The Indian Ocean
The Indian Ocean is the third-largest body of water in the world, covering about 20% of the Earth's water surface. It is bounded on the north by southern Asia (the Indian subcontinent); on the west by the Arabian Peninsula and Africa; on the east by the Malay Peninsula, the Sunda Islands, and Australia; and on the south by the Southern Ocean. It is separated from the Atlantic Ocean by the 20° east meridian south of Africa, and from the Pacific by the 147° east meridian. The northernmost extent of the Indian Ocean is approximately 30° north latitude in the Persian Gulf. This ocean is nearly 6,200 miles (10,000 kilometers) wide at the southern tips of Africa and Australia; its area is 28,400,000 square miles (73,556,000 square kilometers), including the Red Sea and the Persian Gulf. Small islands dot the continental rims. Island nations within the ocean are Madagascar (formerly Malagasy Republic); Comoros; Seychelles; Maldives; Mauritius; and Sri Lanka. The floor of the Indian Ocean has an average depth of 11,000 feet (3,400 meters). The Mid-Oceanic Ridge, a broad submarine mountain range extending from Asia to Antarctica, divides the Indian Ocean into three major sections: African, Antardis and Australasian. The ridge rises to an average height of 10,000 feet (3,000 meters), and a few peaks emerge as islands. A large rift, an extension of the eastern branch of the Great Rift Valley that runs through the Gulf of Aden, extends along most of its length.
The Mid-Oceanic Ridge, along with other submarine ridges, encloses a series of deep-sea basins (abyssal plains). The ocean's importance as a transit route between Asia and Africa has made it a scene of conflict. Because of its size, however, no one nation had successfully dominated until the early 1800s when Britain controlled much of the surrounding land. The surface waters of the ocean are generally warm, although close to Antarctica pack ice and icebergs are found. The Indian Ocean has two water circulation systems: a regular counterclockwise southern system (South Equatorial Current, Mozambique Current, West Wind Drift, West Australian Current) and a northern system, the Monsoon Drift, whose currents are directly related to the seasonal shift of monsoon winds. The southwest monsoon draws moisture from the Indian Ocean and drops heavy rainfall on the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia.
posted by Hills @ 6:48 AM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home