Banda Sea

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Banda Sea
Run and Nailaka (Banda Islands).jpg
Run (left) and Nailaka (right), islands in the Banda Sea
Locatie Bandazee.PNG
Location of the Banda Sea in Southeast Asia
Coordinates 6�S 127�ECoordinates: 6�S 127�E
Type Sea
Primary outflows Pacific Ocean, Timor Sea, Molucca Sea, Ceram Sea
Max. length 1,000 km (620 mi)
Max. width 500 km (310 mi)
The Banda Sea is a sea in the Maluku Islands of Indonesia, connected to the Pacific
Ocean but surrounded by hundreds of islands, as well as the Halmahera and Ceram
Seas. It is about 1000 km (600 mi) east to west, and about 500 km (300 mi) north to
south.

Contents
1 Extent
2 Islands
3 Plate tectonic activities in Banda Sea
4 Earthquakes
5 Ecology
6 References
7 Further reading
Extent
The International Hydrographic Organization (IHO) defines the Banda Sea as being
one of the waters of the East Indian Archipelago. The IHO defines its limits as
follows:[1]

On the North The Southern limits of the Molukka Sea [sic] and the Western and
Southern limits of the Ceram Sea.

On the East. From Tg Borang, the Northern point of Noehoe Tjoet [Kai Besar],
through this island to its Southern point, thence a line to the Northeast point of
Fordata, through this island and across to the Northeast point of Larat, Tanimbar
Islands (7�06'S 131�55'E), down the East coast of Jamdena [Yamdena] Island to its
Southern point, thence through Anggarmasa to the North point of Selaroe and through
this island to Tg Aro Oesoe its Southern point (8�21'S 130�45'E).

On the South. A line from Tanjong Aro Oesoe, through Sermata to Tanjong Njadora the
Southeast point of Lakov [Lakor, sic] (8�16'S 128�14'E) along the South coasts of
Lakov [Lakor], Moa and Leti Islands to Tanjong Toet Pateh, the West point of Leti,
thence a line to Tanjong Sewirawa the Eastern extremity of Timor and along the
North coast as far as longitude 125� East.

Banda Sea in the center of Maluku Islands

On the West. From a point on the North coast of Timor in 125� East up this meridian
to Alor Island, thence round the East point and along the North coasts of the Alor,
Pantar, Lomblen and Adoenara Islands and thence across the Northern end of Flores
Strait to Tanjong Serbete the Eastern extreme of Flores, thence a line from its
Northern point (8�04'S 122�52'E) to Kalaotoa Island (7�24'S 121�52'E) and through
the chain of islands lying between it and the South point of Pulo Salayar, through
this island and across the Strait to Tanjong Lassa, Celebes (5�37'S 120�28'E),
thence along the Southern limit of the Gulf of Boni and up the East coast of
Celebes to Tanjong Botok (1�04'S 123�19'E).

Islands
Islands bordering the Banda Sea include Sulawesi to the west, Buru, Ambon Island,
Seram, Aru Islands, Barat Daya Islands, to the Tanimbar Islands, the Kai Islands
and Timor in the East. Although the borders of the sea are hazardous to navigation,
with many small rocky islands, the middle of the sea is relatively open. Island
groups within the sea include the Banda Islands. A number of islands in the Banda
Sea are active volcanoes including Gunung Api and Manuk in the Banda Islands.

Plate tectonic activities in Banda Sea

Map of the Banda Sea Plate

The Banda arc is famous for its 180� curvature and is, in Timor, generally agreed
to be the product of collision between a volcanic arc and the Australian
continental margin.[2][3] The Banda Sea occupies the main portion of the Banda Sea
Plate. The southern margin of the sea consists of island arcs above subduction
zones. To the east of the Sunda Trench is the Timor Trough which lies south of
Timor, the Tanimbar Trough south of the Tanimbar Islands and the Aru Trough east of
the Aru Islands. These trenches are the subduction zone of the Indo-Australian
plate beneath the Banda Sea Plate, where the Indo-Australian Plate moves
northwards. Fore-arc sediments progressively carried northwards by the Indo-
Australian Plate have been folded and faulted forming Timor island. To the
northeast lies Seram Island which overlies the subduction of the Bird's Head Plate
of West Papua.[4]

Earthquakes

The USS George Washington crossing the Banda Sea

Earthquakes are very frequent in the area, due to the confluence of three tectonic
plates - Eurasian, Pacific and Indo-Australian plates.

