Java Sea
Encyclopedia
Sunda Shelf
Geologically, the Sunda Shelf is a south east extension of the continental shelf of Southeast Asia. Major landmasses on the shelf include the Malay Peninsula, Sumatra, Borneo, Java, Madura, Bali and their surrounding smaller islands. It covers an area of approximately 1.85 million km2...
. It was formed as sea levels rose at the end of the last ice age
Ice age
An ice age or, more precisely, glacial age, is a generic geological period of long-term reduction in the temperature of the Earth's surface and atmosphere, resulting in the presence or expansion of continental ice sheets, polar ice sheets and alpine glaciers...
. The Java Sea lies between the Indonesia
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
n islands of Borneo
Borneo
Borneo is the third largest island in the world and is located north of Java Island, Indonesia, at the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia....
to the north, Java
Java
Java is an island of Indonesia. With a population of 135 million , it is the world's most populous island, and one of the most densely populated regions in the world. It is home to 60% of Indonesia's population. The Indonesian capital city, Jakarta, is in west Java...
to the south; Sumatra
Sumatra
Sumatra is an island in western Indonesia, westernmost of the Sunda Islands. It is the largest island entirely in Indonesia , and the sixth largest island in the world at 473,481 km2 with a population of 50,365,538...
to the west, and Sulawesi
Sulawesi
Sulawesi is one of the four larger Sunda Islands of Indonesia and is situated between Borneo and the Maluku Islands. In Indonesia, only Sumatra, Borneo, and Papua are larger in territory, and only Java and Sumatra have larger Indonesian populations.- Etymology :The Portuguese were the first to...
to the east. Karimata Strait
Karimata Strait
The Karimata Strait is the wide strait that connects the South China Sea to the Java Sea, dividing the islands of Sumatra from Borneo , both in Indonesia....
to its northwest, links it to the South China Sea
South China Sea
The South China Sea is a marginal sea that is part of the Pacific Ocean, encompassing an area from the Singapore and Malacca Straits to the Strait of Taiwan of around...
.
Fishing is an important economic activity in the Java Sea. There are over 3,000 species of marine life in the area. A number of national parks exist in the area such as Karimunjawa. The Thousand Islands
Thousand Islands (Indonesia)
Thousand Islands is the only regency of Jakarta, Indonesia. It consists of a string of 105 islands stretching 45 kilometers north into the Java Sea, with the closest island lying in Jakarta Bay only a few kilometers off mainland Jakarta....
are located north of the mainland Jakarta
Jakarta
Jakarta is the capital and largest city of Indonesia. Officially known as the Special Capital Territory of Jakarta, it is located on the northwest coast of Java, has an area of , and a population of 9,580,000. Jakarta is the country's economic, cultural and political centre...
. The area around the Java Sea is a popular tourist destination. Scuba diving
Scuba diving
Scuba diving is a form of underwater diving in which a diver uses a scuba set to breathe underwater....
offers a chance to explore and photograph underwater caverns, wrecks, coral
Coral
Corals are marine animals in class Anthozoa of phylum Cnidaria typically living in compact colonies of many identical individual "polyps". The group includes the important reef builders that inhabit tropical oceans and secrete calcium carbonate to form a hard skeleton.A coral "head" is a colony of...
, sponge
Sea sponge
Sponges are animals of the phylum Porifera . Their bodies consist of jelly-like mesohyl sandwiched between two thin layers of cells. While all animals have unspecialized cells that can transform into specialized cells, sponges are unique in having some specialized cells, but can also have...
s, and other marine life.
The Battle of the Java Sea
Battle of the Java Sea
The Battle of the Java Sea was a decisive naval battle of the Pacific campaign of World War II, that sealed the fate of the Netherlands East Indies....
, during February and March 1942, was one of the costliest naval battle
Naval battle
A naval battle is a battle fought using boats, ships or other waterborne vessels. Most naval battles have occurred at sea, but a few have taken place on lakes or rivers. The earliest recorded naval battle took place in 1210 BC near Cyprus...
s of World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. The naval forces of the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
, Britain, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, and the U.S. were nearly completely destroyed trying to defend Java from Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese attack.
Extent
The International Hydrographic OrganizationInternational Hydrographic Organization
The International Hydrographic Organization is the inter-governmental organisation representing the hydrographic community. It enjoys observer status at the UN and is the recognised competent authority on hydrographic surveying and nautical charting...
(IHO) defines the Java Sea as being one of the waters of the East Indian Archipelago
East Indian Archipelago
The East Indian Archipelago is a marine area designated by the International Hydrographic Organization . It consists of a number of seas and straits in the East Indies ....
