Indian Ocean: Location and Geography

The third-largest body of water in the world, the Indian Ocean makes up 20% of the planet's water surface. Its name comes from the fact that it is bordered by Southern Asia, which includes the Indian subcontinent, on the north; the Arabian Peninsula and Africa on the west; the Malay Peninsula, the Sunda Islands, and Australia on the east; and the Southern Ocean on the south.

The 147⁰ east meridian and the 20⁰ east meridian, which extend south from Cape Agulhas, divide it from the Pacific Ocean and the Atlantic Ocean, respectively. The Persian Gulf is located at a latitude of around 30° north, which is the northernmost point of the Indian Ocean. This ocean spans 73,556,000 square kilometres (28,400,000 mi2), includes the Red Sea and the Persian Gulf, and is almost 10,000 kilometres (6,200 miles) wide at the southernmost points of Africa and Australia.

According to estimates, the ocean has a volume of 292,131,000 cubic kilometres (70,086,000 mi3). Small islands dot the edges of the continents. Due to its significance as a passageway between Asia and Africa, the ocean has become a site of strife. However, due to its immensity, no country had managed to successfully conquer the majority of it until the early 1800s, when Britain ruled over most of the nearby territory. India and Australia have ruled the ocean since World War II.

Physical Features

In the Indian Ocean, the crustal plates of Africa, India, and Antarctica meet. The Mid-Oceanic Ridge, whose stem runs south from the edge of the continental shelf at Mumbai, India, forms an inverted Y at its intersections. Ridges separate the resulting eastern, western, and southern basins into smaller basins. The continental shelves of the ocean are small, with an average width of 200 km (125 mi). Off the western coast of Australia, where the shelf spans more than 1,000 kilometres (600 miles), there is an exception.

The ocean's average depth is 3,890 meters (12,760 feet). Its deepest point is thought to be 7,450 meters (24,442 feet) below sea level, in the Java Trench. 86% of the major basin is covered by pelagic sediments north of 50° south latitude, more than half of which is globigerina ooze. Terrigenous sediments are layered throughout the remaining 14%. The most southern latitudes are dominated by glacial outwash.

The southern parts of the Indian Ocean were removed from the definition of a fifth world ocean, which was made in spring 2000 by the International Hydrographic Organization. The new ocean covers the area between the northern coast of Antarctica and 60° south latitude, which is also the Antarctic Treaty Limit. Of the five oceans in the world, the Indian Ocean continues to be the third largest. Bab el Mandeb, the Strait of Hormuz, the Strait of Malacca, the southern entrance to the Suez Canal, and the Lombok Strait are significant chokepoints.

Along with other tributary water bodies, seas include the Andaman Sea, Arabian Sea, Bay of Bengal, Great Australian Bight, Gulf of Aden, Gulf of Oman, Laccadive Sea, Mozambique Channel, Persian Gulf, Red Sea, Strait of Malacca, and others.

Geology

Of the three great oceans, the Indian Ocean's genesis and evolution are the most difficult to understand. It was formed as a result of the southern supercontinent Gondwana's breakup, which started about 180 million years ago, the Indian subcontinent's movement to the northeast (which started about 125 million years ago), which started colliding with Eurasia about 50 million years ago, the western movement of Africa, and the separation of Australia from Antarctica about 53 million years ago.

The Indian Ocean's current shape had been adopted about 36 million years ago. Nearly the whole Indian Ocean basin is younger than 80 million years, despite the fact that it was formed some 140 million years ago.

Climate

The Indian Ocean is distinctive due to several factors. The large-scale Tropical Warm Pool, which it forms the core of, interacts with the atmosphere to effect both regional and global climates. Asia hinders the ventilation of the Indian Ocean thermocline and blocks heat export. That continent is also responsible for the greatest monsoon on Earth, which originates in the Indian Ocean and causes large-scale seasonal fluctuations in ocean currents, including the reversal of the Indian Monsoon Current and the Somali Current.

