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14-528: Large inlet from the ocean into the landmass This article is about the large inlet from the ocean into landmass. For other uses, see Gulf (disambiguation) . [REDACTED] Gulf of Tunis in Tunisia [REDACTED] Map of the Gulf of Bothnia between Sweden and Finland A gulf is a large inlet from an ocean into a landmass, typically (though not always) with

28-622: A narrower opening than a bay . The term was used traditionally for large, highly indented navigable bodies of salt water that are enclosed by the coastline. Many gulfs are major shipping areas, such as the Persian Gulf , Gulf of Mexico , Gulf of Finland , and Gulf of Aden . See also [ edit ] List of gulfs References [ edit ] ^ Gregory, George (1816). A Dictionary of Arts and Sciences . Vol. 2 (First American ed.). Philadelphia: Isaac Peirce. p.  269 . Retrieved 25 June 2020 . A sea

42-560: Is a smaller collection of waters; as the Black Sea. A gulf is a part of the sea which is nearly surrounded with land; as the gulf of Venice. A bay has a wider entrance than a gulf; as the Bay of Biscay. A strait is a narrow passage that joins. ^ Duggal, Gita. Chowdhury, Baruna Ray (ed.). Madhubun ICSE Geography 6 . New Delhi: Vikas Publishing House. p.  32 . ISBN   9789325994645 . Retrieved 25 June 2020 . A gulf

56-3460: Is an inlet of an ocean or a sea deep into the land with a narrow mouth. It is more highly indented, more enclosed by the coast and larger than a bay. Some examples of gulfs are Persian Gulf, Gulf of Mexico, Gulf of Eden and Gulf of... External links [ edit ] [REDACTED] Media related to Gulfs at Wikimedia Commons v t e Coastal geography Landforms Anchialine pool Archipelago Atoll Avulsion Ayre Barrier island Bay Bight Bodden Brackish marsh Cape Channel Cliff Coast Coastal plain Coastal waterfall Continental margin Continental shelf Coral reef Cove Dune cliff-top Estuary Firth Fjard Fjord Freshwater marsh Fundus Gat Geo Gulf Gut Hapua Headland Inlet Intertidal wetland Island Islet Isthmus Lagoon Machair Mudflat Natural arch Peninsula Reef Ria Salt marsh Shoal Skerry Sound Spit Stack Strait Strand plain Submarine canyon Tidal island Tidal marsh Tide pool Tied island Tombolo Waituna Windwatt [REDACTED] [REDACTED] Beaches Beach cusps Beach evolution Beach ridge Beach wrack Beaches in estuaries and bays Beachrock Coastal morphodynamics Pocket beach Raised beach Recession Shell beach Shingle beach Storm beach Wash margin River mouths Debouch Mouth bar River delta mega regressive Processes Blowhole Cliffed coast Coastal biogeomorphology Coastal erosion Concordant coastline Current Cuspate foreland Discordant coastline Emergent coastline Feeder bluff Flat coast Graded shoreline Ingression coast Large-scale coastal behaviour Longshore drift Marine regression Marine transgression Raised shoreline Rip current Rocky shore Sea cave Sea foam Shoal peresyp Steep coast Submergent coastline Surf break Surf zone Surge channel Swash Undertow Volcanic arc Wave-cut platform Wave shoaling Wind fetch Wind wave Management Accretion Coastal management Integrated coastal zone management Submersion Related Bulkhead line Coastal engineering Grain size boulder clay cobble granule gravel pebble sand shingle silt Intertidal zone Littoral zone Physical oceanography Region of freshwater influence River plume [REDACTED] Category Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Gulf&oldid=1230159865 " Categories : Gulfs Bodies of water Coastal and oceanic landforms Coastal geography Oceanographical terminology Hidden categories: Articles with short description Short description

70-526: Is different from Wikidata Commons category link is on Wikidata Gulf (disambiguation) A gulf is a large inlet from the ocean into a landmass. Gulf or the gulf may also refer to: Continental margin The continental shelf is the relatively shallow water area found in proximity to continents; it is the portion of the continental margin that transitions from the shore out towards to ocean. Continental shelves are believed to make up 7% of

84-426: Is known as the continental borderland . Passive margins are often located in the interior of lithospheric plates, away from the plate boundaries, and lack major tectonic activity. They often face mid-ocean ridges . From this, comes a wide variety of features, such as low-relief land extending miles away from the beach, long river systems and piles of sediment accumulating on the continental shelf. The East Coast of

98-524: Is often still preserved closer to shore, continental shelves show high levels of glacial and relict sediments, deposited when sea level was lower. Often found on passive margins are several kilometres of sediment, consisting of terrigenous and carbonate ( biogenous ) deposits. These sediment reservoirs are often useful in the study of paleoceanography and the original formation of ocean basins. These deposits are often not well preserved on active margin shelves due to tectonic activity. The continental shelf

112-586: Is the most economically valuable part of the ocean. It often is the most productive portion of the continental margin, as well as the most studied portion, due to its relatively shallow, accessible depths. Due to the rise of offshore drilling , mining and the limitations of fisheries off the continental shelf, the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) was established. The edge of

126-480: The United States is an example of a passive margin. These margins are much wider and less steep than active margins. As continental crust weathers and erodes, it degrades into mainly sands and clays . Many of these particles end up in streams and rivers that then dump into the ocean. Of all the sediment in the stream load, 80% is then trapped and dispersed on continental margins. While modern river sediment

140-540: The continental margin is one criterion for the boundary of the internationally recognized claims to underwater resources by countries in the definition of the " continental shelf " by the UNCLOS (although in the UN definition the "legal continental shelf" may extend beyond the geomorphological continental shelf and vice versa). Such resources include fishing grounds, oil and gas accumulations, sand, gravel, and some heavy minerals in

154-419: The deep-ocean floor. The continental slope often exhibits features called submarine canyons . Submarine canyons often cut into the continental shelves deeply, with near vertical sides, and continue to cut the morphology to the abyssal plain . These canyons are often V-shaped, and can sometime enlarge onto the continental shelf. At the base of the continental slope, there is a sudden decrease in slope angle, and

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168-453: The less dense continental crust of another plate. Convergent active margins are the most common type of active margin. Transform active margins are more rare, and occur when an oceanic plate and a continental plate are moving parallel to each other in opposite directions. These transform margins are often characterized by many offshore faults , which causes high degree of relief offshore, marked by islands , shallow banks, and deep basins . This

182-813: The sea floor begins to level out towards the abyssal plain. This portion of the seafloor is called the continental rise , and marks the outermost zone of the continental margin. There are two types of continental margins: active and passive margins. Active margins are typically associated with lithospheric plate boundaries. These active margins can be convergent or transform margins, and are also places of high tectonic activity, including volcanoes and earthquakes . The West Coast of North America and South America are active margins. Active continental margins are typically narrow from coast to shelf break, with steep descents into trenches . Convergent active margins occur where oceanic plates meet continental plates. The denser oceanic crust of one plate subducts below

196-441: The sea floor. The width of continental shelves worldwide varies in the range of 0.03–1500 km . The continental shelf is generally flat, and ends at the shelf break , where there is a drastic increase in slope angle: The mean angle of continental shelves worldwide is 0 ° 07′, and typically steeper closer to the coastline than it is near the shelf break. At the shelf break begins the continental slope, which can be 1–5 km above

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