. The IHO defines its limits as follows:
On the North. By the Southern limit of the South China SeaSouth China SeaThe South China Sea is a marginal sea that is part of the Pacific Ocean, encompassing an area from the Singapore and Malacca Straits to the Strait of Taiwan of around...
[Lucipara Point (3°14′S 106°05′E) thence to Tanjong Nanka, the Southwest extremity of Banka IslandBangka IslandBangka is an island lying east of Sumatra, Indonesia. Population 626,955. Area: c.4,600 sq mi .There is an additional small island named Pulau Bangka in northern Sulawesi, Indonesia.-Geography:...
, through this island to Tanjong Berikat the Eastern point (2°34′S 106°51′E), on to Tanjong Djemang (2°36′S 107°37′E) in BillitonBelitungBelitung, , is an island on the east coast of Sumatra, Indonesia in the Java Sea. The island is known for its pepper and for its tin. It was in the possession of the British from 1812 until the British ceded control of the island to the Dutch in the Anglo-Dutch Treaty of 1824...
, along the North coast of this island to Tanjong Boeroeng Mandi (2°46′S 108°16′E) and thence a line to Tanjong Sambar (3°00′S 110°19′E) the Southwest extreme of BorneoBorneoBorneo is the third largest island in the world and is located north of Java Island, Indonesia, at the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia....] , the South coast of Borneo and the Southern limit of Makassar StraitMakassar StraitMakassar Strait is a strait between the islands of Borneo and Sulawesi in Indonesia. To the north it joins the Celebes Sea, while to the south it meets the Java Sea.The Mahakam River of Borneo empties into the strait....
[By a line from the Southwestern extreme of CelebesSulawesiSulawesi is one of the four larger Sunda Islands of Indonesia and is situated between Borneo and the Maluku Islands. In Indonesia, only Sumatra, Borneo, and Papua are larger in territory, and only Java and Sumatra have larger Indonesian populations.- Etymology :The Portuguese were the first to...
(5°37′S 119°27′E), through the Southern point of Tana Keke, to the Southern extreme of LaoetLaut IslandLaut is an island in the Kota Baru Regency in the Indonesian province of South Kalimantan. It has an area of 2,062 km2....
(4°06′S 116°06′E) thence up the West coast of that island to Tanjong Kiwi and thence across to Tanjong Petang, Borneo (3°37′S 115°57′E) at the Southern end of Laoet Strait].
On the East. By the Western limit of Flores Sea
Flores SeaThe Flores Sea covers 93,000 square miles of water in Indonesia.- Geography :The seas that border the Flores Sea are the Bali Sea , Java Sea , and the Banda Sea ....
[A line from Tg Sarokaja (8°22′S 117°10′E) to the Western Paternoster island (7°26′S 117°08′E) thence to the Northeastern Postiljon Island (6°33′S 118°49′E) and to the West point of Laikang Bay, Celebes].
On the South. By the Northern and Northwestern limits of Bali Sea
Bali SeaThe Bali Sea is the body of water north of the island of Bali and south of Kangean Island in Indonesia. The sea forms the south-west part of the Flores Sea, and the Madura Strait opens into it from the west.-Geography:...
[A line from the Western Paternoster Island to the East point of Sepandjang and thence through this island to the West point of Gedeh Bay on the South coast of Kangean (7°01′S 115°18′E). A line from the West point of Gedeh Bay, Kangean Island, to Tg Sedano, the Northeast extreme of JavaJavaJava is an island of Indonesia. With a population of 135 million , it is the world's most populous island, and one of the most densely populated regions in the world. It is home to 60% of Indonesia's population. The Indonesian capital city, Jakarta, is in west Java...
and down the East coast to Tg Bantenan, the Southeast extreme of the island], the North and West coasts of Java to Java Hoofd (6°46′S 105°12′E) its Western point, and thence a line to Vlakke Hoek (5°55′S 104°35′E) the Southern extreme of SumatraSumatraSumatra is an island in western Indonesia, westernmost of the Sunda Islands. It is the largest island entirely in Indonesia , and the sixth largest island in the world at 473,481 km2 with a population of 50,365,538...
.
On the West. The East coast of Sumatra between Vlakke Hoek and Lucipara Point (3°14′S 106°05′E).
Further reading
- Touwen, Jeroen (editor) (2001) Shipping and trade in the Java Sea region, 1870-1940 : a collection of statistics on the major Java Sea ports ISBN 9067181625
- (2008) "Java Sea a study on its economic impacts."
See also
- Battle of the Java SeaBattle of the Java SeaThe Battle of the Java Sea was a decisive naval battle of the Pacific campaign of World War II, that sealed the fate of the Netherlands East Indies....
- Karimata StraitKarimata StraitThe Karimata Strait is the wide strait that connects the South China Sea to the Java Sea, dividing the islands of Sumatra from Borneo , both in Indonesia....