Saya de Malha Bank

- 10.768555861.259765625Koordinaten: 10 ° 46 ' S, 61 ° 16' O

Saya de Malha Bank is a large shallow water area of 40,808 km ². This threshold is roughly the size of Switzerland and is located in the Indian Ocean, east of Madagascar, southeast of the Seychelles, and north of the island of Mauritius.

The closest country are the Agalega Islands. Saya de Malha is administered from Mauritius, however, it is outside national territorial waters.

Saya de Malha consists of two separate units, the smaller North Bank ( Ritchie also Bank) and the larger South Bank. Because of its location at the equator and the low water depth which is often less than ten meters, the area is biologically highly productive. Its rich flora and fauna due to its remoteness, however, little is known. The Saya de Malha Bank - is a marine area of ​​high ecological value.

History

Saya de Malha has an age of 35 million years ago and consists of basalt, which was overlaid with limestone. The limestone beds are located on the plateau are the remains of coral reefs. Millions of years ago the bank consisted of one or more mountainous islands of volcanic origin, similar to the present-day Mauritius or Reunion. Over time, the country fell by geological processes below sea level. During the last ice age when the sea level was lower by up to 130 meters than there is now, in this field several islands.

The area was first mentioned by Portuguese explorers 500 years ago. On the journey between the Cape of Good Hope and India, they noticed this shallow sea area to the surging green seaweed, having previously sailed only by the deep blue Indian Ocean.

Saya de Malha was first explored in 1838 by Robert Moresby an officer in the British Royal Navy.

Since 1997, the researchers Hilbertz Wolf and Tom Goreau strove to create an artificial island in the area of Saya de Malha. You installed Biorock structures in this area, that is, steel structures, the bank are anchored at a depth of eleven meters on the seabed of the North. A connected photovoltaic system, the system is supplied with the power necessary for the intended Mineralakkretion, thus producing the basic structure of an island.