By studying geography, a person becomes better acquainted with the planet on which he lives, gets an idea of the scale of the world and learns to treat nature more carefully, admiring its unique corners. Oceans are one of the most impressive themes possible. Each of these huge bodies of water is worthy of attention. Let's take a closer look today Indian Ocean.
Features and history
Before studying which continents are washed by the Indian Ocean, it is worth finding out details about it itself. It is slightly smaller in size than Quiet and Tak, its area is 76 million square kilometers. The widest extent of the ocean is Southern Hemisphere, but in Northern, it rather resembles the sea. The ancients perceived it precisely in this capacity, and only changed their ideas about this territory. The first European to collect information about it was Vasco da Gama, and after him James Cook came here. Today people know much more than before. The average depth of the ocean is almost four kilometers. Its deepest point is the Java Trench. Here the ocean depth is 7729 meters. The Pacific Ocean is known for its blue color, while the waters of its Indian counterpart are clear and famous for their azure hue. This is due to the fact that little flows into it fresh rivers. Therefore, the seas associated with it are distinguished by record salinity - the Red Sea is famous for this throughout the world. However, the Indian Ocean is full of life. Fishing, pearl searching, gas and oil extraction from the bottom, and even precious stones, such as emeralds or diamonds. 
Washed continents
So, the basic information has been studied. Now you can find out which continents are washed by the Indian Ocean. Despite its rather modest size compared to the Pacific and Atlantic oceans, it is located next to four continents. These are Eurasia, Africa, Australia and Antarctica. Due to this location, ocean waters change their temperature from +30 degrees at the equator to +1 o C closer to the pole. The maximum length is 10,000 kilometers. Along the entire length of the ocean from west to east there are various climatic zones; in the Indian Ocean all possible options. In the north - the most warm region. Hot currents pass here, separating the region from the cold masses. The hot spot is different maximum temperature not only for a specific ocean, but for the entire planet as a whole. With every ten kilometers towards the pole, the degree decreases. Salinity also changes, but in the opposite order. In the region off the coast of Eurasia, the waters are strongly influenced by monsoons, changing the directions of currents. Now you can easily list the continents that are washed by the Indian Ocean, and you can even explain what its features are in different parts planets.
Coastal states
Having studied which continents are washed by the Indian Ocean, you can move on to more specific information. There are quite a lot of countries located on the coast of this huge water basin. These are both mainland and island states; the latter are worth considering separately. So, which countries are washed by the Indian Ocean? These countries include India, Australia, Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, United United Arab Emirates, Iraq, Iran, Egypt, Madagascar, Somalia, Oman, Seychelles, Kenya, Tanzania, Comoros, Maldives, Sri Lanka, Mozambique, Mauritius and South Africa. Many of them become popular tourist destinations precisely because of their favorable location, and in some, a large part of the production is associated with it. 
Island states
Having figured out which countries are washed by the Indian Ocean, it is worth dwelling on some of them in more detail. The island states here are few in number, but each has unique natural conditions and is popular among tourists. The most famous, perhaps, is Madagascar, which was once a French colony. No less popular is Sri Lanka - a beautiful resort, a place of tea plantations and legendary elephants. There are also volcanic islands in the Indian Ocean (Prince Edward, Mascarene, Crozet). Largest islands, which are washed by the Indian Ocean, in addition to Madagascar, are included in groups such as Maldives, Andaman or Coconut. 
Seas
An educated person can easily answer not only the question of which continents are washed by the Indian Ocean. It is also necessary to know the seas that belong to its basin. The Indian Ocean lags behind others in their number, as well as in size. The largest is the Red Sea located in the north. The Arabian and Andaman seas are also large. In the eastern part are the Timor, Laccadive and Arafura seas. Due to its physical and geographical characteristics, two bays - Bengal and Persian - can also be included in this category. In the south there are territories that are sometimes referred to as an unofficial basin South Sea(Cosmonauts, Davis, Commonwealth, D'Urville and Riiser-Larsen, which differ from those listed above by a significantly lower water temperature associated with their location near Antarctica).
Currents
It is worth paying attention to this component of the pool. The type of water that the Indian Ocean washes directly affects the temperature of the currents entering it. Warm ones, laying their routes in the north or west, are called the South Trade Wind, Madagascar and Agulhas. There are two cold currents in the Indian Ocean. This is the current Western Winds, which carries its waters in the southernmost part, and Western Australian, which has its “registration” in the east of the basin. Distinctive feature Most of the listed currents are characterized by strongly pronounced seasonal fluctuations in the directions of surface waters. In the northeast of the ocean, this is directly related to the presence in this region large quantity regular tropical monsoons.
