Incredible photos of sharp boundaries at the confluence of seas or rivers! Why doesn't water mix? Why is the White Sea called white, the Black Sea black, the Red Sea red, and the Yellow Sea yellow?

The color of azure waves Caribbean Sea captivates at first sight. Such beautiful turquoise water is probably not found in any other body of water on our planet. One gets the feeling that the talented artist “nature” added blueness and brightness to it, applying some unimaginable filters. The only thing that catches your eye is the algae in Mexico

But since 2011, the beauty of the Caribbean coast has been under threat. In its waters, sea brown algae appeared and continue to multiply and reside with incredible speed. Sargasso grow along the coasts of the seas, in tropical and subtropical latitudes, and resemble ordinary bushy plants, about two meters high. And the accumulation of swim bladders on their branches looks like bunches of berries, for which the algae received their second name “ sea grapes" Thanks to these bubbles, sargassum is able to stay on the surface of the water and move along with currents and wind, forming huge brown fields.

Migrating in this way, the algae captured almost all coastline, turning the clear Caribbean waters into an unappetizing soup of brown noodles that wash up on land in waves, occupying most of the coastline. With the arrival of the summer of 2015, the amount of sargassum on the coast reached its maximum, and turned into a real natural disaster for almost all countries of the Caribbean.

Sargasso disaster

Sargassum decomposing on the shore attracts a large number of flying insects with its disgusting smell and poisons fish in coastal waters, and can even lead to the disappearance of some populations. Due to toxins released by rotting plants, several dozen cases of skin diseases have been recorded in Cuba. For the safety of vacationers, the authorities had to close part of the beaches of Barbados, Puerto Rico, Trinidad and Tobago, Cuba and a number of other countries, essentially disrupting tourist season, and throw all our strength into fighting the natural disaster.

Causes of Sargassum invasion

Scientists still cannot name the true cause of the Sargassum invasion. Some refer to increased level nutrients in the waters of the Caribbean Sea, others on global warming and changes in ocean currents, which carry brown masses from the outside Sargasso Sea, located in the Atlantic Ocean. Most likely both are right, and in August 2015, East Coast Yucatan Peninsula, several tons of brown algae were removed, poisoning the environment.

Algae control in Mexico

The leadership of Mexico has thrown itself into the fight against this natural phenomenon all the country's forces, allocating more than $9 million to clean up the coast. A large number of municipal rescue workers, several dozen units of special equipment and more than 4 thousand volunteers were called up. Early in the morning, cleaning vehicles pass along all the still empty beaches, raking rotting plants into heaps in order to remove them from the beach areas and dispose of them.

Owners large hotels are also interested in clearing their territories of uninvited guests, and are actively helping the Mexican authorities prepare for the new tourist season.

Friends! If you have any questions - don't hesitate! - ask them in the comments below or write to me on social networks!

“Sea, sea... Bottomless world!” - these words from a once popular song excite our imagination with romantic pictures of seascapes with blue distances, blue skies and turquoise waves. Somewhere in our souls our distant warm sea begins to rustle, echoing the rustling waves in summer sea fantasies...

How many oceans and seas are there on our planet?

According to the International Geographical Bureau, there are 4 oceans and 54 seas on Earth, which together form the World Ocean, which makes up two-thirds of the surface of the entire globe.

What color is the ocean?

The color of sea water in the World Ocean is far from uniform, and it is different in different parts of the Earth, that is, each sea has a unique color shade, unique to it.

What determines the color of the sea?

The color of the water changes periodically, and this depends on many factors, primarily on lighting, depth, transparency, color of the seabed, the presence of gases and the quantitative density of microorganisms inhabiting the sea, as well as on phenomena such as glow and sea blooms.
In the distance, the color of the sea is close to the color of the sky. In cloudy weather it is gray, in clear weather it is blue. When the Sun sets, the bright blue sea takes on a golden hue. During waves, the sea appears whitish.

Scientists studying the depths of the sea claim that many seas got their name due to the color of the water. They believe that in warm seas In the tropical zone, the color of the water is dark blue, and even blue; in shelf seas it is greenish, and in muddy coastal seas it has a yellowish tint.

