24 Facts About Mediterranean

1.

Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the east by the Levant.

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2.

The Mediterranean Sea encompasses a vast number of islands, some of them being of volcanic origin.

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3.

The history of the Mediterranean region is crucial to understanding the origins and development of many modern societies.

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4.

Westernmost point of the Mediterranean is located at the transition from the Alboran Sea to the Strait of Gibraltar, the easternmost point is on the coast of the Gulf of Iskenderun in southeastern Turkey.

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5.

The northernmost point of the Mediterranean is on the coast of the Gulf of Trieste near Monfalcone in northern Italy while the southernmost point is on the coast of the Gulf of Sidra near the Libyan town of El Agheila.

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6.

Typical Mediterranean climate has hot, dry summers and mild, rainy winters.

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7.

Drainage basin of the Mediterranean Sea is particularly heterogeneous and extends much further than the Mediterranean region.

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8.

The Mediterranean is characterised and immediately recognised by its deep blue colour.

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9.

Water circulation in the Mediterranean can be attributed to the surface waters entering from the Atlantic through the Strait of Gibraltar .

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10.

Deep water formation in the Mediterranean is triggered by strong winter convection fueled by intense cold winds like the Bora.

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11.

The residence time of water in the Mediterranean is approximately 100 years, making the Mediterranean especially sensitive to climate change.

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12.

The stratification and warming have already led to the eastern Mediterranean to become a net source of CO2 to the atmosphere notably during summer.

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13.

In spite of its great biodiversity, concentrations of chlorophyll and nutrients in the Mediterranean Sea are very low, making it one of the most oligotrophic ocean regions in the world.

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14.

However, the Mediterranean Sea has an average N:P between 24 and 29, which translates a widespread phosphorus limitation.

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15.

Almost complete enclosure of the Mediterranean basin has enabled the oceanic gateways to dominate seawater circulation and the environmental evolution of the sea and basin.

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16.

The shift to a "Mediterranean climate" occurred largely within the last three million years as summer rainfall decreased.

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17.

The subtropical laurel forests retreated; and even as they persisted on the islands of Macaronesia off the Atlantic coast of Iberia and North Africa, the present Mediterranean vegetation evolved, dominated by coniferous trees and sclerophyllous trees and shrubs with small, hard, waxy leaves that prevent moisture loss in the dry summers.

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18.

Since the Mediterranean is subject to the deposition of eolian dust from the Sahara during dry periods, whereas riverine detrital input prevails during wet ones, the Mediterranean marine sapropel-bearing sequences provide high-resolution climatic information.

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19.

Unlike the vast multidirectional ocean currents in open oceans within their respective oceanic zones; biodiversity in the Mediterranean Sea is that of a stable one due to the subtle but strong locked nature of currents which affects favourably, even the smallest macroscopic type of volcanic life form.

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20.

The Alboran Sea has the largest population of bottlenose dolphins in the Western Mediterranean, is home to the last population of harbour porpoises in the Mediterranean, and is the most important feeding grounds for loggerhead sea turtles in Europe.

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21.

The wide ecological diversity typical of Mediterranean Europe is predominantly based on human behaviour, as it is and has been closely related to human usage patterns.

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22.

The construction of the Aswan High Dam across the Nile River in the 1960s reduced the inflow of freshwater and nutrient-rich silt from the Nile into the Eastern Mediterranean, making conditions there even more like the Red Sea and worsening the impact of the invasive species.

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23.

Coast of the Mediterranean has been used for tourism since ancient times, as the Roman villa buildings on the Amalfi Coast or in Barcola show.

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24.

Naval and rescue components in the Mediterranean Sea are considered to be among the best due to the rapid cooperation between various naval fleets.

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