Africa is the second largest continent on Earth. Together with the islands belonging to it, it occupies an area of 30,284 thousand km2, the area of the mainland without islands is 29,200 thousand km2. The mainland has a special geographical location: almost in the middle it is crossed by the equator, i.e. Africa is located almost symmetrically in the northern and southern hemispheres. For the most part the mainland is located in eastern hemisphere, and less – in the western.
Extreme points of the mainland:
- Northern () - Cape Ras - Engela (37° 20′ N)
- Yuzhnaya () – Cape Agulhas (34° 51′ S)
- Zapadna () – Cape Almadi (17° 33′ W)
- Eastern () – Cape Ras – Hafun (51° 24′ E)
The length of the continent from north to south is 8000 km, from west to east – 7500 km.
The continent is washed by the waters of two oceans: from the west - , from the east - . Western and south coast continent, washed by the Atlantic Ocean, forms the only large bay- Gulf of Guinea. In the extreme northeast, this gulf is divided into two independent gulfs - Biafra. Most The bay has significant depths - up to 4 thousand m. And closer to the coast there are banks (banks are the shallow part of the bottom formed as a result of the death of benthic organisms and developed during internal parts shelves), as well as numerous volcanic islands: Annobon, Sao Tome and Fernando Po (Bioco). All these islands are of volcanic origin, they are mountainous in relief, and have very fertile soils– andosols. Together with large volcano Cameroon on the continent they form the so-called lineage. All of these volcanic massifs are associated with the strike of transform faults that cut the Mid-Atlantic Ridge from west to east. All these islands are composed of young alkali-basaltic volcanics. In addition, there are islands of mainland origin in the Gulf of Guinea. These are the Greater and Lesser Elobey, the island of Corisco, Horatio, Tinosa Pequena and Tinosa Grande.
As you move north, the length of the continent increases greatly, and as you move south, it decreases.
Off the northwestern coast of Africa in the Atlantic Ocean there are also islands of volcanic origin associated with the spread of MOR transform faults here. These are islands such as: Madeira, Canary Islands and Cape Verde Islands. The Cape Verde Islands are divided into two groups:
Leeward (Sotaventu) and Windward (Barlaventu). The Cape Verde Islands are very interesting and amazing. Most of Cape Verde Island is occupied by dry, gravelly highlands, called the “Moon Landscape”. It was here that the Americans filmed a film about how they conquered the moon.
There are a number of small volcanic islands far from coastal zone. These are: Ascension, St. Helena, Tristan - yes - Cunha, Bouvet.
In the northern and southern parts Atlantic Ocean Cold currents pass off the coast of Africa. In the north there is the Canary Current, which brings water with a temperature of 15–16° to the shores of the mainland. The cold Bengal Current passes off the southwestern coast of Africa. The water temperature there is especially low (6 – 9° at the surface) due to the rise of cold deep waters– this process is called upwelling. Both cold currents have a significant impact on climatic conditions western edges of Africa in tropical latitudes. In the Atlantic Ocean, the coastal part of Africa is very unstable - the depths come very close to the coast. A not wide strip of continental shallows is limited by sharp ledges that immediately lead to depths of up to 2000 - 3000m. Only in the south at 20° S. The underwater Whale Ridge approaches the shores of the mainland.
The eastern and southern coasts of Africa are washed by the Indian Ocean. Here, not far from the coast, there are islands of coral origin - Mafia, Zanzibar and Pemba. Mainland ones include -, Seychelles and Socotra. The Comoros Islands are considered volcanic. South of the equator, warm currents pass off the coast of Africa. Mozabique in the north and Cape Agulhas in the south. These two currents are formed from the South Trade Wind Current and cause an increase in temperatures in winter off the coast southeast africa up to 20° or more. The Somali monsoon current penetrates to the north of the equator, bringing northern hemisphere relatively cold waters from the southern hemisphere, and in winter changing its direction to the south and carrying relatively warm waters from the north.
The structure of the continent's surface is quite uniform. Plains and plateaus with heights from 200 to 1000 m predominate; there are few lowlands. The most extensive plateaus are East African and South African. Elevated areas alternate with basins, the most extensive of which are the Kalahara basin, etc. Highest point– (5895 m), the lowest is Lake Asal (-150 m). Average height– 600 m above sea level.
The relief features are associated with the history of the development of the continent. At the heart of the continent lies the ancient African Arabian Plate - part of the fractured Gandwana. The platform was formed by archaea and praterazoa and acquired greater stability. Only the Atlas Mountains in the north and the Cape in the south created by later movements earth's crust. The huge African hill experienced rising and falling, while northern part The continent sank more often than it rose and was flooded with seas. The crystalline foundation of the platform is covered by sedimentary rocks and only comes to the surface in the center of the Sahara and on the coast of the Gulf of Guinea. The relief of Eastern and Southern Africa was formed differently - the uplift of the earth's crust predominated, and giant faults, horsts and grabens were formed. Actively developed volcanic activity. There are many lava plains here, grabens are occupied by lakes. Volcanic eruptions still occur today. The rift belt is home to volcanoes, including Mount Kilimanjaro.
