Everything about Red Sea totally explained
» This article is about the body of water. For other meanings see Red Sea (disambiguation).
The
Red Sea is an
inlet of the
Indian Ocean between
Africa and
Asia. The connection to the ocean is in the south through the
Bab el Mandeb sound and the
Gulf of Aden. In the north are the
Sinai Peninsula, the
Gulf of Aqaba, and the
Gulf of Suez (leading to the
Suez Canal). The Red Sea is a
Global 200 ecoregion.
Occupying a part of the
Great Rift Valley, the Red Sea has a surface area of about 438,000 km² (169,100 square miles ). It is roughly 2250 km (1398 mi) long and, at its widest point at 355 km (220.6 miles) wide. It has a maximum depth of 2211 m (7254 ft) in the central median trench and an average depth of 490 m (1,608 feet ), but there are also extensive shallow shelves, noted for their marine life and
corals. The sea is the habitat of over 1,000
invertebrate species and 200 soft and hard corals and is
the world's most northern tropical sea.
Name
Red Sea is a direct translation of the
Greek Erythra Thalassa (Ερυθρά Θάλασσα),
Latin Mare Rubrum,
Arabic Al-Baḥr Al-Aḥmar (البحر الأحمر), and [[Tigrinyalanguage.
The name of the sea may signify the seasonal blooms of the red-coloured
cyanobacteria Trichodesmium erythraeum near the water's surface. Some suggest that it refers to the mineral-rich red
mountains nearby which are called Harei Edom (הרי אדום).
Edom, meaning "ruddy complexion", is also an alternative
Hebrew name for the red-faced biblical character
Esau (brother of
Jacob), and the nation descended from him, the
Edomites, which in turn provides yet another possible origin for
Red Sea.
Another hypothesis is that the name comes from the
Himyarite, a local group whose own name means
red.
Yet another theory favored by some modern scholars is that the name
red is referring to the direction south, the same way the
Black Sea's name may refer to north. The basis of this theory is that some Asiatic languages used color words to refer to the
cardinal directions.
Herodotus on one occasion uses Red Sea and Southern Sea interchangeably.
A final theory suggests that it was named so because it borders the Egyptian Desert which the
ancient Egyptians called the
Dashret or "red land"; therefore it would have been the sea of the red land.
The association of the Red Sea with the
Biblical account of
the Exodus, in particular in the
Passage of the Red Sea, goes back to the
Septuagint translation of the book of
Exodus from
Hebrew into
Koine, in which Hebrew
Yam suph (ים סוף), meaning
Reed Sea, is translated as
Erythra Thalassa (Red Sea).
Yam Suph is also the name for the Red Sea in modern Hebrew.
History
The earliest known exploration expeditions of the Red Sea were conducted by
Ancient Egyptians seeking to establish commercial routes to
Punt. One such expedition took place around 2500 BC and another around 1500 BC. Both involved long voyages down the Red Sea.
The
Biblical book of
Exodus tells the story of the
Israelites' miraculous
crossing of a body of water which the Hebrew text calls
Yam Suph, traditionally identified as the Red Sea. The account is part of the Israelites'
escape from slavery in Egypt, and is
told in Exodus 13:17--15:21. (For another possible translation of
Yam Suph, see
Sea of Reeds.)
In the 6th century BC
Darius I of
Persia sent reconnaissance missions to the Red Sea, improving and extending navigation by locating many hazardous rocks and currents. A canal was built between the
Nile and the northern end of the Red Sea at
Suez. In the late 4th century BC
Alexander the Great sent Greek naval expeditions down the Red Sea to the Indian Ocean. Greek navigators continued to explore and compile data on the Red Sea.
Agatharchides collected information about the sea in the 2nd century BC. The
Periplus of the Erythraean Sea, written sometime around the 1st century AD, contain a detailed description of the Red Sea's ports and sea routes. The Periplus also describes how
Hippalus first discovered the direct route from the Red Sea to India.
