Oskarshamn archipelago
Encyclopedia
Oskarshamn archipelago is a cluster of island and islets in the Baltic Sea
, located in the south-east of Sweden
within the borders of Oskarshamn
municipality.
extends roughly 55 kilometers in a north-south direction, with a chain of islands along the coastline of Småland
. The archipelago consists of approximately 5,500 islands and islets.
Most of the islands consist of granite
rock. The bedrock has been shaped and smoothed by the glaciers at the end of the last ice age
, about 11,000 years ago. The largest island named Runnö is located in the south part of the archipelago. Other larger islands are Blå Jungfrun
(national park), Furö, Storö, Ekö and Vinö.
and in Figeholm
as well as natural harbours on many of the islands.
Baltic Sea
The Baltic Sea is a brackish mediterranean sea located in Northern Europe, from 53°N to 66°N latitude and from 20°E to 26°E longitude. It is bounded by the Scandinavian Peninsula, the mainland of Europe, and the Danish islands. It drains into the Kattegat by way of the Øresund, the Great Belt and...
, located in the south-east of Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
within the borders of Oskarshamn
Oskarshamn
Oskarshamn is a coastal city and the seat of Oskarshamn Municipality, Kalmar County, Sweden with 17,258 inhabitants in 2010.-History:The location of Oskarshamn was known as Döderhultsvik since the Medieval age...
municipality.
General description
The archipelagoArchipelago
An archipelago , sometimes called an island group, is a chain or cluster of islands. The word archipelago is derived from the Greek ἄρχι- – arkhi- and πέλαγος – pélagos through the Italian arcipelago...
extends roughly 55 kilometers in a north-south direction, with a chain of islands along the coastline of Småland
Småland
' is a historical province in southern Sweden.Småland borders Blekinge, Scania or Skåne, Halland, Västergötland, Östergötland and the island Öland in the Baltic Sea. The name Småland literally means Small Lands. . The latinized form Smolandia has been used in other languages...
. The archipelago consists of approximately 5,500 islands and islets.
Most of the islands consist of granite
Granite
Granite is a common and widely occurring type of intrusive, felsic, igneous rock. Granite usually has a medium- to coarse-grained texture. Occasionally some individual crystals are larger than the groundmass, in which case the texture is known as porphyritic. A granitic rock with a porphyritic...
rock. The bedrock has been shaped and smoothed by the glaciers at the end of the last ice age
Ice age
An ice age or, more precisely, glacial age, is a generic geological period of long-term reduction in the temperature of the Earth's surface and atmosphere, resulting in the presence or expansion of continental ice sheets, polar ice sheets and alpine glaciers...
, about 11,000 years ago. The largest island named Runnö is located in the south part of the archipelago. Other larger islands are Blå Jungfrun
Blå Jungfrun
Blå Jungfrun, or "Blåkulla", is a Swedish island in the Baltic Sea. More precisely, it is situated in Kalmar Strait, between the provinces Småland and Öland. Administratively, it belongs to the municipality Oskarshamn. It is uninhabited and has an area of only about 0.7 km², though it rises 86...
(national park), Furö, Storö, Ekö and Vinö.
Boat travelling
There are tourist boats which cruise the waters of Oskarshamn archipelago. There are also five guest harbours for leisure boating, for example in OskarshamnOskarshamn
Oskarshamn is a coastal city and the seat of Oskarshamn Municipality, Kalmar County, Sweden with 17,258 inhabitants in 2010.-History:The location of Oskarshamn was known as Döderhultsvik since the Medieval age...
and in Figeholm
Figeholm
Figeholm is a locality situated in Oskarshamn Municipality, Kalmar County, Sweden with 802 inhabitants in 2005....
as well as natural harbours on many of the islands.