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

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 bodies of water.

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 body of water is part of the Indian Ocean and is located in a deep tectonic depression.

On north this water area has peculiar borders with, thanks to the Suez Canal, and on south through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, it connects with 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 gap has been filled with ocean water, forming its own flora and fauna. Even today, the plates continue to move, so the banks are constantly diverging, and its depth increases.

There are several versions why the sea received such a name:

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

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 moses' pursuers drownedwhen the waves converged again behind the backs of the Jews.

Which countries does it wash?

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

Description

Once the Red Sea was only a small basin on the Afro-Asian continent, but over time, the plates were divided 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 its width is 350 km. The volume of water is 450 thousand square meters. km.

There are several features associated with the Red Sea:

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

The coast of the resort is very extensive, well-groomed and has good developed infrastructure... It houses 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 steadily developing. Already available for Massawa's holiday Eritrea.

Due to its location on the world map, the Red Sea has all the conditions to ensure that your vacation remains intense and unforgettable.

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 goes into the Indian Ocean.

Of all the seas, the Red Sea is the saltiest, yes, surprisingly, but it is believed that it is saltier than even the Dead Sea. This is due to the fact that the Dead Sea is closed, and the Red Sea has an inflow of salt water through the Bab-el-Mandeb Strait where it connects with the Indian Ocean and at the same time, in hot climates, it evaporates 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 one more feature - not a single river flows into the sea, and it is the rivers that carry fresh water to the sea. These are the main factors that make the Red Sea the saltiest sea in the world; in one year, 1000 cubic kilometers of water is introduced into the Red Sea more than it flows out of.

One liter of Red Sea seawater 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. According to various estimates, the maximum sea depth does not exceed three kilometers, officially 2211 meters.

Where is the Red Sea

The Red Sea is an inland sea of \u200b\u200bthe 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 are adjacent to the deserts, in the southern part the western coast is adjacent to the mountainous Abyssinia. The many coral reefs scattered throughout the coast, especially the Arabian, and in places stretching a great distance from the coast, make up a distinctive feature of the coast of the Red Sea.

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

In the center of the sea there is a narrow trench - a rift, with depths exceeding 1000-1500 m, and in the north this trough splits into a series of depressions filled with brines differing in temperature and salinity.

The discovery of hot brine troughs in the Red Sea was a real scientific discovery in the 1960s. To date, more than 20 such depressions have been found in the deepest regions. The huge number of exotic fish of the Red Sea and the beauty of the coral reefs attract diving enthusiasts here.

Tourism in Egypt

Sights and interesting facts about the Red Sea.

Where is the Red Sea located?

The Red Sea is a natural water border between the continents of Eurasia and Africa. Considered the inland sea of \u200b\u200bthe Indian Ocean, it separates with its nearly parallel shores the northeastern side of the African continent and the southern shores of the Middle East. The geological origin of the sea is associated with the divergence (drift) of the continents and the resulting series of faults - troughs, which merge into one another. The artificial Suez Canal completes the "official" division of the continents and connects the Mediterranean with the Red Sea, providing a short shipping route from the Mediterranean to the Indian Ocean.

Why is the sea called Red?

Historians are finding out where the sea got its name from. Several versions have a right to exist (although there are not many confirmations):

  1. In spring, the water becomes reddish due to the excessive multiplication of red unicellular algae.
  2. In ancient times, the cardinal directions 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 misread the ancient cuneiform records and instead of the name of the sea from the "Himyarites" tribe, who considered the sea their own, they called the Arabic word "akhmar" (red).

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

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

Both shores of the Red Sea are distinguished by a dry desert climate, only closer to the north it becomes mild Mediterranean, like on the coast of Turkey. In summer, the temperature over the sea reaches +50, in winter it drops to + 22-25. Above the sea, precipitation falls by only 100 mm per year, which is considered extremely small 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 have dried 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 the sea water.

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

    The fauna of the Red Sea is considered unique. The coral kingdom is so diverse that the sea has been declared a global nature reserve. Growing several millimeters a year, coral shallows and ridges have grown into multi-meter limestone deposits along the coast. Life is in full swing on the edge of steep coral shores: coral fish, sea urchins and coral-eating stars inhabit every square meter of the coastline.

