Cook Street

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Cook Strait (Cook Strait)
Cook Strait with Cape Terawhiti (right) and Arapawa Island (left), view to the north
Cook Strait with Cape Terawhiti (right) and Arapawa Island (left), view to the north
Connects waters Tasman Sea
with water Pacific Ocean
Separates land mass South island
of land mass North island
Data
Geographical location 41 ° 14 ′  S , 174 ° 29 ′  E Coordinates: 41 ° 14 ′  S , 174 ° 29 ′  E
Cook Strait (New Zealand)
Cook Street
length 60 km
Smallest width 22 km
Greatest depth 300 m
Coastal towns Wellington
Cook Strait, New Zealand
Cook Strait , New Zealand

The Cook Strait ( English Cook Strait , Māori Raukawa ) is the strait between the two main islands of New Zealand . It is named after the navigator and explorer Captain James Cook and is one of the stormiest seas in the world .

geography

The strait divides New Zealand almost in the middle of its length and runs between the North Island and the South Island . It is 22 km wide at its narrowest point and connects the Tasman Sea , in western New Zealand, with the Pacific Ocean , which extends east of New Zealand.

The sea floor in the northern part of the Cook Strait is rather shallow at a depth of 100 m to 200 m, although at the narrowest point - caused by tectonic shifts and the ocean currents - it varies greatly in shape and is 100 to 300 m deep. The seabed of the southern part of the Cook Strait, on the other hand, resembles a huge canyon that drops to a depth of 1500 m.

geology

According to recent studies, the Cook Strait is criss-crossed by twelve seismically active faults , of which the Wairau Fault is by far the most important. It finds its southwest running continuation in the valley of the Wairau River and shifts with a speed of 3 to 5 mm per year. The northeastern part of the fault should therefore find connection in the Pukerua Fault , which runs along the west coast of the North Island to the north.

In 2008, the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research (NIWA) found that there was no direct connection between the North Island and South Island faults via the Cook Strait, which would fundamentally change the assessment of earthquake risks along the faults. However, all faults are said to have a potential for earthquakes of magnitude 7 on the Richter scale and above, which significantly increases the risk of tsunamis in the region. The dramatic effects that seismic activity in the Cook Strait can have was shown by a study according to which a landslide of 10 billion cubic meters of rock must have taken place in the 300 m deep, steeply sloping submarine Nicholson Canyon , 15 km from Wellington Airport .

The Wairarapa earthquake of 1855 , in which the Remutaka Range , located about 15 km east of Wellington city ​​center, lifted 6 m with an earthquake strength of 8.2 and shifted 18 m in a horizontal direction northeast, had three differently triggered to This resulted in tsunamis that were 2.5 m high in Wellington Harbor , a) due to the horizontal shift, b) due to the unilateral elevation of the harbor basin and c) due to the extensive elevation of the seabed in parts of the Cook Strait.

history

Endeavor , James Cook's ship (replica)

Long before the first Europeans came to New Zealand, the Māori crossed the Cook Strait in their canoes ( Māori : Waka ). They gave the strait the name Raukawa and declared the waters sacred, which gave rise to numerous myths . A first person crossing the canoe was not allowed to look to the left or right, and certainly not back, but only to the front. Failure to observe the rule resulted in the boat coming to a standstill. This becomes understandable when you consider the harsh weather conditions in the Cook Strait. From Te Rauparaha (1760-1849), the leader of the Ngāti Toa , who often crossed them on military expeditions, it is known that he connected two canoes amidships with a deck to give the boats up to 30 meters long more stability and safety .

The first European to see the strait was the Dutch navigator Abel Tasman (1603-1659) in 1642 . However, he thought it was a large bay , so that the merit of having crossed the strait as the first European went to the British navigator James Cook (1728–1779) on January 22, 1770. The strait was named after him.

The worst shipping accident in the history of the Cook Strait occurred on February 12, 1909, when the New Zealand passenger steamer Penguin crashed into an underwater rock at the entrance to Wellington Harbor and sank in stormy seas and complete darkness . 72 passengers and crew were killed, including all the children on board and all but one of the women.

Transport links

The ferry connections in the Cook Strait represent one of the most important traffic connections between the two main islands for passenger traffic and especially for long-distance freight traffic.

Strait Shipping Limited ships operate between the two ports of Wellington and Picton , through which most of the shipments are handled. They have operated ferry connections since 1992 and have competed with the Interislander line with the Bluebridge line since 2003 . The Interislander line has belonged to the state again since 2008 and is operated by KiwiRail . In addition to the transport of people and goods, it also offers the transport of railway wagons and thus becomes an important link between the rail networks of the North and South Island.

Cook Street, entrance to Wellington Harbor with the Remutaka Range

For tourists, the ferry connections over the Cook Strait represent a varied 3-hour sea voyage that brings travelers closer to the fascinating coastal landscapes on both sides of the strait and becomes an experience with the journey through Queen Charlotte Sound .

