Fault depression
Introduction
A fault depression separated Arabia from North Africa. The depressions filled up with water over time forming the Red Sea. The Red sea derives its name from the fact that the color of its water changed depending on the season. The Red Sea is normally blue-green but the occasional population of algae causes the water to turn reddish-brown when the algae dry off. The Red Sea is a seawater inlet to the Indian Ocean that stretches for 1398 miles. It has a width of 190 miles and a depth of 9974 feet. It has an area of 174000 square miles. It is connected to the Mediterranean Sea by the Suez Canal that makes it a shorter seaborne route from Asia to Europe, attracting heavy traveling between the two continents.
The Gulf of Aden, on the other hand, is a natural deep-water link that connects the Red Sea and the Arabian Sea. The gulf is located between the Horn of Africa and the Arabian Coasts. It has the Gulf of Tadjoura to the West and the meridian of Cape Guardafui to the East. It covers an area of 205,000 square miles with the continental shelf to the East, the Kuria Muria Islands to the North, and the Island of Socotra to the South. It has a length of 920 miles and a width of 300 miles. The Gulf is a component of a complex water structure whereby; its waters flow into the Red Sea and replace the water lost through evaporation. Rain-bearing winds and a high salinity surface layer complicate the pattern of the Gulf’s flow. The waters of the gulf have a surface temperature of between 25-31 degrees centigrade.
The Red Sea contains minerals such as petroleum deposits, evaporate deposits, sulfur, phosphates, and heavy metal deposits. The natural gas and oil deposits have been slightly exploited by the RSGA area even though they are readily available. The area uses them locally and is yet to explore international trade for higher economic benefits. Minerals such as sulfur have been heavily mined since the twentieth century. Phosphate deposits, on the other hand, have not been heavily mined because they are not readily available for exploitation. The heavy metal deposits have not been heavily exploited despite their high economic value. On a general note, the RSGA area has barely made use of the minerals available at their disposal for economic gain, both locally and internationally. Navigation in the red sea is hard and almost dangerous. It has few natural harbors and the high population of coral reefs to the south makes it impossible to navigate through that area. Additionally, the sand storms and irregular water currents in the sea add salt to the wound when it comes to dangerous navigation through the area. Navigation is, however, salvaged by the availability of the waters of the Gulf of Aden. The Gulf is connected to the Mediterranean Sea by the Suez Canal that makes navigation very easy. Thousands of ships pass through the area annually, generating a lot of revenue for the countries around the area. The RSGA area is useful on the global front for the minerals it contains, despite the low degree of exploitation and the fact that the Suez Canal has significantly reduced the route from Europe to Asia. A lot of business is conducted much faster and in a more convenient manner because of the shortened sea route. The locals are involved in the transportation business and make a lot of revenue for the region.
RSGA Tourism, Financial Value, and Importance to RSGA countries.
There is a lot of tourism in the RSGA area. The area is covered with water, which attracts many tourists who come to experience the water excursions that are not available in their homes. The Suez Canal made the distance between Europe and Asia much shorter than it used to be, making it possible for tourists from both Europe and Asia to easily access the RSGA area without having to book flights and pay a lot of money in transit. European countries are known to have relatively low temperatures and the nationals from these cold regions find sunny beaches very attractive for their vacations. They come to the RSGA countries to enjoy the sun, sand, and beaches as they get naturally tanned. They take their summer holidays in these areas to take a break from the cold temperatures back home. During summer, the number of tourists that come to the RSGA area through ships increases by about fifty percent. They come in masses and significantly boost the revenue generated from the tourism sector in these areas. The high level of tourism could be the reason why they do not bother to exploit minerals available in the sea and the gulf.