    Unique inhabitants of the sea are often found in the Red Sea: 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 fans of scuba diving and beach recreation, windsurfing and sailing yachts to the seashore. Comfortable hotels and Egyptian exoticism provide tourists from all over the world with an unforgettable vacation.

    The RED SEA, the Mediterranean Sea of \u200b\u200bthe 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. Located between the northeastern edge 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 maximum depth is 3039 m. The sea is significantly extended 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, rocky in places. The coastline is weakly indented, the eastern and western coasts of the sea for their main extent run almost parallel to each other. In the north, there are two large elongated bays - the shallow Gulf of Suez and the deep-water Aqaba, separated by the Sinai Peninsula. There are numerous small islands and coral reefs in the coastal zone, large islands in the northern part 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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    Topography 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 series of transform faults into separate deep-sea depressions that have received individual names (Albatross, Atlantis, Valdivia, Discovery, Oceanographer and others, about 20 in total). The width of the shelf in the northern part is from 1 to 20 km, gradually increasing to the south to 100 km or more. In the southernmost part of the sea, adjacent to the Babel-Mandeb Strait, the shelves at the opposite shores are separated by only a small trench with a depth of about 200 m. overlain by Pliocene-Quaternary calcareous and silty-calcareous silts. The cover lies on folded-metamorphic rocks and granites of the African-Arabian platform broken by faults. The underwater slopes of the Red Sea depression are made up of continental rocks overlaid with coral limestones. In terms of morphology and structure, the bottom of the deep-water basin of the Red Sea is divided into two parts: a wide and flat northwestern part (up to about 23 ° north latitude) and a narrow and highly dissected southeastern part. 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 side steps, the bottom is composed of horizontally lying or gently folded, mainly carbonate, sediments, which are underlain by a layer of limestone and evaporite. Sediments cover 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 with relict brines from oil wells. The bottom of the depressions is lined with Pliocene-Quaternary metalliferous 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 flow is increased compared to the average level characteristic of the ocean floor; the epicenters of earthquakes are concentrated near the axial trough.

    Geotectonically, the Red Sea Basin is an intercontinental rift structure that is a link of the East African rift system and connects 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 joined by a regional strike-slip to the Dead Sea Rift Basin and the Jordan Valley. In the rift zone of the Red Sea, starting 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, the oceanic basin opens up. The spreading rate of lithospheric plates is estimated to be about 1–2 mm per year.

    Climate... The climatic conditions of 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 of the northeastern part of Africa and the Arabian Peninsula surrounding the sea territory leads to the prevalence 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, an area of \u200b\u200blow pressure in the central part of Africa and an alternating extremum of atmospheric pressure over Central Asia.

    Their interaction leads to the fact that for most of the year north-north-west winds dominate over the entire water area of \u200b\u200bthe Red Sea, and only south of 20 ° north latitude from October to April, during the winter Indian Ocean monsoon, south-south-east winds prevail. Daily breezes are developed in coastal areas. Significant daily and seasonal fluctuations in air temperature are characteristic. The average daily temperature in the middle of summer is about 27 ° C in the north, about 33 ° C in the south, and 17 and 23 ° C in winter, respectively. The observed maximum temperature in the south is about 47 ° C, the minimum temperature in the north is below 6 ° C. Rainfall 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, the average relative humidity does not exceed 70%. In some cases (during the action of the winds of the Khamsin and Samum deserts), the humidity can drop to 5%. Dust fogs and mirages are typical for the Red Sea. 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 indicators for all other regions of the World Ocean located in the same latitudinal belt. The highest frequency of occurrence of a clear sky is on average 250 days a year. From May to October 20-28 days with minimum 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 turbid streams; the river runoff for the marine hydrological regime is practically irrelevant. Fluctuations in the level in the Red Sea are due to 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 seawater due to its winter cooling also plays a small role. All these factors, to one degree or another, affect the level fluctuations, but since the stability of the sea volume is largely regulated by the water exchange with the Indian Ocean through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, the resulting fluctuations in the average monthly water level for the sea are generally small, up to 30-35 cm.In the middle part of the sea, the magnitude of the syzygy tide is about 25 cm, in the extreme southern and northern regions - up to 1-1.5 m. Dahlak, where the amplitudes can exceed 1.5 m. Storms occur quite rarely and mainly in the north of the region.