1938 Banda Sea earthquake

2006 Banda Sea earthquake
Ecology
The Banda Islands, Tanimbar Islands, Kai Islands and other smaller islands in the
Banda Sea have been designated as the Banda Sea Islands moist deciduous forests
ecoregion, the eastern end of the Wallacea biogeographical region containing a
mixture of plant and animal species from both Asia and Australasia. These islands
are covered in mostly intact rain forest and home to a number of endemic plants and
animals including twenty-one birds, a very high number for this small ecoregion.
There are only twenty-two mammals on these islands including three endemics, the
rare dusky pademelon (Thylogale brunii) and tomb bat (Taphozous achates), and an
endangered mouse-eared bat, the Kei myotis (Myotis stalkeri). The birdlife is
threatened by egg collectors and even more by cats and rodents that have been
introduced to the islands. Yamdena in the Tanimbar Islands is an example of a large
and fairly unspoilt habitat and is a protected area.[5] The base for visiting these
islands is by plane or ship from Ambon Island to the north, the largest of the
Maluku Islands. The Banda and Kei Islands, although remote, are visited by tourists
for snorkelling and for their unspoilt beaches. Various cetacean species have been
recorded including either or both blue and pygmy blue whales[6][7][8] and Omura's
whales.[9]

References
"Limits of Oceans and Seas, 3rd edition" (PDF). International Hydrographic
Organization. 1953. Retrieved 7 February 2010.
Carter, D. J., Audley-Charles, M. G. & Barber, A. J. Stratigraphical analysis of
island arc-continental margin collision in eastern Indonesia. J. Geol. Soc. Lond.
132, 179?189 (1976).
 Hamilton, W. Tectonics of the Indonesian Region Vol. 1078 (US Geol. Soc. Prof.
Pap., 1979).
"Chapter II (Geology of Timor-Leste)". Atlas of mineral resources of the ESCAP
region Volume 17 Geology and Mineral Resources of Timor-Leste (PDF). United Nations
Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific. 24 December 2003. Archived
from the original (PDF) on 20 May 2005.
"Banda Sea Islands moist deciduous forests". Terrestrial Ecoregions. World
Wildlife Fund.
Wildiaries. BLUE WHALES OF THE BANDA SEA & FORGOTTEN ISLANDS. Retrieved on
September 24, 2017
Edwards J.. An Indo-Pacific Bottlenose Dolphin bow riding on the wake of a
gigantic Blue Whale.. Getty Images. Retrieved on September 24, 2017
Sarah. 2015. Sailing Through the Banda Sea. Small Girl Big Travels: Field Notes.
Retrieved on September 24, 2017
Ogata J. M.. 2017. Ambon � Banda Islands � Raja Ampat. Mermaid Liveaboards.
Retrieved on September 24, 2017
Further reading
Ponder, H. W. (1944) In Javanese waters; some sidelights on a few of the countless
lovely, little known islands scattered over the Banda sea & some glimpses of their
strange & stormy history London, Seeley, Service & Co. ltd.
Patrick D. Nunn(1994) Oceanic Islands Oxford, Great Britain, Blackwell
vte
Indonesian seas
vte
Earth's oceans and seas
Categories: Banda SeaSeas of IndonesiaLandforms of Maluku (province)Landforms of
North MalukuMaritime Southeast AsiaTropical and subtropical moist broadleaf
forestsAustralasian ecozone
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