View source for Palk Bay

{{Short description|Water body between India and Sri Lanka}}
[[File:Palk Bay bathymetry.jpg|thumb|Bathymetry of Palk Bay developed by interpolation of National Hydrographic datasets]]
'''Palk Bay''' is a semi-enclosed shallow water body between the southeast coast of [[India]] and [[Sri Lanka]], with a water depth maximum of 13&nbsp;m.<ref name=":0">{{Cite journal|last1=George|first1=victor|last2=Kumar|first2=V. Sanil|date=October 2019|title=Wind-wave measurements and modelling in the shallow semi-enclosed Palk Bay|journal=Ocean Engineering|volume=189|pages=106401|doi=10.1016/j.oceaneng.2019.106401|s2cid=203096484 |issn=0029-8018}}</ref> Palk Bay is located between 8° 50′ and 10° North latitudes and 78° 50′ and 80° 30′ East longitudes.<ref name=":0" /> The width of the bay ranges from 57 to 107&nbsp;km and the length is around 150&nbsp;km.<ref name=":0" /> It is one of the major sinks for [[sediment]]s along with the [[Gulf of Mannar]].<ref>{{Cite book|last=Chandramohan, P. Jena, B.K. SanilKumar, V.|title=Littoral drift sources and sinks along the Indian coast|date=2006-08-28|publisher=Indian Academy of Sciences|oclc=713270195}}</ref> Sediments discharged by rivers and transported by the surf [[Ocean current|currents]] as [[Longshore drift|littoral drift]] settle in this sink.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Gowthaman|first1=Rajamanickam|last2=Kumar|first2=V. Sanil|last3=Dwarakish|first3=Gowdagere Siddaramaish|last4=Shanas|first4=P.R.|last5=Jena|first5=Basanta Kumar|last6=Singh|first6=Jai|date=November 2015|title=Nearshore waves and longshore sediment transport along Rameshwaram Island off the east coast of India|journal=International Journal of Naval Architecture and Ocean Engineering|volume=7|issue=6|pages=939–950|doi=10.1515/ijnaoe-2015-0065|bibcode=2015IJNAO...7..939G|issn=2092-6782|doi-access=free}}</ref> Few scientists have tried to understand the wave characteristics within the Palk Bay.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Gowthaman, R. SanilKumar, V. Dwarakish, G.S. Mohan, S.S. JaiSingh AshokKumar, K.|title=Waves in Gulf of Mannar and Palk Bay around Dhanushkodi, Tamil Nadu, India|date=2013-06-17|publisher=Current Science Association|oclc=854516766}}</ref>

In the southern regions close to [[Dhanushkodi]], [[Wind wave|wind seas]] dominate. The north-eastern region of Palk Bay is exposed to the [[Bay of Bengal]] through the shallow [[Palk Strait]] allowing [[Wind wave|swells]] to enter. To the south, [[Adam's Bridge]] separates Palk Bay from the [[Gulf of Mannar]]. Despite being a very shallow channel, [[Wind wave|wave]] effects are transmitted to a small extent through the [[Adam's Bridge]] passage.<ref name=":0" /> It is interesting to notice that, despite the visible block along the [[Adam's Bridge]], the passage of [[wind wave]] and [[ocean current]] (to a very small extent) from the [[Gulf of Mannar]] to the bay is evident. Meanwhile, even with a wider and broader opening along the north-eastern borders of the bay, facing the [[Bay of Bengal]], the wind wave and ocean current fluxes are less significant here.

It was named after [[Sir Robert Palk, 1st Baronet]], governor of the Madras Presidency.

== Ramayana and Palk Bay ==
Palk Bay is associated with an ancient Sanskrit epic [[Ramayana]] popular over the [[Indian subcontinent|Indian Subcontinent]], which follows [[Rama|Prince Rama]]'s quest to rescue his beloved wife [[Sita]] from the clutches of [[Ravana]] with the help of an army of Vaanaras (monkeys). It is traditionally attributed to the authorship of the [[Valmiki|sage Valmiki]] and dated to around 500 BCE to 100 BCE. The epic describes how Prince Rama and his followers managed to cross the Palk Bay to reach Lanka (Sri Lanka) to save Sita.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.bl.uk/onlinegallery/whatson/exhibitions/ramayana/guide.html|title=Quick guide to the Ramayana|last=Wight|first=Colin|website=www.bl.uk|access-date=2020-04-29}}</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist}}

{{Waters of South Asia}}
{{Geography of Sri Lanka}}
{{Authority control}}

{{Coord|9|30|N|79|15|E|display=title|region:LK_type:waterbody_source:GNS-enwiki}}

[[Category:Bodies of water of Jaffna District]]
[[Category:Bodies of water of Kilinochchi District]]


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