    The water circulation 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 the eastern coast at a speed of about 50 cm / s. From June to September currents of the opposite direction prevail here. In the summer, under the influence of winds prevailing over the entire water area, the transfer of surface waters towards the Bab-el-Mandeb Strait develops at a speed of 20-30 cm / s. 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 relatively low salinity of Indian Ocean origin. Deeper (up to 300-350 m) lies the intermediate proper Red Sea water mass, 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 (\u003e 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, the water temperature rises to 27 ° С. In summer, the average surface water temperature in the north is about 27 ° C, while in the south it can exceed 32 ° C. A small inflow of fresh water and intense evaporation from the sea surface lead to a significant increase in the salinity of water, which in the north reaches the highest value in the seas of the World Ocean of 42 залив (Gulf of Suez), the lowest average salinity of surface water is about 37 ‰ here. Its values \u200b\u200bgradually decrease towards the Bab el-Mandeb Strait. Water exchange through this strait plays an important role in the hydrological regime of the sea. The salty deep Red Sea waters flow through it into the Indian Ocean 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.

    Research history. 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 of the 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 European expeditions that explored the Indian Ocean visited it. 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 expedition on the Valdivia. On board the Vityaz in March 1889 in the Red Sea, 4 oceanographic stations were carried out down to a depth of 600 m. The main research, which made it possible to obtain the existing understanding of the nature and resources of the sea, was carried out in the 20th century. Among them, one should especially note the expeditions of European countries and the United States during the International Geophysical Year (1957-58), the work of the International Indian Ocean Expedition (1960-1965). Several special oceanographic expeditions in the Red Sea in the 1960s-1980s were conducted by scientific ships 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 with the use of underwater manned vehicles "Pysis", from which for the first time visual observation of the brine layer surface, water sampling and geological survey of the bottom were carried out.


    Economic use    .

    The Red Sea is the most important transport artery after the construction and commissioning of the Suez Canal. On the coasts of the Red Sea, there are large modern ports that allow 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). The phosphorite deposits developed in the Red Sea (Egypt) are of great economic importance. At the bottom of the rift zone, reserves of non-ferrous and precious metals are concentrated. The catch of fish is gradually increasing and other seafood is being hunted - crustaceans, molluscs (mainly squid), etc. At the end of the 20th century, the tourism business developed rapidly, a network of sea resorts of various classes was created on the coast of the northern part of the sea, the largest of which are Sharm El Sheikh, Hurghada (Egypt), Aqaba (Jordan), Eilat (Israel).

    Ecological state. Active industrial and resort development of the coast and water area of \u200b\u200bthe Red Sea, especially oil production and transportation, pose a real threat to the safety of its unique ecosystem. The most polluted areas of the sea are in its northern part, in the Gulf of Suez. Almost all coastal states are taking 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 ships.

    Lit .: Kanaev V.F., Neiman V.G., Parin N.V. Indian Ocean. M., 1975; Monin AS et al. Diving into brines of the Red Sea depressions // Reports of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR. 1980. T. 254. No. 4; Metalliferous 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.

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    Exploring 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 deepest depression is 5803 meters.

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

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

    The expanses of water cross the Arabian-Indian mid-ocean ridge in a rift valley, which is more than 3600 meters deep.
    The seabed relief was formed in the Mesozoic-Cenozoic, most of it in the Pliocene. Near the delta of the Indus River, the shelf is indented by underwater canyons. Its width off the coast of India and Goa is 120 km, depth is 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 the western direction. The slope of the mainland to a depth of 2750 meters is covered with terrigenous sediments, and the hollows 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, northeastern winds blow in winter, they bring clarity and coolness. In summer, south-western directions prevail; it determines humidity and cloudiness. Typhoons are possible in autumn, spring and summer. In the winter months the air temperature is 20-25 degrees Celsius, in the summer - 25-29 degrees, precipitation falls from 25 to 125 mm per year, in the east, their amount 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 comes in May, when the temperature of the surface water layer is 29 degrees. Due to the fact that the waters of the Arabian Sea remain warm all year round, a large number of popular world resorts are located on the shores of the Arabian Sea. One of the most popular among them is Goa, a state in the south of India. Every year, a huge number of tourists fly to 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 plied 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, Suez and Eilat, named after the Israeli international resort of 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 the northern part of it.