There are no constant equatorial easterlies due to the Indian Ocean Walker circulation. In the Northern Hemisphere, upwelling occurs close to the Horn of Africa and the Arabian Peninsula, whereas in the Southern Hemisphere, it occurs to the north of the trade winds. Unlike any other Equatorial connection to the Pacific, the Indonesian Throughflow.

A monsoon wind system has an impact on the climate in the regions north of the equator. From October through April, there are strong northeast winds; from May through October, south and west winds are more common. The ferocious monsoon from the Arabian Sea brings rain to the Indian subcontinent. Although summer storms near Mauritius can be strong, winds are often calmer in the southern hemisphere.

Cyclones can occasionally hit the coasts of the Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal when the monsoon winds change. The world's warmest ocean is the Indian Ocean. Ocean temperature records over a long period of time reveal a rapid, ongoing warming in the Indian Ocean.

Islands

Compared to the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, the Indian Ocean has fewer islands. Fourteen continental fragments make up the world's fourth-largest island, Madagascar, as well as the Maldives, Seychelles, Socotra, and Sri Lanka. The Amirante, Andaman and Nicobar, Chagos, Crozet, Kerguelen, and Sunda groups, as well as the Comoros, Lakshadweep (Laccadive, Minicoy, and Amindivi islands), Mauritius, and Réunion, are volcanically formed islands. The other islands include Christmas, Cocos, Farquhar, Prince Edward, Saint-Paul, and Amsterdam. Island arc-trench subduction systems, the Andamans and Sundas have the trench on the oceanic side of the arc.

River System

Surface waters of the Indian Ocean range in salinity from 32 to 37 parts per thousand, with significant regional variations. Half the size of the Atlantic basin at 21,100,000 km2 (8,100,000 sq. mi), the Indian Ocean drainage basin accounts for 30% of the ocean's surface (as opposed to 15% for the Pacific). About 800 distinct basins make up the Indian Ocean drainage basin, which is half as many as the Pacific. Of these, 50% are in Asia, 30% are in Africa, and 20% are in Australasia.

The average length of the rivers in the Indian Ocean is 740 km (460 mi) shorter than that of the rivers in the other major oceans. The five greatest rivers are the Zambezi, Ganges-Brahmaputra, Indus, Jubba, and Murray, whereas the three smallest rivers are the Shatt al-Arab, Wadi Ad Dawasir (an Arabian Peninsula River system that has dried up), and Limpopo. The Ganges and Brahmaputra rivers run into the Bengal delta, also known as the Sundarbans, which is the largest delta in the world. This delta was created after East Gondwana broke apart and the Himalayas were formed.

Conclusion

With its strategic location and massive size, the Indian Ocean is of utmost importance to both India and the rest of the world. It is a complicated and captivating body of water due to its varied physical characteristics, distinctive climatic patterns, and geological history. Since ancient times, the Indian Ocean has been a hub of human activity, and its impact on the world's economy and climate is still felt today.

FAQs

1. What is the Indian Ocean's size?

The Indian Ocean is the third-largest ocean in the world with a surface area of roughly 73.5 million square kilometres.

2. Which countries border the Indian Ocean?

The Indian Ocean is bounded on the north by Southern Asia, which includes the Indian subcontinent; on the west by Africa and the Arabian Peninsula; on the east by Australia and the Malay Peninsula; and on the south by the Southern Ocean.

3. How deep is the Indian Ocean?

The Java Trench is thought to have the deepest point in the Indian Ocean, which is estimated to be 7,450 meters (24,442 feet) below sea level. The average depth of the Indian Ocean is roughly 3,890 meters (12,760 feet).

4. What role does the monsoon play in the Indian Ocean climate?

The summer monsoon brings rain to the Indian subcontinent, and the monsoon wind system affects the climate in areas north of the equator by creating seasonal changes in ocean currents.

5. How many rivers drain into the Indian Ocean?

The Ganges-Brahmaputra, Zambezi, Indus, Jubba, and Murray are the five major rivers that flow into the Indian Ocean, which is comprised of roughly 800 different basins.