Saba Bank
Encyclopedia
Saba Bank in the Caribbean Netherlands is the largest submarine atoll
in the Atlantic Ocean and has some of the richest diversity of marine life in the Caribbean Sea
.
Its northeastern side lies about 4.3 km southwest of the island of Saba. It is raised about 1000 m above the general depths of the surrounding sea floor. With a length of 60 to 65 km and a width of 30 to 40 km, the atoll's total surface area is approximately 2200 km², as measured from 11-200 metre depth, 1600 km² of which is shallower than 50 m.
From northeast the bank extends about 55 km southwest, with a least reported depth of 7.3 m located about 15 km southwest of Mount Scenery
. A depth of 8.2 m lies about 16 km south of the island. The eastern side of the bank is fringed with a ridge of living coral
, sand and rock, nearly 48 km in length. The depths over the ridge range from 11 to 35 m. Westward of this ridge, except for a few 16.5 m and 18.3 m coral patches near the south side of the bank, and a 16.4 m patch near the west end of the bank, the bottom is clear white coral sand with depths of from 21.9 to 36.6 m, gradually increasing towards the edge of the bank, but ending abruptly in depths of 54.9 m. In depths of under 20 m, the bottom can be distinctly seen.
About one third of the Saba Bank lies within the Saba territorial waters, 12 nautical miles (22 km) zone. Around it is an Exclusive Economic Zone
of the Netherlands
of 200 nautical mile
s outside the coastal baseline
, which replaced the Economic Fisheries Zone established before the dissolution of the Netherlands Antilles.
Atoll
An atoll is a coral island that encircles a lagoon partially or completely.- Usage :The word atoll comes from the Dhivehi word atholhu OED...
in the Atlantic Ocean and has some of the richest diversity of marine life in the Caribbean Sea
Caribbean Sea
The Caribbean Sea is a sea of the Atlantic Ocean located in the tropics of the Western hemisphere. It is bounded by Mexico and Central America to the west and southwest, to the north by the Greater Antilles, and to the east by the Lesser Antilles....
.
Its northeastern side lies about 4.3 km southwest of the island of Saba. It is raised about 1000 m above the general depths of the surrounding sea floor. With a length of 60 to 65 km and a width of 30 to 40 km, the atoll's total surface area is approximately 2200 km², as measured from 11-200 metre depth, 1600 km² of which is shallower than 50 m.
From northeast the bank extends about 55 km southwest, with a least reported depth of 7.3 m located about 15 km southwest of Mount Scenery
Mount Scenery
Mount Scenery is a potentially active volcano in the Caribbean Netherlands. Its lava dome forms the summit of the Saba island stratovolcano. At an elevation of 877 m, it is the highest point in both the Kingdom of the Netherlands, and, since the dissolution of the Netherlands Antilles on 10...
. A depth of 8.2 m lies about 16 km south of the island. The eastern side of the bank is fringed with a ridge of living coral
Coral
Corals are marine animals in class Anthozoa of phylum Cnidaria typically living in compact colonies of many identical individual "polyps". The group includes the important reef builders that inhabit tropical oceans and secrete calcium carbonate to form a hard skeleton.A coral "head" is a colony of...
, sand and rock, nearly 48 km in length. The depths over the ridge range from 11 to 35 m. Westward of this ridge, except for a few 16.5 m and 18.3 m coral patches near the south side of the bank, and a 16.4 m patch near the west end of the bank, the bottom is clear white coral sand with depths of from 21.9 to 36.6 m, gradually increasing towards the edge of the bank, but ending abruptly in depths of 54.9 m. In depths of under 20 m, the bottom can be distinctly seen.
About one third of the Saba Bank lies within the Saba territorial waters, 12 nautical miles (22 km) zone. Around it is an Exclusive Economic Zone
Exclusive Economic Zone
Under the law of the sea, an exclusive economic zone is a seazone over which a state has special rights over the exploration and use of marine resources, including production of energy from water and wind. It stretches from the seaward edge of the state's territorial sea out to 200 nautical...
of the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
of 200 nautical mile
Nautical mile
The nautical mile is a unit of length that is about one minute of arc of latitude along any meridian, but is approximately one minute of arc of longitude only at the equator...
s outside the coastal baseline
Baseline (sea)
A baseline is the line from which the seaward limits of a State's territorial sea and certain other maritime zones of jurisdiction are measured. Normally, a sea baseline follows the low-water line of a coastal State...
, which replaced the Economic Fisheries Zone established before the dissolution of the Netherlands Antilles.
External links
- PLoS ONEPLoS ONEPLoS ONE is an open access peer-reviewed scientific journal published by the Public Library of Science since 2006. It covers primary research from any discipline within science and medicine. All submissions go through an internal and external pre-publication peer review but are not excluded on the...
: Biodiversity of Saba Bank - Sailing Directions, Caribbean Sea, Vol. I
- Government Environmental Information