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IRISH SEA
The Irish Sea[a] separates the islands of Ireland and Great Britain; linked to the Celtic Sea in the south by St George's Channel, and to the Inner Seas off the West Coast of Scotland[4] in the north by the North Channel, also known as the Straits of Moyle.
Anglesey, North Wales, is the largest island in the Irish Sea, followed by the Isle of Man. The term Manx Sea may occasionally be used (Irish: Muir Meann[5] Manx: Mooir Vannin, Scottish Gaelic: Muir Mhanainn).
On its shoreline are Scotland to the north, England to the east, Wales to the southeast, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland to the west. The Irish Sea is of significant economic importance to regional trade, shipping and transport, as well as fishing and power generation in the form of wind power and nuclear power plants. Annual traffic between Great Britain and Ireland amounts to over 12 million passengers and 17 million tonnes (17,000,000 long tons; 19,000,000 short tons) of traded goods.
Topography
The Irish Sea joins the North Atlantic at both its northern and southern ends. To the north, the connection is through the North Channel between Scotland and Northern Ireland and the Malin Sea. The southern end is linked to the Atlantic through the St George's Channel between Ireland and Pembrokeshire, and the Celtic Sea. It is composed of a deeper channel about 300 km (190 mi) long and 30–50 km (20–30 mi) wide on its western side and shallower bays to the east. The depth of the western channel ranges from 80 metres (260 ft) to 275 m (900 ft).
Cardigan Bay in the south, and the waters to the east of the Isle of Man, are less than 50 m (160 ft) deep. With a total water volume of 2,430 km3 (580 cu mi) and a surface area of 47,000 km2 (18,000 sq mi), 80% is to the west of the Isle of Man. The largest sandbanks are the Bahama and King William Banks to the east and north of the Isle of Man and the Kish Bank, Codling Bank, Arklow Bank and Blackwater Bank near the coast of Ireland. The Irish Sea, at its greatest width, is 200 km (120 mi) and narrows to 75 km (47 mi).[9]
The International Hydrographic Organization defines the limits of the Irish Sea (with St George's Channel) as follows,
On the North. The Southern limit of the Inner Seas off the West Coast of Scotland, defined as a line joining the South extreme of the Mull of Galloway (54°38'N) in Scotland and Ballyquintin Point (54°20'N) in Northern Ireland.
On the South. A line joining St. David's Head in Wales (51°54′N 5°19′W) to Carnsore Point in Ireland (52°10′N 6°22′W).[4]
The Irish Sea has undergone a series of dramatic changes over the last 20,000 years as the last glacial period ended and was replaced by warmer conditions. At the height of the glaciation, the central part of the modern sea was probably a long freshwater lake. As the ice retreated 10,000 years ago, the lake reconnected to the sea.
History
Further information: Geology of Ireland and Norman invasion of Ireland
The Irish Sea was formed in the Neogene era.[10] Notable crossings include several invasions from Britain. The Norman invasion of Ireland took place in stages during the late 12th century from Porthclais near St. Davids, Wales, in Hulks, Snekkars, Keels and Cogs[11] to Wexford Harbour, Leinster.[12] The Tudors crossed the Irish Sea to invade in 1529 in caravels and carracks.[11] In 1690 the English fleet set sail for the Williamite War in Ireland from Hoylake, Wirral, the departure becoming permanently known as King's Gap as a result.
Shipping
Because Ireland has neither tunnel nor bridge to connect it with Great Britain, the vast majority of heavy goods trade is done by sea. Northern Ireland ports handle 10 million tonnes (9,800,000 long tons; 11,000,000 short tons) of goods trade with the rest of the United Kingdom annually; the ports in the Republic of Ireland handle 7.6 million tonnes (7,500,000 long tons; 8,400,000 short tons), representing 50% and 40% respectively of total trade by weight.
The Port of Liverpool handles 32 million tonnes (31,000,000 long tons; 35,000,000 short tons) of cargo and 734,000 passengers a year.[13] Holyhead port handles most of the passenger traffic from Dublin and Dún Laoghaire ports, as well as 3.3 million tonnes (3,200,000 long tons; 3,600,000 short tons) of freight.[14]
Ports in the Republic handle 3,600,000 travellers crossing the sea each year, amounting to 92% of all Irish Sea travel.[15]
Ferry connections from Wales to Ireland across the Irish Sea include Fishguard Harbour and Pembroke to Rosslare, Holyhead to Dún Laoghaire and Holyhead to Dublin. From Scotland, Cairnryan connects with both Belfast and Larne. There is also a connection between Liverpool and Belfast via the Isle of Man or direct from Birkenhead. The world's largest car ferry, Ulysses, is operated by Irish Ferries on the Dublin Port–Holyhead route; Stena Line also operates between Britain and Ireland.
"Irish Sea" is also the name of one of the BBC's Shipping Forecast areas defined by the coordinates:
54°50′N 05°05′W
54°45′N 05°45′W
52°30′N 06°15′W
52°00′N 05°05′W
Transport for Wales Rail, Iarnród Éireann, Irish Ferries, Stena Line, Northern Ireland Railways, Stena Line and Abellio ScotRail promote SailRail with through rail tickets for the train and the ferry.[16]
Oil and gas exploration[edit]
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