Africa's mineral resources are rich. The location of deposits is closely related to geological history And tectonic structure. Eastern and Southern (“high”) Africa, where the surface is dominated by igneous crystalline and metamorphic rocks, known for ores of black and non-ferrous, noble and rare metals. Diamond deposits are confined to kimberlite volcanic pipes in the depths of the platform. In the strata of sedimentary rocks of the Northern and West Africa reserves of phosphorites, oil and natural gas have accumulated (region of the Sahara Plate), table salt, coal(Nigeria). Oil and gas are produced not only on land, but also on the Atlantic shelf. South Africa has significant reserves of coal, copper and uranium ores.
Africa is the hottest continent on the planet. On most of it average temperature any month above +20 ° C, which is explained by the location of most of the continent between the tropics, where the sun stands high above the horizon throughout the year, and twice a year it is at its zenith. The seasons of the year differ more from each other in terms of the conditions of the holiday. Features are determined by circulation, on which the amount of precipitation and its pattern largely depend. A belt is formed over the equatorial part of the continent low pressure, and in tropical latitudes - belts high pressure. These belts move following the zenital position of the sun and determine the movement of equatorial, tropical and temperate air masses over the continent. Almost the entire continent is under the influence of constant winds - trade winds. The northeast trade winds that come from land bring almost no moisture, while the southeast trade winds carry it from the Indian Ocean. In subtropical latitudes winter months precipitation falls from moderate air masses dominated by westerly air transport from the Atlantic Ocean. Relief also influences the distribution of precipitation. Cool and high banks continents make it difficult for humid winds to penetrate from the ocean into the interior of the continent. More precipitation falls on the windward slopes of the mountains. On the slopes of Mount Cameroon, their number reaches 10,000 mm per year. The driest areas are located not only inside the mainland, but also in its Pryakian parts. Thus, the western coast of the continent in tropical latitudes is washed by cold currents. The air above them becomes colder than in upper layers, its outline is difficult. Apart from dew and fog, there is almost no precipitation here. On the mainland there are equatorial, two subequatorial, two tropical and two subtropical. Within some of them there are differences that are determined by the amount of precipitation and its regime.
Introduction
1.History of the formation and exploration of the Indian Ocean
2.General information about the Indian Ocean
Bottom relief.
.Characteristics of the waters of the Indian Ocean.
.Bottom sediments of the Indian Ocean and its structure
.Minerals
.Indian Ocean climate
.Vegetable and fauna
.Fisheries and marine activities
Introduction
Indian Ocean- the youngest and warmest among the world's oceans. Most of it is located in the southern hemisphere, and in the north it extends far into the mainland, which is why ancient people considered it simply big sea. It was here, in the Indian Ocean, that man began his first sea voyages.
The largest rivers in Asia belong to the Indian Ocean basin: the Salween, the Irrawaddy and the Ganges with the Brahmaputra, which flow into the Bay of Bengal; Indus, flowing into the Arabian Sea; The Tigris and Euphrates merge slightly above their confluence with the Persian Gulf. From large rivers Africa, which also flows into the Indian Ocean, should be called the Zambezi and Limpopo. Because of them, the water off the ocean coast is cloudy, with a high content of sedimentary rocks - sand, silt and clay. But open waters the oceans are amazingly clean. The tropical islands of the Indian Ocean are famous for their cleanliness. A variety of animals have found their home on coral reefs. The Indian Ocean is home to the famous sea devils, rare whale sharks, largemouths, sea cows, sea snakes, etc.
1. History of formation and research
Indian Oceanformed at the junction of the Jurassic and Cretaceous periods as a result of the collapse of Gondwana (130-150 million years ago). Then there was a separation of Africa and the Deccan from Australia with Antarctica, and later - of Australia from Antarctica (in the Paleogene, about 50 million years ago).
The Indian Ocean and its shores remain poorly studied. The name Indian Ocean is found already in early XVI Art. by Schöner under the name Oceanus orientalis indicus, in contrast to the Atlantic Ocean, then known as Oceanus occidentalis. Subsequent geographers called the Indian Ocean mostly sea of India, some (Varenius) Australian Ocean, and Fleuriet recommended (in the 18th century) to call it even the Great Indian Gulf, considering it as part of the Pacific Ocean.