    The Gulf of Eilat is very deep. It is located in a geological fault zone. The continuation of this fault in a northern direction is the Arava Valley, the lowest 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. Marine cargo ships sailing between Asia and Europe save a lot of time and fuel when 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 were made by the Egyptian pharaohs and later by Napoleon, but the project was carried out only in the middle of the last century.

    Such an important strategic facility has more than once become 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 was recently announced. The project involves costs of $ 4 billion, which is comparable to the annual income 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 sea traffic passes through the Suez Canal. About 50 ships pass it per day. The ships cover one hundred and ninety kilometers along the canal in approximately 14 hours.

    It is interesting that under the Suez Canal there is an automobile tunnel connecting Africa with the Sinai Peninsula.

    Nowadays, most of the experienced tourists associate the Red Sea with the names of the resort towns of Sharm el-Sheikh, Hurghada, Eilat.

    This is one of the warmest and saltiest seas. It provides ideal conditions for coral breeding. 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 get into the sea.

    A variety of corals and 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 without polyps. Sea urchins hide among the corals during the day and come out of their shelters at sunset.

    Water

    Most of the Red Sea is located in the tropical zone. High solar activity and lack of precipitation contribute to intensive evaporation of water. Sea water exchange occurs only in the Bab el - Mandeb Strait. The Suez Canal, which is only 350 meters wide 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 two times higher than, for example, in the Black Sea. In the Black Sea - 18%, in the Azov - 11%, in the Mediterranean - 38%, and the salinity in the Red Sea is 41%.

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

    Name

    There are several versions of the origin of the name of the sea. Among them, historical and poetic ones prevail, mentioning the exodus of Jews from Egypt and the peculiarities of the Hebrew language. 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 shores of Israel, Jordan, Egypt, Saudi Arabia for a distance of about 2000 kilometers. Egyptian resorts are widely known for their abundance of corals, warm climate and clean water. In the very south of the Sinai Peninsula there is the famous Egyptian resort town of Sharm el-Sheikh.

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

    Fish

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

    Moray eels, warts, tuna, caranx, unicorn fish, triggerfish, white-tip gray shark, hammerhead shark, butterfly fish, snappers, barracudas, turtles, dolphins, parrot fish, lionfish, eels, mantas inhabit this sea.

    Red Sea in Egypt

    Among divers, the most popular activity is "safari" - going out to sea on a small boat 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 destination for many inexperienced and arrogant divers, it became the final dive site.

    The Blue Hole in Dahab is a vertical sinkhole surrounded by coral, 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.

    There is a wide choice: Reef Jackson off Tira Island, Reef Yolanda and Reef Shark on Cape Muhammad, Reef Kerles, Reef Elfinston, Reef Dedelus (Abu el-Qizan), Reef Abu Nohas, Reef Woodhouse, Reef Thomas, Reef Gordon, Reef Lagoon, Cape Katie, Cape Um Sid, Cape Nazran, Turtle Bay, Naama Bay, Tower, Near Garden, Middle Garden, Fan Garden, White Knight, Brothers Islands (El - Akawain).

    Depending on your preparation, you can choose a dive site, the difficulty of which will match the experience. For example, diving at Jackson Reef is considered not difficult or dangerous. For the more experienced - Woodhouse Reef, Thomas Reef with strong underwater currents.

    Of course, the ships “Thistlegorm”, “Dunraven”, dry cargo ship “GhiannisD” and sailing ship “Carnetic” sunk in the Red Sea also do not go unnoticed by fans of diving.

    The British naval dry cargo ship Thistlegorm was sunk by German bombers in the fall of 1941. Near it, at a depth of about 30 meters, lies a steam locomotive, carriages, motorcycles ... For the first time, the ship was discovered by Jacques Yves Cousteau.

    Legendary diving pioneer Cousteau has been exploring the Red Sea for over ten years. 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 a World of Silence won the Palme d'Or in Cannes.

