Lesson 1/34 min
The Bay of Bengal
About the Bay of Bengal
- The world's largest bay, triangular, in the north of the Indian Ocean
- Area about 2,172,000 sq km (Khandokar)
- Average depth 8,500 ft (Khandokar gives 2,300 m, Zubair 2,600 m)
- The Bengal Fan landform lies here
- West: India and Sri Lanka; north: India and Bangladesh; east: Myanmar and Thailand
- India's Andaman and Nicobar Islands lie in the middle; India has the largest stretch of coast on it
- The 90°E meridian runs almost through the middle of the bay
Watch out: Average depth: the books print 2,300 m and 2,600 m, both next to 8,500 ft (about 2,590 m); the numbers do not match. Remember ‘8,500 ft’ and be careful with the metre figure.
Swatch of No Ground
- A deep trench in the Bay of Bengal; also called the Gangakhat
- A submarine canyon; 14 km wide
- About 1,200 m deep at the edge of the continental shelf
Ninety East Ridge and coastal ports
- Ninety East Ridge: an important feature of the Indian Ocean, linked with Bangladesh's part of the Bay
- Ports and beaches on its shores include Gopalpur, Marina Beach, Tuticorin, Akyab and Nagapali (Zubair; one or two names are unclear and left out)
Check yourself
What is another name for the Swatch of No Ground?
At a glance
- 1
The Bay of Bengal is the world's largest bay, triangular, about 2.172 million sq km.
- 2
Average depth 8,500 ft.
- 3
Swatch of No Ground = Gangakhat, a submarine canyon, 14 km wide.
- 4
West: India-Sri Lanka, east: Myanmar-Thailand; the Andaman-Nicobar Islands sit in the middle.