Java Sea

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Java Sea (Indonesian: Laut Jawa) is a large (310,000 km²), shallow sea on the Sunda Shelf. It was formed as sea levels rose at the end of the last ice age. [1]

The Java Sea lies in the midst of the Indonesian islands of Borneo to the north, Java to the south; Sumatra to the west, and Sulawesi to the east. To the northwest, the Karimata Strait links it to the South China Sea. It is considered by some authorities, for example The World Factbook, to be part of the Indian Ocean. Others include it in the Pacific Ocean.

Fishing is an important economic activity in the Java Sea. There are over 3,000 species of marine life in the area.

The area around the Java Sea is a popular tourist destination. Scuba diving offers a chance to explore and photograph underwater caverns, wrecks, coral, sponges, and other marine life. A number of national parks exist in the area. The Thousand Islands are located north of the mainland Jakarta.

The Java Sea was the site of one of the costliest (to the Allies) naval battles of World War II, in February and March of 1942. The naval forces of the Netherlands, Britain, Australia, and the U.S. were nearly completely destroyed trying to defend Java from Japanese attack.