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

    Eilat

    In Eilat, a 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 corals and fish from the bridges, as they say, without getting your feet wet. The water is so clean 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 coast. Therefore, you can enter the water only in specially designated places.

    A mask and snorkel are enough to swim among the corals and their inhabitants. Often among the heap of reef corals you can find a threatening moray eel. It is absolutely safe to be in the water if you do not touch anything. Sharks prefer to live in the more southerly waters of the Red Sea, off the coast of Sudan. Arriving on vacation 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.

    The warmest, most affectionate, salty, most beautiful is it, the Red Sea, a favorite place for beach goers, divers and just tourists. The depth of the Red Sea hides many unusual beauties, and each of the surrounding ancient countries is shrouded in an aura of mystery.

    Characteristic

    The Red Sea on the map looks like a narrow crack between Africa and Eurasia. The length of the reservoir is 2350 km, and its width is only 350 km. The total area is 450 thousand km 2. Coordinates: 21 ° 08'45 ″ s. sh. 38 ° 06′02 ″ in. e. Since the sea is surrounded by land on almost all sides, it belongs to the inland. Most of the reservoir is located in the tropical zone. The Red Sea connects to the Indian Ocean through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait of the Arabian Sea. The artificially created Suez Canal allows ships to cross from the Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea and further to the Indian Ocean, without going around the entire African continent.

    The maximum depth of the Red Sea is 2211 (although in some sources the figures range from 2200 to 3020 m), the average depth is considered to be 490 m.

    This sea of \u200b\u200bthe Indian Basin is "young". It is only 25 million years old. It was formed due to the fracture of the tectonic continental plates, which are now slowly but surely moving away from each other. The area of \u200b\u200bthe Red Sea and its shores is a seismically active area. In the cracks, which are obtained as a result of the movement of the plates, magma is immediately poured, which quickly solidifies. Studies show that the water temperature in the Red Sea in some depressions reaches 62 o C. Here another distinctive feature is manifested - the deeper the depth, the warmer the water, and not vice versa, as in all other seas.

    The coastal line does not differ in special meanders and deep bays, the shores are almost parallel to each other. The shoal near the coast does not exceed a depth of 200 m, then the bottom of the Red Sea forms a deep-water depression - up to 1000 m. About in the middle is the deepest part, where the maximum data were recorded.

    There is no single definite version of the name of this tropical sea. One legend says that the ancient peoples endowed the cardinal points with the names of colors: north - black, east - white, south - red. It turns out that the Red Sea is the southern sea.

    Opponents of this version argue that Red is still the color of the water, which is given to the sea by the special brown algae during flowering.

    There is another answer to the question of why the Red Sea is called the Red Sea. The ancient Egyptians called the desert along its banks the Red Land. This color is given to it by the local sand with stones. At certain times, the display of the desert in the water makes it delightfully coral in color.

    No one can reliably assert the correctness of this or that interpretation, there are no documentary records about this. Is this really important? You can come up with something yourself. For example, red means beautiful and warm. After all, this is so. The Red Sea is the warmest of all the terrestrial seas, the average annual temperature of its water is 22 o C.

    Features of "red" water

    Another use of the epithet "most" for the Red Sea. It is the saltiest body of water in the World Ocean (after the Dead Sea). This situation, when the evaporation of water occurs much faster than its filling, leads to the fact that the salinity of water in the Red Sea is about 4 times higher than the average worldwide and is 41 g per liter of water. For comparison: the Black Sea contains 18 g in 1 liter, and the White Sea - 5. An expedition to study the features of sea water discovered places where the Red Sea had a salt concentration of 200 g / l!

    The reservoir is also distinguished by the fact that its water is not replenished by any freshwater river from land. Usually, together with the mainland water, many different impurities enter the seas. Deprived of this privilege, the Red Sea remains the cleanest and most transparent.

    Healing properties

    The mere fact that the change of places and the delight of exotic beauties raise the mood and, accordingly, vitality, serves as an important reason for traveling to unknown countries. In addition to purely psychological relaxation, the water of the Red Sea, like the sea air, has a whole bunch of medicinal properties. The Dead Sea is famous for its very high concentration of salt, but it is precisely "dead", in contrast to it, the Red Sea is "alive", but also very salty, as already mentioned. The high concentration of various salts has strong wound healing and antibacterial properties.