Why is the White Sea called white, the Black Sea black, the Red Sea red, and the Yellow Sea yellow?

The White Sea is the sacred sea of the North; it is fraught with many unsolved secrets. The White Sea probably got its name from the color of the white snow and ice that covers it in winter time. But there is another assumption, which is that the name “White” Sea received from the religious meaning of the sphere, that is, the heavenly one. Indeed, in semantics, white is a heavenly, divine color. There is a hypothesis that the White Sea and its coast are located on the territory of a once thriving mystical civilization - Hyperborea.

The Black Sea got its name because in cloudy weather the surface of the sea darkens under black clouds. The Turkic nomads, who noticed this, gave it the name “Kara-Deniz”.
There is another plausible assumption about the origin of the name of the Black Sea. It has been known since ancient times that all objects that have been in its mysterious depths turn black. And this happens because at a depth of more than 200 meters, sea water is saturated with hydrogen sulfide, which easily forms black salts.

The Red Sea is red in color due to brown microscopic algae that periodically develop in it. But there is another version regarding the name of the Red Sea. They say that in ancient times, sailors gave the sea the name “Red” because of the color of the rocks with which it is surrounded.
Exists ancient legend, relating to biblical events, which tells about the difficult journey of the Jews from Egypt to Israel through the Red Sea. Moses, who led the Jewish people, ordered the sea waters to part in the name of God. And before their eyes the deep bottom of the sea with rocks and mountain ranges, with gorges and depressions, during the passage through which a lot of people died, which was the reason for the name of the Red Sea.
The Red Sea is one of the clearest and saltiest seas. Its crystal purity is explained by the fact that not a single river flows into it, which could bring with it silt and sand and, thereby, cloud the sea waters. And although the sea is called Red, its waters have a beautiful azure color.

The Yellow Sea is so named because the clay that is abundant on the coast periodically acquires a yellowish tint.

Is it possible to determine the color of the sea?
For the first time, a device for determining the color of reservoirs was invented back in late XIX century by the Swiss geographer Forel, who studied lakes. The device was somewhat inconvenient for working with sea water.

The famous German oceanographer Ule developed a water color scale, consisting of a set of twenty-two glass sealed test tubes with samples of solutions of different shades, from light aquamarine to brownish green. Ole modified the device, improved it, and in given time Using this device you can determine the color of sea water.

Of course, if you take sea water into your palm, it will turn out to be transparent, having no color at all. And only in the sea or ocean does it acquire its unique shade.

Which seas have the greenest water color?
There are amazing things on Earth beautiful seas with eye-catching fairy-tale shades. These sea beauties include the Sargasso Sea.
The Sargasso Sea has a bright greenish tint due to the accumulation of green algae on its surface, which form entire islands, roads, and even fields. And the sailors who found themselves in this area of the ocean for the first time mistakenly took it for land.

One of the most vibrant tropical seas is the Caribbean Sea. Its water shines from deep turquoise to bright emerald shades.

The Sea of Azov also has a greenish tint, especially during the plankton development season. And during the storm season, the sea takes on a color from yellow-green to yellow-brown due to changes in water transparency. The sea begins to become cloudy because the bottom silt periodically becomes agitated and the river flow of turbid waters increases.

And what color shades do people for whom the sea is a place of everyday work notice in sea waters?

Those who have connected their lives with the sea see and notice the most extraordinary subtle shades in the sea and ocean waters surrounding them. After all, the sea changes with the time of day, its color depends on the seasons and weather factors. When the character of the sea changes, its color also changes. And these changes cannot be ignored.

Some of the most vivid impressions include memories of a holiday at sea. What is it about this beautiful sea element that we remember? The gentle rays of the southern sun? The soft velvet of coastal sand? The rustling whisper of the waves or the warm breath of the salty wind?..
Perhaps, among all these soul-intoxicating memorable moments, the most powerful is the color of the sea. This fantastic blue, delighting our admiring gaze, remains in our memory as an aquamarine delight, a turquoise fairy tale or an azure legend. And all the picturesque shades of the sea merge into one wonderful sea color, with which any memory of the sea is associated.

