Etymology
Rivers
Many major rivers of the Indian subcontinent flow west to east through Bangladesh into the Bay of Bengal: in the north, the Padma River (or Ganges), Meghna River and Brahmaputra River rivers, and in the south Mahanadi River through the Mahanadi River Delta, Godavari River, Krishna river, Irrawaddy and Kaveri River (sometimes written as Cauvery) rivers. The shortest classified river which drains into the Bay of Bengal is Cooum River at 64 km (40 mi). Brahmaputra is the 28th longest River in the World 2,948 km (1,832 mi), and it discharges into the 'Bay of Bengal' and travels mainly through China, Assam and Bangladesh. The Sundarbans mangrove forest is formed at the delta of the Ganges, Brahmaputra and Meghna rivers on the Bay of Bengal. The Ayeyarwady River of Myanmar also flows into the bay and once had thick mangrove forest of its own.Islands
The islands in the bay are very numerous, including the Andaman Islands, Nicobar and Mergui groups of India. The group of islands, Cheduba and others, in the north-east, off the Burmese coast, are remarkable for a chain of mud volcanoes, which are occasionally active. Great Andaman is the main archipelago or island group of the Andaman Islands, whereas Ritchie's Archipelago consists of smaller islands. Only 37 of the 572 islands and islets of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands are inhabited, or 6.5%.Beaches
Sea Beach | Location |
---|---|
Cox's Bazar | Bangladesh |
Kuakata | Bangladesh |
St. Martin's Island | Bangladesh |
Bakkhali | India |
Digha | India |
Mandarmani | India |
Chandipur | India |
Puri | India |
Waltair | India |
Marina Beach | India |
Ngapali | Burma |
Arugram | Sri Lanka |
Oceanography
The Bay of Bengal is a salt water sea and is a part of the Indian Ocean.Plate tectonics
Marine geology
A zone 50 m wide extending from the island of Ceylon and the Coromandel coast to the head of the bay, and thence southwards through a strip embracing the Andaman and Nicobar islands, is bounded by the 100 fathom line of sea bottom; some 50 m. beyond this lies the 500-fathom limit. Opposite the mouth of the Ganges, however, the intervals between these depths are very much extended by deltaic influence.
Swatch of No Ground is a 14 km-wide deep sea canyon of the Bay of Bengal. The deepest recorded area of this valley is about 1340 m. The submarine canyon is part of the Bengal Fan, the largest submarine fan in the world
Marine biology, flora and faun
The Sunderbans bordering the Bay of Bengal is the largest single block of tidal halophytic mangrove forest in the world.
The Bay of Bengal is full of biological diversity, diverging amongst coral reefs, estuaries, fish spawning and nursery areas, and mangroves. The Bay of Bengal is one of the World's 64 largest marine ecosystems.
Kerilia jerdonii is a sea snake of the Bay of Bengal. Glory of Bengal Cone (Conus bengalensis) is just one of the seashells which can be photographed along beaches of the Bay of Bengal.[13] An endangered species, the Olive Ridley sea turtle can survive because of the nesting grounds made available at the Gahirmatha Marine Wildlife Sanctuary, Gahirmatha Beach, Orissa, India. Marlin, barracuda, skipjack tuna, (Katsuwonus pelamis), yellowfin tuna, Indo-Pacific humpbacked dolphin (Sousa chinensis), and Bryde's whale (Balaenoptera edeni) are a few of the marine animals. Bay of Bengal Hogfish (Bodianus neilli) is a type of Wrass which live in turbid lagoon reefs or shallow coastal reefs. Schools of dolphins can be seen, whether they are the bottle nose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus), Pantropical spotted dolphin (Stenella attenuata) or the spinner dolphin (Stenella longirostris) . Tuna and dolphins are usually residing in the same waters. In shallower and warmer coastal waters the Irrawaddy Dolphins (Orcaella brevirostris) can be found.
The Great Nicobar Biosphere Reserve provides sanctuary to many animals some of which include the saltwater crocodile (Crocodylus porosus), giant Leatherback Sea Turtle (Dermochelys coriacea), and Malayan box turtle (Cuora amboinensis kamaroma) to name a few.
Another endangered species Royal Bengal Tiger is supported by Sundarbans a large estuarine delta that holds a mangrove area in the Ganges River Delta.
Chemical oceanography
Coastal regions bordering the Bay of Bengal are rich in minerals. Sri Lanka, Serendib, or Ratna – Dweepa which means Gem Island. Amethyst, beryl, ruby, sapphire, topaz, and garnet are just some of the gems of Sri Lanka. Garnet and other precious gems are also found in abundance in the Indian states of Orissa and
Andhra Pradesh.
Physical oceanography - climate of the Bay of Bengal
From January to October, the current is northward flowing, and the clockwise circulation pattern is called the "East Indian Current." The Bay of Bengal monsoon moves in a northwest direction striking the Nicobar Islands, and the Andaman Islands first end of May, then the North Eastern Coast of India by end of June.
The remainder of the year, the counterclockwise current is southwestward flowing, and the circulation pattern is called the East Indian Winter Jet. September and December see very active weather, season varsha (or monsoon), in the Bay of Bengal producing severe Cyclones which affect Eastern India. Several efforts have been initiated to cope with Storm surge
0 comments:
Post a Comment