The Strait in the Northern Hemisphere, which connects the Atlantic Ocean with the Gulf of Mexico, is called Florida. Its expanse of water separates the Florida peninsula from the island of Cuba. The location of the strait can be seen on the map below.
What are the characteristics of the Florida Strait? What are its features? This will be discussed in the article.
General information
The Strait of Florida extended over 651 kilometers. It has the largest width of 150 kilometers (the smallest - 80 kilometers). The depth of the Strait of Florida in its navigable part is from 150 to 2085 meters. At the same time, depths from 500 to 700 meters prevail in it. The narrowest section of the strait is between the small islands of the Florida Keys archipelago and Liberty Island, as Cuba is traditionally called. The main ports of the strait are Havana and Miami. In 1977, the United States and Cuba signed an agreement regulating the borders of the strait for these two states. According to him, the border between these states runs in the middle of the Strait of Florida.
The strait is navigable and is operated quite actively in this capacity. Its water routes connect the countries of Central and South America, Mexico, and the USA. Industrial fishing is developed here.
Climate
The climate in the strait is tropical trade wind. The rainy season lasts from May to September, so the summer here is not very pleasant. Tropical cyclones are frequent. But winter, on the contrary, is dry. On average, 1,400 mm of precipitation falls here annually, and the average annual humidity is 75%.
The average temperature in July is 27.5 degrees Celsius, in January - 22.5 degrees. The average annual water temperature is 27 degrees above zero.
A feature of the strait is a strong current of the same name, a continuation of the Caribbean, which participates in the formation of the Gulf Stream, merging with another strong current - the Antilles. In addition, sharks are found here, and their flocks, as well as directed water flow, pose a huge danger to refugees from the island of Cuba, most of which fall into the United States by this particular route. Many of them die on the way.
History
A Spanish conquistador named Juan Ponce de Leon was the first navigator to cross the Strait of Florida in 1513. Even then, his team was able to assess the strength of the current, which impeded their movement, so that had to move along the coast, literally clinging to the land. However, this did not help either: intending to circumnavigate Liberty Island (Cuba) from the south-west, sailors after some time found that they were in the north-east of the island, where they were taken by the oncoming stream.
It was this peculiarity of the strait that at one time contributed to the prosperity in these parts of piracy (XVII - early XIX century). Pirates simply waited for the ships in the narrowest place where they were pushed by the current. Mariners could not get around this trap.
The strongest current and tropical cyclones at one time destroyed many ships in the Strait of Florida, and its bottom is literally strewn with them - from Spanish galleons to steamboats. In 1622, during a storm, the Spanish Terra Firm squadron, loaded with gold and precious stones, perished here, and many divers dream of discovering its traces.
Interesting facts about the conquest of the strait
Many athletes-styers dream to swim across the Strait of Florida, but so far only a few have succeeded. So, in 1997, an athlete from Australia, Suzy Maroni, fulfilled her old dream and conquered its surface. True, she used a special cage to protect against sharks.
And in 2013, two new records were set at once. So, an athlete from America named Ben Freiberg crossed the strait on a surfboard. It took him 28 hours. Freiberg spent most of his time in a standing position, and only sat down to eat. The escort group consisted of the father of the athlete, a doctor and a professional sailor, adjusting the direction of movement of the athlete. She moved in parallel on a small boat.
In the same year, a swimmer from America named Diana Nyad crossed the Strait of Florida by swimming, breaking it in 53 hours. At the end of this tiring journey, her speed was 3 kilometers per hour. This achievement was recognized as a record because Diana did not use any additional devices such as the anti-shark cage of Susie Maroni.
This case is truly outstanding also for the reason that it was the fifth attempt of the athlete, and only she finally succeeded. For the first time, Nyad tried to cross the Strait of Florida at the age of 28 in 1978! Of course, this time the athlete was well equipped: she wore gloves, special shoes and a wetsuit, as well as a mask to repel jellyfish. In previous attempts, these unpleasant creatures really hindered her.
Finally
The article briefly talked about where the Strait of Florida is located, presents its main characteristics, a brief history of the discovery and interesting facts about this object. We hope that the information will be useful for those who study geography or are simply interested in it.