The Gulf Of Elat BACK

About half a century ago, the British scientist Crossland described the Red Sea and the Gulf of Elat (Aqaba) as ``the most desolate sea.'' Since then, it has become one of the world's most intensively studied seas, and a major tourist attraction.

The Red Sea is a geologically young one. It was created relatively late with the formation of the Great Syrian-East African Rift. This great trench in the crust of the earth runs from Northern Syria through the Jordan, Dead Sea, and Arava valleys, along the Gulf of Elat and the Red Sea to East Africa.

The Red Sea is actually an appendix of the Indian Ocean, which rushed in to fill the deep abyss created by the Rift in this area. Geologists view it as an initial phase in the creation of a new ``embryonic'' ocean.

The Gulf of Elat marks the northernmost extent of the tropical coral reefs. The profusion of underwater life is due to several factors.

Although the southern tip of the Red Sea opens out into a warm ocean, there is a gradual lowering of temperature from south to north. The winter temperatures in the Gulf of Elat, which range from 21 C, are ideal for tropical marine life.

Another factor is the salinity of the Red Sea, which is appreciably higher than that in the open ocean. Evaporation in this area, with its arid shores and high radiation, is far more intensive than in mid-ocean.

The temperature conditions combined with the shallow threshold separating the Red Sea from the Indian Ocean, have led to the evolution of many plant and animal species which may be considered endemic to the Red Sea.

The Red Sea corals are arranged as fringing reefs along the coast line. Corals are tiny animals living in dense colonies, depositing limestone skeletons on the site. These skeletons accumulate, forming the reef in the course of thousands of years.

Such stony corals have a symbiotic relationship with microscopic algae living inside the coral tissue, and are therefore restricted to the shallow parts of the sea where the sunlight vital to algae penetrates. This factor determines the location of the reefs. In most tropical seas, the reefs are further away from the beach and much less diversified. The transparent water in the Gulf of Elat, and the proximity of the reef to the shore, make this complex, fascinating world easily accessible to the observer without necessitating elaborate equipment.

A man-made contribution to the unique qualities of the region is the Suez Canal, which serves as a water bridge between the Red Sea and the Mediterranean. The dynamics of plant and animal migration through the canal have intrigued scientists for decades.

One of the more sensational recent finds of oceanographic research in the region is the strange phenomenon of the ``Red Sea hot brines.'' These are stagnant water masses at a depth of 2,000 metres below the surface of the sea, which reach temperatures of 56 C due to volcanic activity.

The relatively concentrated and heavy brine contains minerals such as copper, iron and tin. Technological development may make the extraction of these minerals economically feasible in the future for the benefit of Saudi Arabia and the Sudan in whose waters these brines are located.

The development of bathing beaches and port installations affected the corals in the region. In 1966, a tiny area was proclaimed a nature reserve. This reserve stretches south along the shore for 2.5 kilometres, from the Elat ``Coral Beach'' to the international border at Taba.

The beaches are great favourites of scuba divers. The Nature Reserves Authority patrols the coast.

The situation in the near future, in the wake of the Israel-Egypt peace treaty, seems far from promising as far as nature conservation is concerned. The small nature reserve at Elat remains Israel's only diving and underwater nature site.

Hotel and tourism projects are already threatening this minimal area. We may shortly be faced with a situation where beachfront hotels have no beach to speak of.

The Red Sea and Gulf of Elat are virtually landlocked seas, their waters remaining in a closed area with very little movement to and from the Indian Ocean. Polluted water therefore has little chance of exchange and purification as in the large open ocean. Pollution, once begun, may easily become chronic in the Red Sea.