If you try to answer the question, which sea is the bluest, it is unlikely that you will come to one single true answer. After all, each sea has its own unique color from the blue range with unique shades of turquoise, aquamarine or emerald.
The bluest sea is the sea that lives in our joyful memories or sweet dreams of beauty. And dreams certainly come true...

As soon as you step onto Cancun Beach, the bright turquoise ocean opens up to your eyes. Therefore, I would like to separately describe how beautiful the Caribbean Sea is in Cancun. It seems to me that only Nana Maldives sea water can be such a bright color. You stand on the shore and cannot believe that this is possible in nature!

Cancun beach. Photo from our hotel balcony

Another view from the balcony

Beach in Cancun

Beach Cancun Beach

The color of the water of the Caribbean Sea captivates everyone! And after that, I think people become more picky about water if they fly to, for example, Bali on their next trip. The sand, the entry into the sea, the depth, purity and color of the water are all at the highest level.

Waves

The waves in Cancun on the Caribbean coast are not small, but the beauty that a person sees in front of him outshines these waves and you jump joyfully with happiness. You won't be able to swim, but jumping in the waves near the shore is also fun. Perhaps this is a seasonal phenomenon.

Photo: Cancun Beach

A glass to those traveling to Mexico to Cancun

Algae on Cancun Beach

Seaweed

There is algae almost all over the beach, which they do not have time to quickly remove. At first it was embarrassing and not very pleasant, but on the second day you accept it and don’t pay attention anymore. In our Hotel Oasis Cancun beach perimeter is perfectly clean, the cleaners work tirelessly. In the mornings, algae is collected on a tractor.

Purity

Or maybe the contingent of people coming to Mexico is slightly different, so in Cancun you won’t see bags, bottles, chips packages floating and rotting in the water, or other dirt; this is not the case here. Our impressions of this resort are described in detail in the article

First-class beach holidays, the seas of the Dominican Republic, its carnival and amazing historical attractions are the main reasons for the popularity of the distant Caribbean state. By the way, the answer to the question of which sea washes the Dominican Republic is just that: the Caribbean.

All shades of turquoise

Even artists get confused if you ask them about the color of the Caribbean. It is inimitable in any weather and in all seasons, and the range of its shades can be expressed in one word - delight! The rainy season in the Dominican Republic begins in mid-May and continues until the first days of autumn. The rest of the time, nothing can overshadow a beach holiday and a varied excursion program for those who are not afraid long flight and spared no expense to buy the tour of his dreams.
The water temperature in the Caribbean Sea in the resorts of the Dominican Republic ranges from +25 to +28 degrees, which makes swimming in it especially comfortable. For diving fans here - real paradise and every dive is accompanied by amazing discoveries and observations. For those interested in numbers, the following facts will seem interesting:

The area of the Caribbean Sea exceeds 2.5 million square meters. km.
The most great depth the sea is almost 8.8 km. This point is located in a trench near the Cayman Islands.
The first Europeans set foot on the shores of the Caribbean Sea in 1492. This was the expedition of Christopher Columbus.
Piracy appeared here in the 17th century, and representatives of this illegal business practiced attacks on ships until the first half of the 19th century.
In 1914, the Panama Canal was opened, connecting the Caribbean Sea with Pacific Ocean.
The salt concentration in the Caribbean Sea is about 36%. This is slightly less than the Mediterranean Sea.

Ocean outside the window

The question of what seas are in the Dominican Republic can be answered a little differently than simply “Caribbean”. Its northern and northeastern coasts are washed by northern part Atlantic Ocean, which occupies the second step of the podium in terms of the size of the water surface, average depth and volume of water after the Quiet.
The main attraction of the Atlantic in the Dominican Republic is the coral reefs, which become the object of close attention of divers from all over the world. The island of Cayo Levantado, located in Samana Bay, attracts fans of secluded beach holiday. Here you can watch many birds in their natural environment habitats, and at the end of winter see humpback whales.

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