    In addition to salts, the local sea water contains a number of minerals, the composition of which is capable of curing certain forms of female infertility. Saturation of water and air with bromine cures respiratory diseases, in combination with warm and dry air, it can completely cure chronic rhinitis. The positive effect of the Red Sea is experienced by people suffering from diseases of the joints, spine, cardiovascular diseases, and problem skin. But vegetative dystonia from heat and dryness can aggravate. This is not a contraindication, just sun and sea baths should be alternated with relaxation in a cool place.

    Undersea world

    What else the Red Sea countries (Egypt, Sudan, Djibouti, Eritrea, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Israel and Jordan) can boast of is that their sea is the most beautiful. More precisely, its underwater world. Unlike the Dead Sea, whose strong concentration of salt killed all living things, the life of the Red is boiling and boiling. If the terrestrial landscape around the coast is rather boring and monotonous, then the situation under the water is strikingly different in bright colors and saturation. It's like comparing gray, inconspicuous towns to a vibrant Brazilian festival.

    "Fish soup" - so often called the underwater world of the Red Sea because of the many varieties of its inhabitants. The constantly warm temperature and abundance of food have led to the fact that 1200 species of fish live here, 100 of which are not found anywhere else in the world. Tropical inhabitants of a wide variety of sizes are dressed in bright "clothes", as if they understand that they need to attract tourists. In fact, this is due to the fact that the multi-colored bright color allows you to camouflage among the same bright and multi-colored corals. All this palette and fish attracts scuba divers all year round.

    Dolphins, killer whales, sharks and sea turtles also live in.

    Underwater travel

    The shores of the Red Sea attract crowds of tourists every year, the main entertainment of which is underwater excursions. After stories about fantastic pictures of the fish kingdom, even those who have not even thought of diving under the water in a serious way become divers here. However, you can observe the underwater world of the Red Sea in different ways:

    • Diving - scuba diving and special equipment. To avoid unpleasant and dangerous situations for this entertainment you need to undergo special training and receive a certificate. The resorts now practice diving for beginners with an instructor, under his supervision.
    • Snorkeling is a shallow dive. All you need is a mask, fins and a snorkel. Clear water allows you to observe the underwater fauna as much as you like.
    • Bathyscaphe - if it's really scary or impermissible to dive into the depths of the sea, you can look at the beauty of their inhabitants through the glass bottom of a special pleasure boat.

    Beautiful can be dangerous

    The depth of the Red Sea is not only striking in its beauty, sometimes, if you do not follow basic rules, a walk can be dangerous. What unpleasant things can be found here?

    • Sharks. More found in places where the Red Sea washes the shores of Sudan. They rarely appear near popular Egyptian resorts, but you still need to know the rules of behavior with them. First of all, it is recommended not to swim far, having unhealed bleeding wounds on the body: a shark smells blood through kilometers.
    • Barracudas, moray eels are hiding in reefs. They are not deadly, but they can seriously bite, mistaking a swimmer for a fish.
    • Poisonous inhabitants - sea snakes, wart, lionfish, sea urchins, stingrays, some types of jellyfish and starfish - emit poisons dangerous to humans, some of them cause mild discomfort, and some are deadly. If you receive any injection underwater, you should immediately consult a doctor.

    Coastal climate

    The countries of the Red Sea are among the hottest on the planet, almost all of them are found in tropical desert climates. The Mediterranean climate in the north of the region is slightly lighter.

    • Temperature conditions. The hottest period is July and August, daytime temperatures reach 38-43 o C, and maximum - 50 o C. The coldest period is winter with temperatures of 25-30 o C during the day and not lower than 18 o C at night.
    • Wind. Winter temperatures that are comfortable for Europeans are spoiled by strong and prolonged winds. In the spring, a desert hot khamsin can blow for fifty days in a row.
    • Precipitation. The rare short showers bring the sea only 8 cm of precipitation per year, and the hot tropical sun evaporates 205 cm. The level of the Red Sea is maintained by the waters of the Indian Ocean.

