange through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, the nature of which changes in different seasons.

In winter, a two-layer structure of currents is usually observed in the strait, in summer - a three-layer one. In the first case, the surface current (up to 75-100 m) is directed to the Red Sea, and the deep current is directed to the Gulf of Aden. In summer, the drift surface flow (up to 25-50 m) is directed to the Gulf of Aden, going below this layer, the intermediate compensation (up to 100-150 m) - to the Red Sea, and the near-bottom drain - also to the Gulf of Aden. During periods of wind change, multidirectional currents can be simultaneously observed in the strait: near the Arabian coast - into the Red Sea, and near the African coast - into the Gulf of Aden. The maximum drift flow velocities in the strait reach 60-90 cm/s, but with a certain combination with tides, the flow velocity can sharply increase to 150 cm/s and just as quickly decrease.

As a result of water exchange through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, on average, about 1000-1300 km 3 more water flows into the Red Sea per year than it goes into the Gulf of Aden. This excess of sea water is spent on evaporation and replenishes the negative fresh balance of the Red Sea, where not a single river flows.

The circulation of water in the sea is characterized by significant seasonal variability, determined mainly by the nature of the established winds in winter and summer. However, the field of prevailing currents is not a simple longitudinal transport along the major axis of the sea, but a complex eddy structure.

In the extreme northern and southern parts of the sea, tides have a great influence on the currents; in the coastal zone, they are influenced by the abundance of islands and reefs, the indentation of the coast. Strong breezes blowing from land to sea and from sea to land also cause circulation disruption. Depending on the area and time of year, the direction of currents along the axial basin of the sea is 20-30%. Quite often there are currents going against the monsoon wind flow or in the transverse direction. The speed of most currents is not more than 50 cm/s, and only in rare cases - up to 100 cm/s.

In the winter season, the circulation on the surface in the northern part of the sea is characterized by a general cyclonic movement of waters. In the central part of the sea, approximately at 20°N. a zone of convergence of currents is distinguished. It is formed at the junction of the northern cyclonic gyre and the anticyclonic gyre, which occupies the southern part of the sea. From the north along the African coast, surface Red Sea water enters the convergence zone, and from the southern part of the sea - transformed Aden water, which leads to water accumulation and level rise in the central part of the sea. In the convergence zone, there is an intensive transfer of water from West Bank to the east. Beyond the convergence zone, Aden water moves north, already against the current wind, along east coast. The vertical structure of currents in winter is characterized by their rather rapid attenuation with depth.

In the summer season, under the influence of stable northwestern winds covering the entire sea, the intensity of circulation increases, and its main features are manifested in the entire layer of surface and intermediate waters. In the northern and central parts of the sea, against the background of a rather complex cyclonic structure, water transfer to the Bab el-Mandeb Strait predominates, contributing to their accumulation in the south and lowering in the center of the anticyclonic circulation, which intensifies in summer.

The zone of convergence of currents in the central part of the sea with a uniform wind field is not expressed. At the southern boundary of the sea, in contrast to the winter season, the outflow of waters into the Bab el-Mandeb Strait is traced. Consequently, the movement of waters in a southerly direction prevails throughout the water area. The subsurface transformed Aden waters spread to the north in a complex way, being involved in cyclonic gyres, mainly along the eastern coast of the sea.

The circulation of deep waters is determined by the non-uniformity of the density field. The formation of these waters, as shown below, occurs in the northern part of the sea as a result of convective mixing.

The hydrological structure of the Red Sea - one of the most isolated Mediterranean basins - is shaped mainly by local factors. Among them, the most important are the processes of interaction between the sea and the atmosphere (especially cooling and evaporation, causing convection), the wind, which creates the circulation of waters in the upper layer of the sea, which is characteristic of the winter and summer seasons, and determines the conditions for the inflow and distribution of Aden waters. Water exchange with the Gulf of Aden does not directly affect the structure of the deep layers of the sea due to the shallowness of the strait and the lower density of inflowing waters compared to the Red Sea. At the same time, the features of the upper layer of the sea are closely related to the distribution and transformation of the Aden waters. The most complex (especially in summer) is the structure of the upper 200-meter layer in the south of the Red Sea due to the influence of Aden waters. On the contrary, the distribution of hydrological characteristics in the northern part of the sea is quite homogeneous, especially in winter, during the period of active development of convective mixing.

Water temperature and salinity

Water temperature and salinity at the surface of the Red Sea in summer

The temperature on the sea surface during the cold season increases from 18° in the Gulf of Suez to 26-27° in the central part of the sea, and then slightly decreases (to 24-25°) in the area of ​​the Bab el-Mandeb Strait. Salinity on the surface decreases from 40-41‰ in the north to 36.5‰ in the south of the sea.

