Gulf of Aqaba

Sinai Peninsula, with the Gulf of Aqaba (east) and the Gulf of Suez (west), as viewed from the Space Shuttle STS-40.

The Gulf of Aqaba (Arabic: خليج العقبة; transliterated: Khalyj al-'Aqabah), in Israel known as the Gulf of Eilat (Hebrew: מפרץ אילת, transliterated: Mifratz Eilat) is a large gulf of the Red Sea. It is located to the east of the Sinai peninsula and west of the Arabian mainland. Egypt, Israel, Jordan, and Saudi Arabia all have coastlines on the Gulf of Aqaba. The Gulf serves as a hinge connecting the African and Asian continents.

The Gulf of Aqaba, like the coastal waters of the Red Sea, is one of the world's premier sites for diving.The area is especially rich in coral and other marine biodiversity and contains a number of underwater wrecks - some accidental and other vessels deliberately sunk in an effort to provide a habitat for marine organisms and bolster the local dive tourism industry.

some kind of title here

The Gulf of Aqaba is one of two gulfs created by the Sinai Peninsula's bifurcation of the northern Red Sea; the Gulf of Suez lying to the west of the Sinai Peninsula and the Gulf of Aqaba lying to its east. It varies in width from 12 to 17 miles (19 to 27 km) and is 110 miles (177 km) long.

Geologically, the Gulf of Aqaba is an integral part of the Great Rift Valley, a geographical and geological feature running north to south for around 4,000 miles (6,400 km), from northern Syria to central Mozambique in East Africa. Created by seismic activity along the Afro-Syrian Rift, it is a deep narrow body of water, which astronauts say is the most significant physical detail on the planet that is visible from space.

The Gulf stretches from the Straits of Tiran to a point where the border of Israel meets the borders of Egypt and Jordan. At this northern end of the Gulf are three important cities: Taba in Egypt, Eilat in Israel, and Aqaba in Jordan. All three cities serve both as strategically important commercial ports and as popular resort destinations for tourists seeking to enjoy the region's pleasant climate. Further south, Haql is the largest Saudi Arabian city on the gulf. On Sinai, Sharm el-Sheikh and Dahab are the major centers.

Environment

File:Saudi Arabia map.jpg

map of Red Sea showing Gulf of Aqaba at its northern end

http://www.mfa.gov.il/MFA/Peace%20Process/Regional%20Projects/Gulf%20of%20Aqaba-%20Environment

The Gulf of Aqaba (180 km long, 20 km wide) is a semi-enclosed sea with unique natural and physical features, foremost of which is its coral reef ecosystem, one of the northernmost and most diverse in the world. Yet this highly sensitive ecosystem is threatened by myriad activitiestourism and sport fishing, commercial fishing, shipping of oil and other hazardous materials, wastewater and solid waste disposal, mariculture and industrial development.

Cities

http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/Society_&_Culture/geo/aqaba.html Taba in Egypt, Eilat in Israel, and Aqaba

An Egyptian naval blockade against all Israeli shipping through the Straits of Tiran (the southern opening of this gulf) was the immediate cause of the 1967 Six Day War.[1]

References

ISBN links support NWE through referral fees

• Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs. September 30, 1997. Gulf of Aqaba- Environment Retrieved May 16, 2008.
• Jewish Virtual Library. The Gulf of Aqaba Retrieved May 16, 2008.
• Rumley, Dennis, and Julian V. Minghi. 1991. The Geography of border landscapes. London: Routledge. ISBN 9780415048255

External links

Credits

New World Encyclopedia writers and editors rewrote and completed the Wikipedia article in accordance with New World Encyclopedia standards. This article abides by terms of the Creative Commons CC-by-sa 3.0 License (CC-by-sa), which may be used and disseminated with proper attribution. Credit is due under the terms of this license that can reference both the New World Encyclopedia contributors and the selfless volunteer contributors of the Wikimedia Foundation. To cite this article click here for a list of acceptable citing formats.The history of earlier contributions by wikipedians is accessible to researchers here:

• Gulf of Aqaba  ^history

The history of this article since it was imported to New World Encyclopedia:

• History of "Gulf of Aqaba"

Note: Some restrictions may apply to use of individual images which are separately licensed.