The Red Sea was favored for
Roman trade with India starting with the reign of
Augustus, when the
Roman Empire gained control over the Mediterranean, Egypt, and the northern Red Sea. The route had been used by previous states but grew in the volume of traffic under the Romans. From Indian ports goods from China were introduced to the Roman world. Contact between Rome and China depended on the Red Sea, but the route was broken by the
Aksumite Empire around the 3rd century AD.
During medieval times the Red Sea was an important part of the
Spice trade route.
In 1798,
France charged General
Bonaparte with invading Egypt and capturing the Red Sea. Although he failed in his mission, the engineer J.B.
Lepere, who took part in it, revitalised the plan for a canal which had been envisaged during the reign of the
Pharaohs. Several canals were built in ancient times, but none lasted for long. The
Suez Canal was opened in November 1869. At the time, the British, French, and Italians shared the trading posts. The posts were gradually dismantled following the
First World War. After the
Second World War, the Americans and Soviets exerted their influence whilst the volume of oil tanker traffic intensified. However, the
Six Day War culminated in the closure of the Suez Canal from 1967 to 1975. Today, in spite of patrols by the major maritime fleets in the waters of the Red Sea, the Suez Canal has never recovered its supremacy over the Cape route, which is believed to be less vulnerable.
Oceanography
The Red Sea lies between arid land,
desert and semi-desert. The main reasons for the better development of reef systems along the Red Sea is because of its greater depths and an efficient water circulation pattern, The Red Sea water mass exchanges its water with the
Arabian Sea,
Indian Ocean via the
Gulf of Aden. These physical factors reduce the effect of high salinity caused by evaporation and cold water in the north and relatively hot water in the south.
Climate: The
climate of the Red Sea is the result of two distinct monsoon seasons; a northeasterly monsoon and a southwesterly monsoon. Monsoon winds occur because of the differential heating between the land surface and sea. Very high surface temperatures coupled with high salinities makes this one of the hottest and saltiest bodies of seawater in the world. The average surface water temperature of the Red Sea during the summer is about in the north and in the south, with only about 2 °C (3.6 °F) variation during the winter months. The overall average water temperature is . The
rainfall over the Red Sea and its coasts is extremely low averaging per year; the rain is mostly in the form of showers of short spells often associated with thunderstorms and occasionally with dust
storms. The scarcity of rainfall and no major source of fresh water to the Red Sea result in the excess evaporation as high as per year and high salinity with minimal seasonal variation.
Salinity: The Red Sea is one of the most saline water bodies in the world, due to the effects of the water circulation pattern, resulting from evaporation and wind stress. Salinity ranges between 3.6 and 3.8%.
Tidal range: In general tide ranges between in the north, near the mouth of the Gulf of Suez and in the south near the Gulf of Aden but it fluctuates between and away from the nodal point. The central Red Sea (Jeddah area) is therefore almost tideless, and as such the annual water level changes are more significant. Because of the small tidal range the water during high tide inundates the coastal sabkhas as a thin sheet of water up to a few hundred meters rather than inundating the sabkhas through a network of channels. However, south of Jeddah in the Shoiaba area the water from the lagoon may cover the adjoining sabkhas as far as whereas, north of Jeddah in the Al-kharrar area the sabkhas are covered by a thin sheet of water as far as . The prevailing north and northeastern winds influence the movement of water in the coastal inlets to the adjacent sabkhas, especially during storms. Winter mean sea level is higher than in summer. Tidal velocities passing through constrictions caused by reefs, sand bars and low islands commonly exceed 1-2 m/s (3–6.5 ft/s).
Current: In the Red Sea detailed current data is lacking, partially because they're weak and variable both spatially and temporally. Temporal and spatial currents variation is as low as and are governed mostly by wind. In summer NW winds drive surface water south for about four months at a velocity of 15-20 cm/s (6–8 in/s)., whereas in winter the flow is reversed resulting in the inflow of water from the Gulf of Aden into the Red Sea. The net value of the latter predominates, resulting in an overall drift to the northern end of the Red Sea. Generally the velocity of the tidal current is between 50-60 cm/s (20–23.6 in/s) with a maximum of . at the mouth of the al-Kharrar Lagoon. However, the range of north-northeast current along the Saudi coast is 8-29 cm/s (3–11.4 in/s).