Tourists also come to the RSGA regions for water-based sports and activities. They go deep-sea diving, surfing, sailing, and deep-water fishing. The locals are heavily involved in the tourism process, making the sector very profitable for the entire region. They assist the tourists who want to go to deep-water excursions and also train them to use the equipment for surfing and swimming. They charge them for the use of the equipment and training sessions, enabling them to make much more money from the tourists. The changes in the color of water in the Red Sea are also a great catch for the tourism industry. Most people would want to see for themselves the wonder that is the Red Sea. The biblical reference to the Red Sea attracts religious people who would want to see the area where the Israelites passed with Moses. They desire to see the place where the sea was parted for the Israelites to cross over to escape the Egyptians. Some tourists come to the RSGA area exclusively to experience the rich history of Egypt. They come to see the pyramids of Egypt and the tombs of the ancient royals. They love to view the mummified corpses and have a face-to-face feel of aspects they only saw in the movies. The religious people also come to see the place where the Israelites were enslaved and Jesus Christ ran to escape being killed by King Herod. There are many aspects of tourism that drive masses from all over the world to the RSGA area. The countries in this region make a lot of money from the attractions they have and their rich history.
The European tourists stay at the hotels in the countries and enjoy the local cuisine and culture. They pay a lot of money to stay at these hotels and experience these aspects of these countries, boosting the hospitality industry as well. Many hotels have partnered with transport companies to have the tourists brought to their hotels when they arrive in the countries. They offer excursion services with tour guides who show tourists around the area. They go around the desert on camels and experience what it was like to be an ancient Egyptian royal. The hotels also provide local attire that the tourists love to wear as they go on the excursions. They take pictures and videos to boost their social media platforms and further promote the hospitality industry by luring more tourists to the area. Filmmakers also come to the area to make movies with an ancient Egyptian theme. They bring a lot of revenue because the crew composes of a lot of people who all need to stay at hotels. They are also charged to film in the hotels and other areas in the countries, further boosting the revenue realized from the sector. All the people who make religious films are forced to come to Egypt because it is more expensive to remake a set. Tourists pay a lot of money for the local cuisine, promoting local business people who make ridiculous profits.
The countries around the RSGA area are heavily dependent on the tourism sector in the region. They make almost half of their revenue from the tourism and hospitality sector because they are blessed to have a very rich history, culture, and scenes. The population of these areas is not very educated, forcing them to rely on blue-collar jobs. The advantage of the blue-collar jobs they have is that they are sufficient enough to cater for all their needs. The high rate of tourism is proving to be harmful to the coral reefs to the south side of the Red Sea. The tourists litter while they are exploiting the deep-sea excursions and this has caused a lot of harm to the coral reefs. The countries are implementing measures that are supposed to reduce the negative effects of tourism. They depend too heavily on tourism to shun it because of the negative effects experienced.
Importance of Fishing
The RSGA region has a lot of fish because of the deep waters and coral reefs. The large population of coral reefs on the south side of the red sea harbors many species of fish, some of which are only found in that part of the world. The fish are a source of food for the people of the region but they are not known to commercialize the sector as much as they would be expected to. The fish in the RSGA are like their minerals. They are exploited just enough for the needs of the people, but not to add any kind of economic value to the nation as a whole. There is a lot of fish in their waters, most of which are caught by the tourists who go deep-sea fishing. Fishing is a huge pastime in the European countries and when they visit the areas of the RSGA, they are fascinated by the water conditions to present there. They go on long excursions to fish and take underwater videos of the rare species of fish that are there. They mostly go fly-fishing and deep-sea fishing because they get to have a lot of fun while they are at it. The locals are not very bothered because, as earlier mentioned, they are more interested in the tourism aspect of the fish they have. The tourists take more advantage of the fish than the locals in the RSGA area.
Fishing is not very easy in the RSGA area. The large population of coral reefs makes it easy to get a large number of fish in the region but they also make navigation very difficult. It would be a hazardous venture to try and fish in the south part of the red sea. They, however, find it easier to fish in the area near the gulf because navigation is easy and smooth. Thousands of tourist boats pass through this area a year and some of these boats belong to tourists who want to explore the different types of fish in the waters of the RSGA area. Locals make money from these ventures by taking the tourists fishing and providing the equipment they need to fish. They guide them to the areas they feel would have more fish and charge them for the tour and the equipment. The nations end up making more money n the tourist front than they do on the fishing front because they only take enough to feed on.
The challenges faced when fishing in the RSGA region are not very many and can be mitigated against easily. The biggest challenge is the large population of coral reefs in the area. They make navigation very difficult and people need to be able to navigate to fish easily. The water is also very deep and could cause accidents if people are not very careful. In the event of accidents, people could easily perish. The fish in the RSGA region is vast and rare. If countries choose to exploit them, they can be very profitable.