In ancient times (3000-1000 BC), sailors from India, Egypt and Phenicia traveled through the northern part of the Indian Ocean. First navigation maps were compiled by the ancient Arabs. At the end of the 15th century, the first European, the famous Portuguese Vasco da Gama, circumnavigated Africa from the south and entered the waters of the Indian Ocean. By the 16th-17th centuries, Europeans (the Portuguese, and later the Dutch, French and English) increasingly appeared in the Indian Ocean basin, and by mid-19th century, most of its coasts and islands were already the property of Great Britain.
History of discoverycan be divided into 3 periods: from ancient voyages to 1772; from 1772 to 1873 and from 1873 to the present. The first period is characterized by the study of the distribution of ocean and land waters in this part globe. It began with the first voyages of Indian, Egyptian and Phoenician sailors, who 3000-1000 BC. traveled through the northern part of the Indian Ocean, and ended with the voyage of J. Cook, who in 1772-75 penetrated the South to 71° S. w.
The second period was marked by the beginning of deep-sea exploration, first carried out by Cook in 1772 and continued by Russian and foreign expeditions. The main Russian expeditions were O. Kotzebue on the Rurik (1818) and Pallena on the Cyclone (1858-59).
The third period is characterized by complex oceanographic research. Until 1960 they were carried out on separate ships. Most major works were carried out by expeditions on the ships Challenger (English) in 1873-74, Vityaz (Russian) in 1886, Valdivia (German) in 1898-99 and Gauss (German) in 1901-03, Discovery II "(English) in 1930-51, the Soviet expedition to the Ob in 1956-58, etc. In 1960-65, the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Expedition under UNESCO carried out an international Indian Ocean expedition, which collected new valuable data on hydrology, hydrochemistry, meteorology, geology, geophysics and biology of the Indian Ocean.
. General information
Indian Ocean- the third largest ocean on Earth (after the Pacific and Atlantic), covering about 20% of its water surface. Almost all of it is located in the southern hemisphere. Its area is 74917 thousand km ² ; average volume water - 291945 thousand km ³. In the north it is limited by Asia, in the west - Arabian Peninsula and Africa, in the east - Indochina, the Sunda Islands and Australia, in the south - Southern Ocean. The border between the Indian and Atlantic Oceans runs along the 20° meridian of eastern longitude (meridian of Cape Agulhas), between Indian and Pacific Ocean passes along the 147° meridian of eastern longitude (meridian southern cape islands of Tasmania). The northernmost point of the Indian Ocean is approximately 30° northern latitude in the Persian Gulf. The Indian Ocean is approximately 10,000 km wide between the southern points of Australia and Africa.
Greatest depth The Indian Ocean is the Sunda or Java Trench (7729 m), average depth- 3700 m.
The Indian Ocean washes three continents at once: Africa from the east, Asia from the south, Australia from the north and northwest.
The Indian Ocean has the least number of seas compared to other oceans. In the northern part there are the largest seas: the Mediterranean - the Red Sea and the Persian Gulf, the semi-enclosed Andaman Sea and the marginal Arabian Sea; in the eastern part - the Arafura and Timor Seas.
In the Indian Ocean are the island states of Madagascar (the fourth largest island in the world), Sri Lanka, Maldives, Mauritius, Comoros, and Seychelles. The ocean washes the following states in the east: Australia, Indonesia; in the northeast: Malaysia, Thailand, Myanmar; in the north: Bangladesh, India, Pakistan; in the west: Oman, Somalia, Kenya, Tanzania, Mozambique, South Africa. In the south it borders with Antarctica. There are relatively few islands. In the open part of the ocean there are volcanic islands - Mascarene, Crozet, Prince Edward, etc. In tropical latitudes, coral islands rise on volcanic cones - the Maldives, Laccadives, Chagos, Cocos, most Andaman, etc.
. Bottom relief
The ocean floor is a system of mid-ocean ridges and basins. In the area of Rodriguez Island (Mascarene archipelago) there is a so-called triple junction, where the Central Indian and West Indian ridges, as well as the Australian-Antarctic Rise, converge. The ridges consist of steep mountain ranges, cut by faults perpendicular or oblique to the axes of the chains and divide the basalt ocean floor into 3 segments, and their peaks are, as a rule, extinct volcanoes. The bottom of the Indian Ocean is covered with sediments of Cretaceous and more later periods, the layer thickness of which ranges from several hundred meters to 2-3 km. The deepest of the ocean's many trenches is the Java Trench (4,500 km long and 29 km wide). Rivers flowing into the Indian Ocean carry with them huge quantities of sediment, especially from India, creating high sediment thresholds.
