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| The areas in the north and the southeast are rich ] grounds. The importance of the fishery in the sea is well illustrated by the ] between South Korea and Japan over ]. The sea is also important for its ], particularly ] sands. There are also believed to be ] and ] fields. With the growth of East Asian economies, the Sea of Japan (East Sea) has become an increasingly important commercial waterway. | The areas in the north and the southeast are rich ] grounds. The importance of the fishery in the sea is well illustrated by the ] between South Korea and Japan over ]. The sea is also important for its ], particularly ] sands. There are also believed to be ] and ] fields. With the growth of East Asian economies, the Sea of Japan (East Sea) has become an increasingly important commercial waterway. | ||
| ==Biology== | ==Biology== | ||
Revision as of 05:05, 6 August 2007
| Sea of Japan (East Sea) | |
|---|---|
| |
| |
| Japanese name | |
| Kanji | 日本海 |
| Hiragana | にほんかい |
| Hepburn Romanization | Nihonkai |
| English Translation | Japan Sea |
| Korean name (North Korea) | |
| Hanja | 朝鮮東海 |
| Hangul | 조선동해 |
| Revised Romanization | Joseon Donghae |
| McCune-Reischauer | Chosŏn Tonghae |
| English Translation | Korea East Sea |
| Korean name (South Korea) | |
| Hanja | 東海 |
| Hangul | 동해 |
| Revised Romanization | Donghae |
| McCune-Reischauer | Tonghae |
| English Translation | East Sea |
| Russian name | |
| Russian | Япо́нское мо́ре |
| Romanization | Yapónskoje móre |
| English Translation | Japan Sea |
| Chinese name | |
| Chinese | 日本海 |
| Pinyin | Rìběn Hǎi |
| English Translation | Japan Sea |
The Sea of Japan (East Sea) is a marginal sea of the western Pacific Ocean, bordered by Japan, Korea and Russia. Like the Mediterranean Sea, it has almost no tides due to its nearly complete enclosure.
Physical characteristics
The Sea of Japan (East Sea) is bound by the Russian mainland and Sakhalin island to the north, North Korea and South Korea to the west, and the Japanese islands of Hokkaidō, Honshū, and Kyūshū to the east.
It is connected to other seas by five shallow straits: the Strait of Tartary between the Asian mainland and Sakhalin; La Perouse Strait between the islands of Sakhalin and Hokkaidō; the Tsugaru Strait between the islands of Hokkaidō and Honshū; the Kanmon Straits between the islands of Honshū and Kyūshū; and the Korea Strait (genkainada) between the Korean Peninsula and the island of Kyūshū. The Korea Strait is composed of the Western Channel and the Tsushima Strait, on either side of Tsushima Island.
- Deepest point: 3,742 meters below sea level
- Mean depth: 1,753 meters
- Surface area: about 978,000 km²
The sea has three major basins: the Yamato Basin in the southeast; the Japan Basin in the north; and the Tsushima Basin (Ulleung Basin) in the southwest. The Japan Basin has the deepest areas of the sea, while the Tsushima Basin has the shallowest.
On the eastern shores, the continental shelves of the sea are wide, but on the western shores, particularly along the Korean coast, they are narrow, averaging about 30 kilometres wide.
The Tsushima Warm Current, a branch of Kuroshio Current, flows northward through the Korea Strait along the Japanese shore, and the Liman Cold Current flows southward through the Strait of Tartary along the Russian shore.
The Sea of Japan (East Sea) was once a landlocked sea when the land bridge of East Asia existed.
Economy
The areas in the north and the southeast are rich fishing grounds. The importance of the fishery in the sea is well illustrated by the dispute between South Korea and Japan over Liancourt Rocks (Dokdo). The sea is also important for its mineral deposits, particularly magnetite sands. There are also believed to be natural gas and petroleum fields. With the growth of East Asian economies, the Sea of Japan (East Sea) has become an increasingly important commercial waterway.
Biology
The last documented observation of the Japanese Sea Lion (Zalophus californianus japonicus) was a sighting of 50 or 60 individuals on Liancourt Rocks (Dokdo) in 1951. These animals bred in flat, open, sandy beaches and were indigenous to the Northwest Pacific shores of Japan and the Korean Peninsula. Hunted to extinction by fishermen, there is some disagreement as to whether the Japanese Sea Lion were a distinct species or a subspecies of the California Sea Lion.
Naming dispute
Main article: Sea of Japan naming disputeAlthough Sea of Japan is the commonly used term to refer to the sea amongst most other countries, both North Korea and South Korea have advocated for a different name to be used. South Korea has argued that it should be called the "East Sea"; North Korea, the "East Sea of Korea". As a result of Korean objections to the name "Sea of Japan", some English-language publications refer to it as Sea of Japan (East Sea), incorporating a version of the Korean name.
See also
References
- "Tides in Marginal, Semi-Enclosed and Coastal Seas - Part I: Sea Surface Height". ERC-Stennis at Mississippi State University. Retrieved 2007-02-02.
- Totman, Conrad D. (2004). "Pre-Industrial Korea and Japan in Environmental Perspective". Retrieved 2007-02-02.
{{cite web}}: More than one of|author=and|last=specified (help) - "IUCN Red List of Threatened Species: Zalophus japonicus". IUCN. Retrieved 2007-02-28.
External links
Media related to Sea of Japan at Wikimedia Commons
The dictionary definition of Sea of Japan at Wiktionary
39°34′55″N 134°34′11″E / 39.58194°N 134.56972°E / 39.58194; 134.56972