Wind Regime: With the exception of the northern part of the Red Sea, which is dominated by persistent north-west
winds, with speeds ranging between and ., the rest of the Red Sea and the
Gulf of Aden are subjected to the influence of regular and seasonally reversible winds. The wind
regime is characterized by both seasonal and regional variations in
speed and
direction with average speed generally increasing northward.
Wind is the driving force in the Red Sea for transporting the material either as suspension or as bedload. Wind induced currents play an important role in the Red Sea in initiating the process of resuspension of bottom sediments and transfer of materials from sites of dumping to sites of burial in quiescent environment of deposition. Wind generated current
measurement is therefore important in order to determine the sediment dispersal pattern and its role in the erosion and accretion of the coastal rock exposure and the submerged coral beds.
Geology
The Red Sea formed by
Arabia splitting from
Africa due to
plate tectonics. This split started in the
Eocene and accelerated during the
Oligocene. The sea is still widening and it's considered that the sea will become an ocean in time (as proposed in the model of
John Tuzo Wilson).
Sometime during the
Tertiary period the
Bab el Mandeb closed and the Red Sea evaporated to an empty hot dry salt-floored sink. Effects causing this would be:-
Today surface water temperatures remain relatively constant at 21–25
°C (70–77
°F) and temperature and visibility remain good to around 200 m (656 ft), but the sea is known for its strong winds and tricky local currents.
In terms of salinity, the Red Sea is greater than the world average, approximately 4 percent. This is due to several factors: 1) high rate of evaporation and very little precipitation, 2) a lack of significant rivers or streams draining into the sea, and 3) limited connection with the Indian Ocean (and its lower water salinity).
A number of volcanic islands rise from the center of the sea. Most are dormant, but in 2007,
Jabal al-Tair island erupted violently.
Living resources
The Red Sea is a rich and diverse
ecosystem. More than
1100 species of fish have been recorded in the Red Sea, and around 10% of these are found nowhere else. This also includes around 75 species of
deepwater fish.
Other marine habitats include
sea grass beds,
salt pans,
mangroves and
salt marshes.
Mineral resources
In terms of mineral resources the major constituents of the Red Sea sediments are as follows:
Biogenic constituents: » Nannofossils, foraminifera, pteropods, siliceous fossils
Volcanogenic constituents: » Tuffites, volcanic ash, montmorillonite, cristobalite, zeolites
Terrigenous constituents: » Quartz, feldspars, rock fragments, mica, heavy minerals, clay minerals
Authigenic minerals: » Sulfide minerals, aragonite, Mg-calcite, protodolomite, dolomite, quartz, chalcedony.
Evaporite minerals: » Magnesite, gypsum, anhydrite, halite, polyhalite
Brine precipitate: » Fe-montmorillonite, goethite, hematite, siderite, rhodochrosite, pyrite, sphalerite, anhydrite.
Desalination plants
There is extensive demand of desalinated water to meet the requirement of the population and the industries along the Red Sea.
There are at least 18 desalination plants along the Red Sea coast of Saudi Arabia which discharge warm brine and treatment chemicals (chlorine and anti-scalants) that may cause bleaching and mortality of corals and diseases to the fish stocks. Although this is only a localized phenomenon, it may intensify with time and have a profound impact on the fishing industry.
The water from the Red Sea is also utilized by oil refineries and cement factories for cooling purposes. Used water drained back into the coastal zones may cause harm to the nearshore environment of the Red Sea.
