Mediterranean Sea is an intercontinental sea that stretches from the Atlantic Ocean on the west to Asia on the east and separates Europe from Africa.
It has often been called the incubator of Western civilization.
Extent of Mediterranean Sea
This ancient “sea between the lands” occupies a deep, elongated, and almost landlocked irregular depression lying between latitudes 30° and 46° N and longitudes 5°50′ W and 36° E.
Its west-east extent—from the Strait of Gibraltar between Spain and Morocco to the shores of the Gulf of Iskenderun on the southwestern coast of Turkey—is approximately 4,000 km, and its average north-south extent, between Croatia’s southernmost shores and Libya, is about 800 km.
Strait of Gibraltar– connects the Atlantic Ocean to the Mediterranean Sea and separates Spain from Morocco .
Area of Mediterranean Sea
The Mediterranean Sea, including the Sea of Marmara, occupies an area of approximately 2,510,000 square km.
Depth of Mediterranean Sea
The Mediterranean Sea has an average depth of 1,500 m and the deepest recorded point is 5,267 m in the Calypso Deep in the Ionian Sea.
Extensions of Mediterranean Sea
The Mediterranean Sea is connected to the Atlantic Ocean by the Strait of Gibraltar in the west and to the Sea of Marmara and the Black Sea, by the Dardanelles and the Bosporus respectively, in the east.
The Sea of Marmara (Dardanelles) is often considered a part of the Mediterranean Sea, whereas the Black Sea is generally not.
The 163 km long artificial Suez Canal in the southeast connects the Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea.
Important Islands of Mediterranean Sea
Large islands in the Mediterranean include Cyprus, Crete, Rhodes, Andros , Sicily, Cres, Malta , Sardinia, Corsica, Balearic , Majorca and Menorca .
Tides in Mediterranean Sea
Tides are very limited as a result of the narrow connection with the Atlantic Ocean.
Temperature and Salinity of Mediterranean Sea
Evaporation greatly exceeds precipitation and river runoff in the Mediterranean .
Evaporation is especially high in its eastern half, causing the water level to decrease and salinity to increase eastward.
The western basin has a temperature of 12 °C in winter and 23 °C in summer, its salinity is 36‰ , while the eastern basin is warmer and more salty, it temperature is 16 °C in winter and 26-29 °C in summer, its salinity is 39‰ .
Coastal countries of Mediterranean Sea
The following countries have a coastline on the Mediterranean Sea:
Northern shore (from west to east): Spain, France, Monaco, Italy, Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Albania, Greece and Turkey.
Eastern shore (from north to south): Turkey, Syria, Lebanon, Israel.
Southern shore (from west to east): Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, Egypt.
Island nations: Malta, Cyprus.
Several other territories also border the Mediterranean Sea (from west to east): The British overseas territory of Gibraltar, the Spanish autonomous cities of Ceuta and Melilla and nearby islands, the Sovereign Base Areas on Cyprus, and the Palestinian Gaza Strip.
Coastal cities of Mediterranean Sea
Country : Cities
Algeria : Algiers, Oran
Egypt : Alexandria, Port Said
France : Marseille
Greece : Athens
Israel : Haifa, Tel Aviv
Italy : Genoa, Naples, Rome, Venice
Lebanon : Beirut, Tripoli
Libya : Benghazi, Khoms, Tripoli
Morocco : Tangier
Palestine : Gaza City
Spain : Barcelona, Cartagena, Valencia.
Syria : Latakia
Tunisia : Tunis
Turkey : Antalya, Mersin
Important marginal seas of Mediterranean Sea
1 . Alboran Sea- between Spain and Morocco.
2 . Balearic Sea- between mainland Spain and its Balearic Islands.
3 . Ligurian Sea – between Corsica and Liguria (Italy).
4 . Tyrrhenian Sea – enclosed by Sardinia, Italian peninsula and Sicily.
5 . Ionian Sea- between Italy, Albania and Greece.
6 . Adriatic Sea -between Italy, Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro and Albania.
7 . Aegean Sea – between Greece and Turkey.
Volcanoes of Mediterranean Sea
Stromboli Volcano is well known, since ancient times, as the “lighthouse of the Mediterranean” due to its practically continuous activity. It has a characteristic explosive activity.
Others- Lipari , island of Vulcano , Marsili, Vavilov , Magnaghi , Etna , Vesuvius , Pantelleria , Linosa , Montagna Grande , Sicily
PRACTICE QUESTIONS
QUES 1 . The term ‘Levant” often heard in the news roughly corresponds to which of the following regions ? UPSC 2022
(a) Region along the eastern Mediterranean shores
(b) Region along North African shores stretching from Egypt to Morocco
(c) Region along Persian Gulf and Horn of Africa
(d) The entire coastal areas of Mediterranean Sea
(a)
QUES 2 . Mediterranean Sea is a border of which of the following countries? UPSC 2017
1 . Jordan
2 . Iraq
3 . Lebanon
4 . Syria
Select the correct answer using the code given below:
(a) 1, 2 and 3 only
(b) 2 and 3 only
(c) 3 and 4 only
(d) 1, 3 and 4 only
(c)
QUES 3 . Which one of the following countries of South-West Asia does not open out to the Mediterranean Sea? UPSC 2015
(a) Syria
(b) Jordan
(c) Lebanon
(d) Israel
(b)
QUES 4 . Turkey is located between: UPSC 2014
(a) Black Sea and Caspian Sea
(b) Black Sea and Mediterranean Sea
(c) Gulf of Suez and Mediterranean Sea
(d) Gulf of Aqaba and Dead Sea
(b)
QUES 5 . In which one of the following is Malta located? UPSC 2008
(a) Baltic Sea
(b) Mediterranean Sea
(c) Black Sea
(d) North Sea
(b)
QUES 6 . Which of the following countries has Black Sea on one side and Mediterranean Sea on other side? IES 2014
(a) Turkey
(b) Iran
(c) Greece
(d) Azerbaijan
(a)
