Irish Sea | Islands, Wildlife, Marine Life

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class="card-body"> <div class="md-assembly-caption text-muted font-14 font-serif line-clamp"> <span> <a class="gtm-assembly-link md-assembly-title font-weight-bold d-inline font-sans-serif mr-5 media-overlay-link" href="https://cdn.britannica.com/42/142642-050-E85EEE4B/Irish-Sea-Howth-peninsula-Ireland.jpg" data-href="/media/1/294164/145371">Irish Sea</a> <span><span>The Irish Sea at Howth peninsula, Ireland.</span></span> <button class="js-more-btn d-none btn btn-unstyled font-12 bg-white js-content" aria-label="Toggle more/less fact data"> <span class="link-blue">(more)</span> </button> </span> </div> </figcaption> </figure> </div><div class="topic-header"> <div class="d-flex align-items-top justify-content-between"> <div class="d-flex flex-column"> <div> <div> <h1>Irish Sea</h1></div> </div> <div class="topic-identifier font-16 font-md-20">sea, Atlantic Ocean</div> </div> </div> <div class="d-none d-sm-flex flex-row"> <div class="mr-10 mb-15"> <button class="ai-ask-button btn 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Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). </div> <div class="type-menu"> <label for="feedback-type" class="label mb-10">Feedback Type</label> <select id="feedback-type" class="form-select mb-30" name="feedbackTypeId" required> <option value="" selected="selected">Select a type (Required)</option> <option value="1">Factual Correction</option> <option value="2">Spelling/Grammar Correction</option> <option value="3">Link Correction</option> <option value="4">Additional Information</option> <option value="5">Other</option> </select> </div> <label for="feedback" class="label mb-10">Your Feedback</label> <textarea id="feedback" class="form-control mb-30" name="feedback" maxlength="3000" rows="7" required></textarea> <button class="btn btn-blue" type="submit">Submit Feedback</button> </form> <div class="success-messaging d-none mt-30"> <div class="title">Thank you for your feedback</div> <p>Our editors will review what you’ve submitted and determine whether to revise the article.</p> </div> </div> </div> <div class="md-websites-modal size-lg d-none"> <div class="md-modal-body"> <div class="h2 font-serif pb-15 border-bottom font-weight-bold"> External Websites </div> <div class="pb-20"> <ul class="list-unstyled mt-20 lh-lg"> <li><a class="external" href="http://www.factmonster.com/ce6/world/A0825489.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener nofollow">Fact Monster - World - Irish Sea</a></li> </ul> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="toc-header-marker"></div> <button class="ai-ask-button btn border-2 js-header-ai-ask-button d-none btn-sm btn-outline-red-400 border-red-400 mr-0 mr-lg-10 ml-5 ml-sm-10 ml-lg-0 p-10"> Ask the Chatbot a Question </button> <div class="caption alternate-titles">Also known as: Muir Éireann, Oceanus Hibernicus</div> <div class="md-byline module-spacing "> <div class="font-serif font-12"> <span class="written-by text-gray-700"> Written and fact-checked by </span> <div class="editor-popover popover p-0"> <a class="d-block p-20 gtm-byline font-12 byline-contributor" href="/editor/The-Editors-of-Encyclopaedia-Britannica/4419" > <div class="editor-title font-16 font-weight-bold">The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica</div> <div class="editor-description font-12 font-serif mt-5 text-black">Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors.</div> </a> <div data-popper-arrow></div> </div> <span class="btn btn-link editor-link p-0 qa-byline-link gtm-byline font-12 byline-contributor text-decoration-underline"> The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica</span></div> <div class="last-updated font-12 font-serif"> <span class="text-gray-700"> Last Updated: <time datetime="2024-11-20T00:00:00CST" >Nov 20, 2024</time> •</span> <a class="byline-edit-history" href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Irish-Sea/additional-info#history" rel="nofollow">Article History</a> </div></div> </div> <button class="d-flex d-lg-none btn btn-outline-blue border rounded-sm shadow-sm mobile-toc-button gtm-mobile-toc-inline-button d-none d-sm-block js-sections-inline-button module-spacing btn d-lg-none"> <em class="material-icons mr-5 ml-n10 my-n5 md-icon" data-icon="toc"></em> Table of Contents </button> <div class="d-flex d-sm-none flex-row"> <button class="d-flex d-lg-none btn btn-outline-blue border rounded-sm shadow-sm mobile-toc-button gtm-mobile-toc-inline-button js-sections-inline-button module-spacing"> <em class="material-icons mr-5 ml-n10 my-n5 md-icon" data-icon="toc"></em> Table of Contents </button> <button class="ai-ask-button btn border-2 ai-ask-button btn border-2 module-spacing btn-sm js-inline-ai-ask-button btn-outline-red-400 border-red-400 p-10 ml-5"> Ask the Chatbot a Question </button> </div> <div class="js-qf-module