The Indian Ocean coast is replete with cliffs, deltas, atolls, coastal coral reefs and salt marshes covered with mangroves. Some islands - for example, Madagascar, Socotra, the Maldives - are fragments of ancient continents. Numerous islands and archipelagos of volcanic origin are scattered in the open part of the Indian Ocean. In the northern part of the ocean, many of them are topped with coral structures. Andaman, Nicobar or Christmas Island - are of volcanic origin. The Kerguelen Plateau, located in the southern part of the ocean, is also of volcanic origin.
An underwater earthquake in the Indian Ocean that occurred on December 26, 2004 caused a tsunami that was recognized as the deadliest natural disaster V modern history. The magnitude of the earthquake was, according to various estimates, from 9.1 to 9.3. This is the second or third strongest earthquake on record.
The epicenter of the earthquake was in the Indian Ocean, north of the island of Simeulue, located off the northwestern coast of the island of Sumatra (Indonesia). The tsunami reached the shores of Indonesia, Sri Lanka, southern India, Thailand and other countries. The height of the waves exceeded 15 meters. The tsunami led to huge destruction and a huge number dead people, even in Port Elizabeth, South Africa, 6900 km from the epicenter. According to various estimates, from 225 thousand to 300 thousand people died. True number the deaths are unlikely to ever be known, as many people were swept out to sea.
As for the properties of the bottom soil, then, like in other oceans, sediments on the bottom of the Indian Ocean can be divided into three classes: coastal sediments, organic silt (globigerine, radiolar or diatom) and special clay of great depths, the so-called red clay. Coastal sediments are sand, located mostly on coastal shallows to a depth of 200 meters, green or blue silt near rocky shores, with a brown color in volcanic areas, but lighter and sometimes pinkish or yellowish near coral coasts due to the predominant lime. Globigerine mud, composed of microscopic foraminifera, covers the deeper parts ocean floor almost to a depth of 4500 m; south of the parallel 50° S. w. calcareous foraminiferal deposits disappear and are replaced by microscopic siliceous, from the group of algae, diatoms. Regarding the accumulation of diatom remains at the bottom southern part The Indian Ocean is particularly different from other oceans, where diatoms are found only locally. Red clay occurs at depths greater than 4500 m; it is red, or brown, or chocolate in color.
Indian Ocean climate fossil fishery
4. Water characteristics
Surface water circulationin the northern part of the Indian Ocean it has a monsoon character: in summer - northeastern and eastern currents, in winter - southwestern and western currents. In the winter months between 3° and 8° S. w. The inter-trade wind (equatorial) countercurrent develops. In the southern part of the Indian Ocean, water circulation forms an anticyclonic gyre, which is formed from warm currents- Southern Trade Wind in the North, Madagascar and Agulhas in the West and cold - currents of the Western Winds in the South and Western Australian in the East South of 55° S. w. Several weak cyclonic water circulations develop, closing off the coast of Antarctica with an eastern current.
Indian Ocean water beltbetween 10 ° With. w. and 10 ° Yu. w. called the thermal equator, where the surface water temperature is 28-29°C. To the south of this zone the temperature drops, reaching about 1°C off the coast of Antarctica. In January and February, the ice along the coast of this continent melts, huge ice blocks break off from the ice cover of Antarctica and drift towards open ocean. To the north, the temperature characteristics of the waters are determined by the monsoon air circulation. In summer, temperature anomalies are observed here when the Somali Current cools surface water up to a temperature of 21-23°C. In the eastern part of the ocean on the same geographical latitude The water temperature is 28°C, and the highest temperature - about 30°C - was recorded in the Persian Gulf and the Red Sea. The average salinity of ocean waters is 34.8‰ The waters of the Persian Gulf, Red and Arabian Seas are the most saline: this is explained by intense evaporation with a small amount of fresh water brought into the seas by rivers.
Tides in the Indian Ocean, as a rule, are small (off the coast of the open ocean and on the islands from 0.5 to 1.6 m), only at the tops of some bays they reach 5-7 m; in the Gulf of Cambay 11.9 m. The tides are predominantly semidiurnal.
Ice forms in high latitudes and is carried by winds and currents along with icebergs in a northerly direction (up to 55° S in August and up to 65-68 S in February).
. Bottom sediments of the Indian Ocean and its structure
Bottom sedimentsIndian Ocean have the greatest thickness (up to 3-4 km) at the foot of the continental slopes; in the middle of the ocean - small (about 100 m) thickness and in places where dissected relief is distributed - intermittent distribution. The most widely represented are foraminiferal (on continental slopes, ridges and on the bottom of most basins at a depth of up to 4700 m), diatoms (south of 50° S), radiolarian (near the equator) and coral sediments. Polygenic sediments - red deep-sea clays - are common south of the equator at a depth of 4.5-6 km or more. Terrigenous sediments - off the coast of continents. Chemogenic sediments are represented mainly by ferromanganese nodules, and riftogenic sediments are represented by products of destruction of deep rocks. Outcrops of bedrock are most often found on continental slopes (sedimentary and metamorphic rocks), mountains (basalts) and mid-ocean ridges, where, in addition to basalts, serpentinites and peridotites, representing the slightly altered material of the Earth's upper mantle, were found.
