Red Sea Egypt | Facts, Map, Biography

The Red Sea is that narrow long body of water separating Northeast Africa from the Arabian Peninsula. In other words, the Sea marks the boundary between Africa and Southwest Asia.

The Red Sea Extends southeastward from Suez in Egypt for about 1900km to Bab El Mandab strait, which connects with the Gulf of Aden and the Arabian Sea.

The Sea covers a total marine surface of 440 000 km2 with 280km width. The Red Sea separates the coasts of Egypt, Sudan, and Eritrea to the West from those of Saudi Arabia and Yemen to the East.

The Sea is geologically young, created and shaped by a continuing process of rifting, subsidence, and pull-apart basin formation, starting roughly 24 million years ago.

The movement of Africa away from Arabia began about 55 million years ago. The Gulf of Suez opened up about 30 million years ago, and the northern part of the Red Sea about 20 million years ago.

The second phase began about 3 to 4 million years ago, creating the trough in the Gulf of Aqaba and the southern half of the Red Sea valley.

The Red Sea splits in the North into two parts

The Gulf of Suez

It is the northwestern arm of the Red Sea between Africa to the west and the Sinai Peninsula to the east of Egypt. The Gulf of Suez is a shallow and flat-bottomed basin, with a depth of 80m.

The Suez Gulf from its beginning at the strait of Jubal to its head at the city of Suez is 315km. Meanwhile, it varies in width between 19-30km. The Gulf of Aqaba links to the Mediterranean Sea by the Suez Canal.

Gulf of Aqaba

It is the northeastern arm of the Sea, separating Saudi Arabia from the Sinai Peninsula. The Gulf of Aqaba is 177km long and Its width varies between 19-27km.  it is very steep-sided and deep, reaching maximum depths of over 1,800 m. The gulf separates the rest of the Red Sea by the Straits of Tiran, with a sill about 250-300m deep.

The Aqaba Gulf is part of the complex and is a part of the East African Rift System. East African Rift System (EARS) is an active continental rift zone in East Africa.

The East African Rift began developing around the onset of the Miocene, 22–25 million years ago. Additionally, its head touches the Egyptian, Israeli, Jordanian, and Saudi Arabian boundaries. Although Dahab Sharm El-sheikh, Egypt, is the only sheltered harbour along the gulf.

Red Sea Importance

The Sea has unique and amazing coral reefs and clear and warm water. Despite this, the Sea has a diversity of species makes it potential for coastal tourism.

Tourism is an important source of foreign currency for underdeveloped countries that have no exportable natural resources. Tourist arrivals in the region approximately tripled between 1995 and 2010, reaching 33 million presences. Such development has created evident negative impacts on the marine environment.  Both direct and indirect (coastal zone runaway development).