    Briefly about the countries

    The Red Sea on the map looks like a usual large divide between two continents. The main natural resources of the countries along its shores are the desert and the sea, in some places - oil.

    • Egypt, the capital is Cairo. The most popular destination for hiking trails and beach holidays. In addition to the beauty of the Red Sea, tourists are attracted by the ancient history of this country, its mysterious pyramids and sphinxes, the banks of the Nile and the exotic life of the Bedouins.
    • Sudan, capital - Khartoum. The Red Sea is the only maritime outlet for this state. Sudan is a mediator between the Arab and African worlds, the main path of pilgrims from eastern Africa to religious shrines.
    • - Asmara. A small, but very dry and hot patch that stretches a little more than a kilometer along the coastline, blocked access to the sea of \u200b\u200bgreat Ethiopia. The struggle for independence ended in victory, but economic problems have just begun, and the tourism sector is the main line of replenishing the budget.
    • Israel, the capital is Jerusalem. Economically developed with rich history and cultural attractions. It has access to two seas - the Dead and the Red, on the banks of which there are world-famous hospitals.
    • Jordan, capital - Amman. An arid and desert climate, very scarce water supplies, which are only slightly replenished from November to April, during the rainy season - this is what a small Asian country Jordan looks like at first glance. The Red Sea for this power, as well as for its other neighbors, is an excellent prospect to attract tourists and foreign capital, since its natural resources are insignificant.
    • Saudi Arabia, the capital is Riyadh. The wealthy oil queen of the Middle East, with the largest reserves of core wealth in the world. The convenient location in the center of sea routes is used for oil transportation and other transportation. Oil pollution of the coastline has become a problem.
    • Yemen, capital - Sana'a. A small state in the southeast of the Arabian Peninsula is washed by the Red and Arabian Seas. Such a place is very beneficial for trade routes. Yemen is a very poor country in the past, which sharply increased its oil production in the 90s of the last century and has been steadily moving along the path of increasing prosperity since then.
    • Djibouti with the capital of the same name. This country has a desert, hot and dry climate. There are no permanent rivers here. The vegetation cover is desert or semi-desert. The fauna is poor.

    All countries on the Red Sea coast, both African and Asian, rich and poor, have one thing in common - the presence of resorts and tourist spots.

    Red Sea resorts

    The most prestigious and fashionable resorts on the Red Sea are located in Egypt. They are also among the most popular. Developed infrastructure, service, colorful coastline make it possible to find places for both quiet family holidays and noisy youth. Sharm el Sheikh, Hurghada, Taba, Dahab are just a few of the many famous places. In addition to beach vacations, tourists love sea cruises, travel to shrines that are very close.

    The relatively new resort of El Gouna has become a worthy alternative to the familiar and familiar resort places. It is called the Venice of the East. The islands, which are home to hotels and beautiful gardens, are hand-made and connected by graceful bridges. If we add to this the fact that the resort is located in a cozy bay, closed from the winds, it becomes clear why it attracted attention.

    The only Israeli resort on the Red Sea, Eilat, is located far from places of pilgrimage to shrines and, unlike the Dead Sea resting places, has an entertainment direction. There is a huge aquarium, which is a hall with glass walls in the middle of a coral reef. You can observe life under water without scuba gear.

    The Gulf of the Red Sea of \u200b\u200bAqaba and the resort of the same name were chosen by divers. This place is also distinguished by the fact that rest here is comfortable at any time of the year. Mountains along the coast protect the bay from strong winds, and the water temperature does not drop below 22 o.

    The rest of the powers on the coast, although they cannot compete with these resorts precisely in terms of beach holidays, are happy to reveal their secrets to numerous tourists who are interested in the history, culture and life of this region.

    Islands

    The islands in the Red Sea are small in size but unsurpassed in their beauty. Some of them are not even marked on maps, the nature of these places is sometimes wild and untouched by man. Only four islands are permanently inhabited by the local population. The main occupation here is pearl mining. This craft began in the days of the ancient Romans and continues to this day, and in the same way.

    The largest archipelago is located near Eritrea, called Dahlak. The largest number of the population lives on the Dahlak Kebir island. On one of the islands called Nokra, in the 70s there was a naval base of the Soviet Union.