The Indian Ocean is characterized by the predominance of stable tectonic structures both on the bed (thalassocratons) and along the periphery (continental platforms); active developing structures - modern geosynclines (Sunda arc) and georiftogenals (mid-ocean ridge) - occupy smaller areas and are continued in the corresponding structures of Indochina and rifts East Africa. These main macrostructures, sharply different in morphology, structure of the earth’s crust, seismic activity, volcanism, are divided into more small structures: slabs usually corresponding to the bottom oceanic basins, block ridges, volcanic ridges, in some places topped with coral islands and banks (Chagos, Maldives, etc.), fault trenches (Chagos, Obi, etc.), often confined to the foot of block ridges (East Indian, Western Australian, Maldives etc.), fault zones, tectonic ledges. Among the structures of the Indian Ocean floor special place(by the presence of continental rocks - granites of the Seychelles and the continental type of the earth's crust) occupies the northern part of the Mascarene Range - a structure that is apparently part of the ancient continent of Gondwana.
. Minerals
The most important mineral resources of the Indian Ocean are oil and natural gas. Their deposits are located on the shelves of the Persian and Suez Gulfs, in the Bass Strait, and on the shelf of the Hindustan Peninsula. The Indian Ocean ranks first in the world in terms of reserves and production of these minerals. On the coasts of Mozambique, the islands of Madagascar and Ceylon, ilmenite, monazite, rutile, titanite and zirconium are exploited. There are deposits of barite and phosphorite off the coasts of India and Australia, and deposits of cassiterite and ilmenite are exploited on an industrial scale in the offshore zones of Indonesia, Thailand and Malaysia. On the shelves - oil and gas (especially the Persian Gulf), monazite sands (coastal region of South-West India), etc.; in reef zones - ores of chromium, iron, manganese, copper, etc.; on the bed there are huge accumulations of ferromanganese nodules.
. ClimateIndian Ocean
Most of the Indian Ocean is located in warm climatic zones- equatorial, subequatorial and tropical. Only him southern regions located at high latitudes experience strong influence Antarctica. The equatorial climate zone of the Indian Ocean is characterized by the constant predominance of moist, warm equatorial air. Average monthly temperatures here range from 27° to 29°. The water temperature is slightly higher than the air temperature, which creates favorable conditions for convection and precipitation formation. Their annual amount is large - up to 3000 mm or more.
. Flora and fauna
The Indian Ocean is home to the most dangerous mollusks in the world - cone snails. Inside the snail there is a rod-like container with poison, which it injects into its prey (fish, worms); its poison is also dangerous for humans.
The entire Indian Ocean lies within the tropical and southern temperate zones. The shallow waters of the tropical zone are characterized by numerous 6- and 8-rayed corals and hydrocorals, which, together with calcareous red algae, can create islands and atolls. Among the powerful coral structures lives a rich fauna of various invertebrates (sponges, worms, crabs, mollusks, sea urchins, brittle stars and starfish), small but brightly colored coral fish. Most of the coasts are occupied by mangroves, in which the mudskipper, a fish capable of long time exist in air environment. The fauna and flora of beaches and cliffs that dry out at low tide are quantitatively depleted as a result of the inhibitory effect sun rays. IN temperate zone life on such sections of the coast is much richer; Dense thickets of red and brown algae (kelp, fucus, reaching enormous sizes of microcystis) develop here, and a variety of invertebrates are abundant. The open spaces of the Indian Ocean, especially the surface layer of the water column (up to 100 m), are also characterized by a rich flora. Among unicellular planktonic algae, several species of peredinium and diatoms, and in the Arabian Sea - blue-green algae, which often causes mass development so-called water bloom.
The bulk of ocean animals are crustaceans - copepods (more than 100 species), followed by pteropods, jellyfish, siphonophores and other invertebrate animals. The most common unicellular organisms are radiolarians; Squids are numerous. Of the fish, the most abundant are several species of flying fish, luminous anchovies - myctophids, coryphaenas, large and small tuna, sailfish and various sharks, poisonous sea snakes. Sea turtles and large marine mammals (dugongs, toothed and toothless whales, pinnipeds) are common. Among the birds, the most typical are albatrosses and frigatebirds, as well as several species of penguins that inhabit the coasts of South Africa, Antarctica and islands lying in the temperate zone of the ocean.
At night, the surface of the Indian Ocean shimmers with lights. Light is produced by small marine plants called dinoflagellates. The glowing areas sometimes have the shape of a wheel with a diameter of 1.5 m.