Cable connections

The Cook Strait has always represented a significant barrier for travel and communication between the two main islands. Only a few decades after the arrival of the first Europeans in New Zealand, thought was given to suitable communication links . In 1866 the first copper cable was laid through the inhospitable strait, via which on August 26, 1866 the first telegram could be sent from Wellington to Christchurch . But the cable did not withstand the harsh conditions of the Cook Strait for long. Repeated cable breaks initially only made an average operational readiness of about three months possible. It would take some time before better technical conditions enabled more secure communication.

In May 1965 the first power cable was laid between the islands, which considerably simplified the power supply to the two main islands during bottlenecks on either side. The first fiber optic cable was only laid through Cookstrasse in 2000. All submarine cables laid so far are exposed to extreme conditions in the Cook Strait. The occasional strong tidal currents , as well as tectonic shifts and suddenly occurring earthquakes, require a high technical standard. In order to prevent the risk of cable breaks, which can be caused by cruising ships, all modern cables are now laid in a cable route designated as a safety zone.

Swimming in the Cook Strait

Swimming through the Cook Strait Swim is a very special challenge . This is made difficult by tidal currents, sudden winds, cruising ships and sharks . So far 93 swimmers (as of December 2014) have managed to cross. The record for the 26 km distance to swim is currently 4 hours and 37 minutes and was set on April 13, 2008 by New Zealander Casey Glover. The first successful swimmer was the then 27-year-old New Zealander Barry Devonport, who needed 11 hours and 20 minutes for the distance on November 20, 1962. The Cook Strait is a stretch of the Ocean's Seven .

literature

  • Raukawa , The Sacred Sea . In: New Zealand Illustrated Magazine . Vol. 1, Issue 2 . Auckland November 1, 1899, p. 58 ( online [accessed February 8, 2018]).
  • Cook Strait - The Sea Floor . In: Alexander Hare McLintock (Ed.): An Encyclopaedia of New Zealand . Wellington 1966 ( online [accessed December 14, 2015]).
  • Lionel Carter : Acoustical characterization of seafloor sediments and its relationship to active sedimentary processes in Cook Strait, New Zealand . In: New Zealand Journal of Geology and Geophysics . Vol. 35, Issue 3 . The Royal Society of New Zealand , Wellington 1992, pp. 289-300 , doi : 10.1080 / 00288306.1992.9514522 (English).

Web links

Commons : Cook Strait  - collection of images, videos and audio files
  • Homepage . In: Interislander . KiwiRail,accessed February 8, 2018.
  • Homepage . In: BlueBridge . StraitShipping,accessed February 8, 2018.
  • Thomas Ludovic Grant-Taylor : Cook Strait - The Sea Floor . In: Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand . Ministry for Culture & Heritage , April 23, 2009, accessed on August 29, 2012 (English, 9 other websites on various topics relating to Cook Strait ).

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Topo250 maps . Land Information New Zealand , accessed February 8, 2018 .
  2. ↑ Carter : Acoustical characterization of seafloor sediments and its relationship to active sedimentary processes in Cook Strait, New Zealand . In: New Zealand Journal of Geology and Geophysics . 1992, p.  289 f .
  3. ↑ Guy Holdgate, Ray Shaw, Prospectivity of the Cook Strait region , New Zealand Petroleum Conference Proceedings, 24-27, February 2002.
  4. ^ Philip Barnes, Russell Van Dissen : Breakthrough in earthquake faulting research to help assess New Zealand seismic risk . In: News & Publication . NIWA , August 26, 2008, accessed February 8, 2018 .
  5. ↑ Huge undersea landslide discovered in Cook Strait . In: News & Publication . NIWA , March 11, 2008, accessed February 8, 2018 .
  6. ^ Raukawa , The Sacred Sea . In: New Zealand Illustrated Magazine . 1899, p.  58 .
  7. ↑ Hoturoa Barclay-Kerr : Waka - caneos - Waka taua . In: Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand . Ministry for Culture & Heritage , June 12, 2006, accessed February 8, 2018 .
  8. ↑ The legend of "The Brothers", Sea of Raukawa . Wellington City Libraries , accessed January 24, 2009 .
  9. ↑ About Us . StraitShipping , accessed February 8, 2018 .
  10. ^ Keith Lewis : Engineering on the sea floor - Submarine cables . In: Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand . Ministry for Culture & Heritage , June 22, 2006, accessed February 8, 2018 .
  11. ↑ 1st telegram via Cook Strait line . In: Archives New Zealand . Christchurch Online , August 26, 1866, accessed February 8, 2018 .
  12. ↑ Neil Ratley : Teen makes 93rd swim across Cook Strait . In: Stuff . Fairfax Media , December 17, 2014, accessed April 12, 2015 .
  13. ^ Successful Single Crossing of Cook Strait in Order of Completion . cookstraitswim.org.nz , archived from the original on December 8, 2015 ; accessed on April 5, 2018 (English, original website no longer available).