Facts and figures at a glance
» * Length: ~ - 79% of the eastern Red Sea with numerous coastal inlets
* Maximum Width: ~ 306–355 km (190–220 mi)– Massawa (Eritrea) » * Minimum Width: ~ 26–29 km (16–18 mi)- Bab el Mandeb Strait (Yemen)
* Average Width: ~ » * Average Depth: ~
* Maximum Depth: ~ » * Surface Area: 438-450 x 10² km² (16,900–17,400 sq mi)
* Volume: 215–251 x 10³ km³ (51,600–60,200 cu mi)
» * Approximately 40% of the Red Sea is quite shallow (under 100 m/330 ft), and about 25% is under deep.
* About 15% of the Red Sea is over depth that forms the deep axial trough. » * Shelf breaks are marked by coral reefs
* Continental slope has an irregular profile (series of steps down to ~) » * Centre of Red Sea has a narrow trough (~ ; some deeps may exceed )
Some of the research cruises in the Red Sea
Numerous research cruises have been conducted:
» *Arabia Felix (1761-1767)
*Vitiaz (1886-1889) » *Valdivia (1898-1894)
*Pola (1897-98) Southern Red Sea and (1895/96 – Northern Red Sea » *Ammiraglio Magnaghi (1923/24)
*Snellius (1929 –1930) » *Mabahiss (1933-1934 and 1934-1935)
*Albatross (1948) » *Manihine (1849 and 1952)
*Calypso (1955) » *Atlantis and Vema (1958)
*Xarifa (1961) » *Meteor (1961)
*Glomar Challenger (1971) » *Sonne (1997)
*Meteor (1999)
Tourism
The sea is known for its spectacular dive sites such as Ras Mohammed, SS Thistlegorm (shipwreck), Elphinstone, The Brothers and Rocky Island in Egypt, Dolphin Reef in Eilat, Israel and less known sites in Sudan such as Sanganeb, Abington, Angarosh and Shaab Rumi (see photo above).
The Red Sea became known a sought-after diving destination after the expeditions of Hans Hass in the 1950s, and later by Jacques-Yves Cousteau. Popular tourist resorts include Sharm-El-Sheikh and Hurghada (and recently Marsa Alam) and Dahab in Egypt, as well as Eilat, Israel in an area known as the Red Sea Riviera.
Bordering countries
Bordering countries are:
Northern shore:
Western shore:
Eastern shore:
Southern shore:
Towns and cities
Towns and cities on the Red Sea coast include:
Aqaba (العقبة)
Hirgigo (ሕርጊጎ)
Asseb (ዓሳብ)
Dahab (دهب)
Eilat (אילת)
El Gouna (الجونة)
Hala'ib (حلايب)
Al Hudaydah (الحديدة)
Hurghada (الغردقة)
Jeddah (جدة)
Marsa Alam (مرسى علم)
Massawa (ምጽዋ)
Nuweiba (نويبع)
Port Safaga (ميناء سفاجا)
Port Sudan (بورت سودان)
Sharm el Sheikh (شرم الشيخ)
Soma Bay (سوما باي)
Suakin (سواكن)
El Suweis (السويس)
Taba (طابا)
Al-Qusair (القصير)
Yanbu (ينبع)
Dhuba (ضبا)
Umluj (أملج)
Alwajh (الوجه)
Alqunfutha (القنفذة)
Alleeth (الليث)
Arrayes (الرايس)
Rabigh (رابغ)
Further Information
Get more info on 'Red Sea'.
|
External Link Exchanges
Do you know how hard it is to get a link from a large encyclopaedia? Well we're different and will prove it. To get a link from us just add the following HTML to your site on a relevant page:
<a href="http://red_sea.totallyexplained.com">Red Sea Totally Explained</a>
Then simply click through this link from your web page. Our crawlers will verify your link, extract the title of your web page and instantly add a link back to it. If you like you can remove the words Totally Explained and embed the link in article text.
As long as your link remains in place, we'll keep our link to you right here. Please play fair - our crawlers are watching. Your site must be closely related to this one's topic. Any kind of spamming, dubious practises or removing the link will result in your link from us being dropped and, potentially, your whole site being banned. |