. Fisheries and marine activities
Fisheries are poorly developed (the catch does not exceed 5% of the world catch) and is limited to local coastal zone. There is tuna fishing near the equator (Japan), and whale fishing in Antarctic waters. Pearls and mother-of-pearl are mined in Sri Lanka, the Bahrain Islands and the northwestern coast of Australia.
The countries of the Indian Ocean also have significant resources of other valuable types of mineral raw materials (tin, iron and manganese ores, natural gas, diamonds, phosphorites, etc.).
References:
1.Encyclopedia "Science" Dorling Kindersley.
.“I'm exploring the world. Geography" V.A. Markin
3.slovari.yandex.ru ~ TSB books / Indian Ocean /
4.Big encyclopedic dictionary Brockhausa F.A., Efron I.A.
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Africa, the second largest continent.
Area - 29.22 million km2. It is symmetrical relative to the equator and lies almost entirely between the tropics. Has the least ruggedness coastline(the largest peninsula is Somalia, the largest Gulf of Guinea), washed by the waters of the Indian and Atlantic oceans. Red and Mediterranean seas. Connected to Eurasia by the Isthmus of Suez.
Geological structure and relief.
At the base of the continent is an ancient platform with heavily destroyed folded formations. In the South and East, the crystalline base comes to the surface. Here is a zone of deep faults in the earth's crust (uplifts (horsts) - the Ethiopian Highlands and the East African Plateau, Drakensberg Mountains; subsidences (grabens) - basins of lakes Nyasa and Tanganyika). Volcanoes Cameroon, Kilimanjaro. The platform is adjacent to mobile folded zones: in the North - the Atlas, in the South - the Cape Mountains.
Deposits of ferrous, non-ferrous and precious metal ores and diamonds are confined to the crystalline shields of the east and south. In the North and West there are reserves of coal, bauxite, phosphorites, oil, and gas.
Climate zones
Average temperatures are not lower than 8 °C. The amount of precipitation is maximum in the Congo River basin (up to 3000 mm), minimum in the Sahara (less than 300 mm).
The equatorial belt is constantly humid and hot.
Two subequatorial belts- hot with seasonal changes in air masses: the summer equatorial monsoon brings heavy rainfall, the winter monsoon brings dry, hot weather.
Two tropical zones characterized by dry weather throughout the year. Daily t amplitudes are greater than annual ones, in summer 40 °C, in winter 18 °C. There is more precipitation in the South.
Temperate along the west coast air masses and the cold Bengal Current formed relatively cool areas (20 °C in summer, 15 °C in winter) with precipitation in the form of dew and fog (Namib).
Lakes and rivers.
It is relatively typical for Africa small quantity rivers, their uneven distribution, the presence of vast areas of internal drainage, rapids and waterfalls. The rivers are predominantly rain-fed and the flow regime corresponds to the precipitation regime.
Most of the large rivers belong to the Atlantic Ocean basin (Nile, Congo, Niger, Senegal).
The Indian Ocean basin includes the Zambezi and Limpopo.
Natural areas.
Evergreens predominate in Africa equatorial forests, gilei. The soils are ferrallitic. In the upper tier there are ficus and palm trees, in the lower tier there are bananas and tree ferns, ebony.
The fauna of the ground layer is relatively sparse (of the ungulates - okapi, pygmy hippopotamus, gorillas), in the crowns there are a lot of birds (turacos, hornbills, sunbirds), monkeys (monkeys, colobus monkeys, chimpanzees). Everywhere - invertebrates, frogs, snakes (pythons, mambas), in the rivers - crocodiles.
Savannas and woodlands. They occupy about 40% of the continent. Soils - from red ferrallite
to red-brown. From woody plants- baobab, umbrella acacias, mimosa, palm trees, tree-like euphorbia.
Typical are herbaceous plants (legumes, bulbous plants, tall grasses - elephant grass).
Abundance of large ungulates (giraffes, buffalos, antelopes, gazelles, zebras, rhinoceroses, elephants) and predators (lions, hyenas, cheetahs, jackals). Monkeys (baboons) are common, and birds include ostriches, weaver birds, crowned cranes, secretary birds, marabou, and vultures. Lizards and snakes are numerous.
Deserts and semi-deserts occupy vast areas. The deserts of the south and north of the continent differ greatly (see also Sahara, Namib, Kalahari). Rocky deserts - gammadas, clayey and sandy - are widespread in the Sahara. The soils are desert tropical. The vegetation is sparse, dominated by saltworts, grasses, and various thorny forms. In the oases there are date palms and oleanders.
The fauna of the northern deserts is similar to the deserts of Asia - jerboas, gerbils, fennec foxes, jackals, hyenas. Many snakes (efa, viper, cobra) and lizards, invertebrates. Typical for the deserts of the south more endemic, a wide variety of turtles.