The main feature of the hydrological conditions in the upper layer of the sea in winter is the presence of two counterflows of water with different characteristics. The relatively cold and more saline waters of the Red Sea move from north to south, and the warmer, less saline Aden waters move in the opposite direction. The main interaction of these waters takes place in the region of 19-21°N, but due to low salinity, Aden waters stand out in the northern part of the sea along the Arabian coast to 26-27°N. In this regard, a latitudinal unevenness is created in the distribution of hydrological characteristics: in the direction from the African coast to the Arabian coast, the temperature rises slightly, and salinity decreases. In the sea, transverse circulation is excited, accompanied by vertical movements of water in coastal zones.

Water temperature (°С) on a longitudinal section in the Red Sea in summer

In the warm season, the temperature on the surface rises from north to south from 26-27 to 32-33°, and salinity decreases in the same direction from 40-41 to 37-37.5‰.

When north-western winds are established over the entire sea, the propagation of high-salinity waters in the surface layer to the south increases and the influence of Aden waters weakens, which leads to an increase in salinity at the entrance to the strait. At the same time, Aden waters with lower temperature and salinity are actively spreading in the subsurface layer to the north. These processes exacerbate vertical temperature gradients, especially in the southern part of the sea.

The exchange of water in the upper layers of the sea is facilitated by the development of transverse circulation. The nature of the prevailing winds in the summer season is such that it often causes the water to sink near the African coast and rise near the Arabian coast, although in some areas, due to compensatory movements, the opposite picture is also possible. In the winter season, the winds in the southern part of the sea cause a surge at the entrance to the Bab el-Mandeb Strait and a rise to the surface of the waters from the intermediate and even from the deep layers of the sea.

Seasonal changes in hydrological characteristics cover the upper layer of the sea with a thickness of 150-200 m. The layer up to 20-30 m is well mixed and uniform throughout the year. The largest vertical gradients of temperature and salinity are observed between the horizons of 50-150 m. The sea column deeper than 200-300 m is highly homogeneous. The temperature here remains within 21.6-22°, salinity - 40.2-40.7‰. These are the highest temperatures and salinity of the deep waters of the World Ocean. The share of the deep Red Sea water accounts for at least 75% of the sea water volume.

The formation of deep waters occurs in winter in the northern regions of the sea, when, with a decrease in water temperature by 4-6 °, winter vertical circulation actively develops here, reaching great depths. The formation of deep waters is enhanced by the "shelf effect" - sinking into the deep layers of high-density waters formed in the Gulf of Suez.

Salinity (‰) on a longitudinal section in the Red Sea in summer

According to the set of features in the Red Sea, the following main water masses are distinguished: transformed Aden, surface, intermediate and deep Red Sea.

The transformed Aden water mass has two modifications. In winter, it is released in the 0-80 m layer, in summer it enters the sea as an intermediate flow in the 40-100 m layer. In the southern part of the sea, it has a temperature of 24-26 ° and a salinity of 37-38.5‰.

The surface water of the Red Sea occupies a layer of 50-100 m, depending on the location and season, its temperature varies from 18-20 to 30-31 °, and salinity - from 38.5 to 41‰.

Intermediate Red Sea water is formed in the northern part of the sea as a result of winter vertical circulation and spreads in the 200-500 m layer to the southern part of the sea, where it rises in the 120-200 m layer before the strait. In the northern part of the sea, its temperature is 21.7-22 °, salinity - about 40.5‰, in the south - respectively 22-23 ° and 40-40.3‰.

Deep water is also formed in the north of the sea by convective mixing. It occupies the main volume of the sea in the layer from 300-500 m to the bottom and is characterized by very high temperature (about 22°C) and salinity (over 40‰.

Deep water spreads in a southerly direction and can be traced along the temperature minimum (21.6-21.7°) in the 500-800 m layer. In summer, the temperature minimum stands out almost along the entire sea. In the bottom layer, there is a slight increase in temperature and salinity, presumably associated with the influence of hot brines that fill deep-water basins. The question of the interaction of brines with sea waters has not yet been studied enough.

Fauna and environmental issues

The wealth of life in the Red Sea

More than 400 species of fish live in the waters of the Red Sea. However, only 10-15 species are of commercial importance: sardines, anchovies, horse mackerel, Indian mackerel, bottom fish - saurid, stone perch. Fishing is predominantly of local importance.

The ecological situation in the Red Sea, as in many areas of the ocean, has recently deteriorated as a result of human activities. Biological resources are adversely affected by the growing pollution of the sea with oil, the largest number of oil slicks for the Indian Ocean has been recorded on its surface. The increase in the level of pollution is associated with an increase in shipping, including sea transportation of oil, as well as with the development of oil fields on the shelf of the northern part of the sea.

Oil platform on the shelf of the Red Sea