Strait of Gibraltar
The Strait of Gibraltar is the strait which separates the Atlantic Ocean from the Mediterranean Sea. On the northern side is Spain and Gibraltar, on the southern side Morocco and Ceuta (Spain too). Its boundaries were known to antiquity as the Pillars of Hercules. There are some small islands, like the disputed Isla Perejil, that is claimed by Spain and Morocco.
The Strait of Gibraltar has a very strategic location. Ships that travel from the Atlantic to the Mediterranean and vice versa, pass through this strait overlooked by the Rock of Gibraltar. Also, very many people who travel from Europe to Africa and vice versa, travel through this strait.
The depth is 300 m, and it is 13 km wide at its narrowest point.
For a number of years the Spanish and Moroccan governments have been jointly investigating the feasibility of a tunnel underneath the strait, similar to the Channel tunnel between England and France. A new three-year study for a railway tunnel was announced in 2003.
External links
About the tunnel plans:
- UN document E/2001/19 (http://www.un.org/documents/ecosoc/docs/2001/e2001-19.pdf)
- Map (http://www.multimap.com/map/browse.cgi?X=-637500&Y=4262500&scale=500000&coordsys=mercator)
de:Straße von Gibraltar
es:estrecho de Gibraltar
eo:Ĝibraltara markolo
et:Gibraltari väin
fr:Détroit de Gibraltar
gl:Estreito de Xibraltar
he:מיצר גיברלטר
ja:ジブラルタル海峡
nl:Straat van Gibraltar
pt:Estreito de Gibraltar
ru:Гибралтарский пролив
wa:Sitroet d' Djibraltar