Subtropical hard-leaved forests. Characteristic of the Atlas and Cape Mountains. The soils are brown. Laurel and different types oaks, pine is often found. The Cape Mountains have many beautifully flowering endemics grown as houseplants. Most of the subtropics are developed for citrus and grape plantations.
Districts altitudinal zone. Characteristic of the Atlas, Drakensberg and Cape Mountains, East African Plateau. Ethiopian and other highlands.
About 600 million people live in Africa. Representatives of the Caucasoid ( North Africa Berbers and Arabs), Equatorial (main population) and Mongoloid (South Africa, Bushmen and Hottentots) races. The population is unevenly distributed. The most populated areas are the Mediterranean coast and the shores of the Gulf of Guinea.
Indian Ocean less extensive than the Pacific and Atlantic oceans.
Its area is 76 million km2. This ocean is widest in the Southern Hemisphere, and in the Northern Hemisphere it looks like a large sea cutting deeply into the land. Exactly large sea The Indian Ocean appeared to people from the ancient times of Ptolemy until the era of the Great Geographical Discoveries.
The shores of the Indian Ocean are one of the areas of ancient civilizations. Scientists believe that navigation in it began earlier than in other oceans, approximately 6 thousand years ago. The Arabs were the first to describe ocean routes. Accumulation geographical information about the Indian Ocean began with the voyage of Vasco de Gama (1497-1499). IN late XVIII centuries, the first soundings of its depths were carried out by the English navigator James Cook. Comprehensive study of the ocean began in late XIX century. Most major studies were carried out by the British expedition on the Challenger ship. These days, dozens of expeditions from different countries study the nature of the ocean, reveal its riches.
The average ocean depth is about 3,700 meters, and the maximum reaches 7,729 meters in the Java Trench. In the western part of the ocean there is an underwater ridge connecting south of Africa with the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Confined to the center of the ridge in the Indian Ocean deep faults, areas of earthquakes and volcanism on the ocean floor. These faults continue into the Red Sea and reach land. The ocean floor is crossed by numerous rises.
If the waters of the Pacific Ocean delight with their blue color, then the waters of the Indian Ocean are famous for the transparency of their dark blue and azure waters. Of course, this is due to their purity, since little goes into the ocean. fresh water rivers - “disturbers of purity”, especially in its southern part.
The waters of the Indian Ocean are somewhat more salty than the average in the World Ocean. This is especially noticeable in the northwestern part of the ocean, where high temperature The hot breath of the Sahara is added to the water. The record holder for salinity is the Red Sea (up to 42%) and the Persian Gulf. The northern part of the Indian Ocean is significantly influenced by land; it rightfully deserves the name “monsoon sea”. In winter, dry air flows from largest continent- Eurasia. In summer the situation changes dramatically. Overheated ocean waters saturate the air with a huge amount of moisture, it moves to the mainland and bursts with heavy rain over the south of the continent. The winds of the summer monsoon are preceded by thunderstorms and sea swells that break on the southwestern shores of Hindustan. In autumn and spring, typhoons appear in the north of the Indian Ocean, managing to cause a lot of trouble on the shores of the Bay of Bengal and Arabian Sea. The tides in the north of the ocean are weak, only sometimes they reach 7 meters. Another thing is a single tidal wave rising along the river mouth at a speed of 10 miles per hour and reaching a height of 10 meters.
The southern Indian Ocean experiences a significant cooling influence from Antarctica; This is where the harshest areas of the ocean are located.
The Indian Ocean is generally less favorable for coral life. This is influenced by steep banks, the monsoon climate, the influx of fresh water from the north, and cool currents. Therefore, individual coral spots predominate here. These are, for example, the Laccadive and Maldives islands, stretching south from the Hindustan Peninsula. These islands represent the longest and most continuous chains of coral islands in the world.
The fish resources of the Indian Ocean have long been used by humans, especially since for many coastal residents, especially in the north, this is the only source of food. The fishery for sea cucumbers - sea cucumbers, which the Chinese love very much, is very developed. Pearls have been mined here for a long time. The coastal regions of Ceylon (Sri Lanka) have been a source of diamonds, emeralds and other precious stones since ancient times. Oil and gas reserves have been discovered in the sedimentary rocks of the Persian Gulf.
Location: The Indian Ocean is limited to the north by Eurasia, to the west by east coast Africa, from the east - west coast Oceania and Australia, from the south - by the waters of the South Sea, the border of the Atlantic and Indian oceans runs along the 20th meridian c. d., between the Indian and Pacific Oceans - along the 147° meridian east. d.
Area: 74.7 million sq. km.