    For lovers of contemplating the beauty that the depth of the Red Sea hides, the Brizers Islands leave an unforgettable experience. These are big and small brothers, together with the neighboring small islands of Rocky and Zabargad they form a unique underwater Marine Park. There are two submarines with a special transparent bottom and huge windows for inspecting the underwater depths without scuba gear.

    Not far from Hurghada, there is another coral reserve on the island of Mahmeya.

    Secrets and legends

    The beauty of the deep sea, exotic flora and fauna, healing air and water are the main charms of this region. The main ones, but not the only ones. Still, the shores of the Red Sea are steeped in legends, historical events and unsolved mysteries. It was through the waters of the Red Sea that Moses, with God's help, led the Jews, spreading his water with his hands. Divers and scuba divers are attracted not only by the marine life and the beauty of the coral. The deep sea can compete with the museum in the number of antiquities hidden in it. The shortest route from Asia to Europe has not always been smooth and cloudless. Reefs have become a deadly obstacle for ships at different times.

    Another mystical secret of the Red Sea is a dangerous but beautiful vertical tremendous coral cave near the city of Dahab.

    Whatever reasons prompted the traveler to visit the Red Sea coast, he will not remain disappointed: there is plenty of rest, impressions, and drive in this region.

    The Red Sea is a relatively young sea. It appeared as a result of the East African rift about forty million years ago. In modern times, the Red Sea is famous for its fashionable resorts and a variety of unique flora and fauna.

    Geographical position. The Red Sea or Arabian Gulf is an inland sea that separates Africa and the Arabian Peninsula of Eurasia and is part of the Indian Ocean. In the north, the Red Sea connects with the Mediterranean through the ancient, artificially created Suez Canal. In the south, the Red Sea borders the Arabian Sea through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait. Eight states are located on the shores of the Red Sea: Saudi Arabia, Israel, Jordan and Yemen have access to the sea on the Arabian Peninsula, and Egypt, Sudan, Djibouti and Eritrea on the African continent. Relief and water. The sea got its name because of the color of the bottom of the coast and the color of the water produced by microscopic algae and zoophytes (polyps, jellyfish, etc.). Not a single river flows into the Red Sea, therefore the water in the sea is very warm and crystal clear. In winter, the temperature does not drop below +18 ° С, and in summer it rises to +27 ° С. Due to the strong evaporation of warm water, the Red Sea is considered one of the saltiest water sources in the world - 38-40 grams of salt per liter. At the bottom of the sea there is a series of depressions filled with brines of different temperatures and salinity. Outwardly, brines are similar to silty soil or swirling fog, do not merge with the surrounding water and each year increase their temperature by 0.3-0.7 ° C, which indicates the heating of the depressions by the internal heat of the Earth. The chemical composition of such brines includes many metals, including precious ones. Flora and fauna. The unique picture of the underwater world of the Red Sea attracts tourists from all countries. Despite its salinity and high temperature, the richest underwater world of the Northern Hemisphere surprises with its inhabitants: clown fish, napoleon fish, moray eels, different types of corals, etc. Recently, the harmful effects of garbage emissions from tourists and local residents endanger the existence of rare species of marine animals and fish, coral reefs. Transport and economic opportunities. The Red Sea is an important trade route between Europe and Asian countries. Its advantage over the old route, which runs through the entire coast of Africa, is 8000 kilometers. Thousands of cargo ships, tankers and passenger ships pass through the waters of the Red Sea every year. Despite all modern security methods, piracy still flourishes in the waters of the Red Sea. Somali armed groups seize ships for ransom.


    Tourism. The most developed tourist cities - Sharm al-Sheikh, Hurghada, Safaga, Dahab boast developed underwater sports and other entertainment for vacationers. The tourism business of the Red Sea countries generates revenue that is approximately half of their annual budget. Every year, tourists' monetary investments in the treasury of countries with access to the Red Sea are only increasing.

    Legend has it that the waters of the Red Sea parted for the passage of the prophet Moses and his people from Egypt to Israel. Modernity keeps in the depths of the Red Sea not only Biblical memories, but also the sunken ships of the Second World War, which tourists can admire while studying the local underwater flora and fauna.