The area of the United States increased by 386,000 square miles last month. This is almost twice the area of Spain.
This development was announced by the US Department of State.
Street metro.co.uk, The State Department said the U.S. geographic coordinates that mark the outer boundaries of the continental shelf have shifted by more than 200 nautical miles from the coast.
The extended continental shelf (ECS) is the portion of the continental shelf that remains below shallow water.
Street NDTVdata from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the United States Geological Survey (USGS) were used to determine ECS expansion.
NOAA and USGS have been collecting and analyzing data since 2003.
Growth was measured by analyzing ECS depth, shape, and other submerged geophysical features.
Street Times of India, The Department of State led this study through the U.S. ECS Task Force.
This task force was comprised of 14 different agencies.
“We’ve conducted 40 missions at sea, gone into areas we’ve never explored before, and discovered entire seamounts we didn’t know existed,” the paper quoted State Department project director Brian Van Pay as saying. ” he said.
The largest ECS region in the United States is located in the Arctic.
Here, it extends 350 nautical miles north in the eastern portion and more than 680 nautical miles in the western portion, the State Department announced Dec. 19.
ECS also consists of 6 other regions
- east coast of atlantic
- pacific west coast
- bering sea
- mariana islands
- Two parts of the Gulf of Mexico.
The total area of the U.S. ECS is approximately twice the size of California, the third largest state.
“The continental shelf is an extension of a country’s landmass that lies beneath the ocean,” the State Department was quoted as saying. Times of India.
“The United States, like other nations, has the right under international law to conserve and manage resources and critical habitat on and below the ECS,” the State Department was quoted as saying. Metro.co.UK.
“The ECS is home to ‘many resources’ such as corals and crabs, and ‘important habitat for marine life,'” it added.
The Wilson Center, a Washington, D.C.-based think tank, said the development has implications for U.S. efforts to secure territorial claims in the Arctic.
“The United States has major economic interests in undersea areas rich in oil, natural gas, minerals, and marine life, to which it has sovereign rights under the law of the sea as reflected in the Convention on the Law of the Sea. , has been clear for a long time,” the Wilson Center said.
NDTV The Wilson Center quoted the United States as saying that it has the largest exclusive economic zone on earth, which allows it to protect its sovereignty over submerged areas.
“This is also an important milestone that reflects the United States’ commitment to the law of the sea, as reflected in the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, and is an aspect that advances key United States interests in the Arctic and elsewhere.” added.
The Wilson Center added that there is “no need to negotiate with Russia in the future” over territorial rights. metro.co.uk.
That’s because each country determined the limits of its continental shelf with respect to the boundaries set by the 1990 Agreement on Maritime Boundaries between the United States and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics.
The Times of India Van Pay was quoted as saying that Canada may have overlapping claims, but that they could be sorted out in the future.
Based on opinions from agents