Luzon Strait
Luzon Strait | |
---|---|
Coordinates | 21°0′N 121°0′E / 21.000°N 121.000°E |
Basin countries | Luzon island of the Philippines, Taiwan |
Max. width | 250 kilometers (160 mi) |
Max. depth | ca. 4,000 meters (13,000 ft) |
The Luzon Strait (Tagalog: Kipot ng Luzon, Chinese: 呂宋海峽; pinyin: Lǚsòng hǎixiá; Pe̍h-ōe-jī: Lū-sòng Hái-kiap) is the strait between Luzon and Taiwan. The strait thereby connects the Philippine Sea to the South China Sea in the western Pacific Ocean.[1][2]
This body of water is an important strait for shipping and communications. Many ships from the Americas use this route to go to important East Asian ports. Many submarine communications cables pass through the Luzon Strait. These cables provide important data and telephony services to mainland China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan and South Korea.[3]
Description
The Luzon Strait is approximately 250 kilometers (160 mi) wide containing a number of islands belonging to the Philippines that are grouped into two: the islands comprising the province of
Some of the largest
History
The Luzon Strait was part of the
Subsequently, during the Second World War, many US submarines hunted Japanese convoys passing through the strait on their way from the East Indies to Japan.[citation needed]
References
- ^ "Pacific Ocean". CIA World Factbook. Retrieved on June 20, 2011.
- ^ "Southeast Asia Map" Archived September 16, 2012, at the Wayback Machine. CIA World Factbook. Retrieved on June 20, 2011.
- ^ Greenlees, Donald and Arnold, Wayne (2006-12-29). "Asia scrambles to fix quake damage to data cables". CNET News.com.
- ^ Oskin, Becky (January 9, 2014). "Ocean's Huge Hidden Waves Explained"". LiveScience.com. Retrieved on 2014-01-13.