qf-module px-40 px-sm-20 py-15 mx-auto module-spacing font-14 bg-gray-50 rounded"> <div class="facts-list mt-10"> <div class=""> <div class="js-fact mb-10 line-clamp clamp-3"> <dl> <dt>Irish: </dt> <dd>Muir Éireann</dd> </dl> <button class="js-more-btn d-none btn btn-unstyled font-12 bg-gray-50" aria-label="Toggle more/less fact data"> <em class="js-content link-blue">(Show more)</em> </button> </div> <div class="text-center"> <a class="btn btn-sm btn-link p-0" href="/facts/Irish-Sea"> See all related content </a> </div> </div> </div> </div><div class="bg-gray-50 p-15 rounded module-spacing recent-news d-flex flex-column float-false"> <div> <h2 class="font-weight-bold font-14 m-0 d-inline"> News <span class="text-gray-600">•</span> </h2> <div class="recent-news-item first-recent-news-item d-inline"> <a class="font-14 gtm-ap-news-link" href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/nov/16/russian-spy-ship-escorted-away-from-internet-cables-in-irish-sea" rel="nofollow">Russian spy ship escorted away from area with critical cables in Irish Sea</a> <span class="font-14 text-gray-600"> <span>•</span> Nov. 16, 2024, 6:24 AM ET (The Guardian) <button class="btn btn-link d-inline p-0 font-12 js-toggle-recent-news"> <span class="text-gray-500">...</span><span>(Show more)</span> </button> </span> </div> </div> <div class="rest-of-recent-news-items"> <div class="recent-news-item mt-5"> <a class="font-14 gtm-ap-news-link" href="https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cq528ql6yego" rel="nofollow">Lost World War One warship wreck discovered in Irish Sea</a> <span class="font-14 text-gray-600"> <span>•</span> Nov. 8, 2024, 5:37 AM ET (BBC) </span> </div> <button class="js-toggle-recent-news d-flex btn btn-unstyled font-14 pr-10 rounded-sm mt-10" aria-label="Toggle additional news items"> Show less <em class="material-icons" data-icon="expand_less"></em> </button> </div> </div><span class="marker before-article"></span><section data-level="1" id="ref1"><span class="marker PREMOD1 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph"><strong><span id="ref215137"></span>Irish Sea</strong>, arm of the North Atlantic Ocean that separates <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Ireland" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">Ireland</a> from Great Britain. The Irish Sea is bounded by <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Scotland" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">Scotland</a> on the north, <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/England" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">England</a> on the east, <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Wales" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">Wales</a> on the south, and Ireland on the west. The sea is connected with the Atlantic by the <span id="ref215138"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/North-Channel-strait" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">North Channel</a> between <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Northern-Ireland" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">Northern Ireland</a> and Scotland and by <span id="ref215139"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Saint-Georges-Channel" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">St. George’s Channel</a> between the southeastern tip of Ireland and southwestern Wales. The sea is about 130 miles (210 km) long and 150 miles (240 km) wide. Its total area is approximately 40,000 square miles (100,000 square km). Its greatest depth measures about 576 feet (175 m) at the <span id="ref215140"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Mull-of-Galloway" class="md-crosslink ">Mull of Galloway</a>, near the sea’s junction with the North Channel. In classical times the Irish Sea was known as Oceanus Hibernicus.</p><span class="marker MOD1 mod-inline"></span><span class="marker PREMOD2 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">There are two principal islands in the Irish Sea. The <span id="ref215141"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Isle-of-Man" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Isle of Man</a> lies in the centre of the northern part, and <span id="ref215142"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Isle-of-Anglesey" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Anglesey</a> lies close to the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/coast" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">coast</a> of North Wales. Geologic studies seem to indicate that the Irish Sea originated by rifting during the Paleogene and Neogene periods (about 65 to 2.6 million years ago), and subsidence of its <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off eb" data-term="basins" href="https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/basins" data-type="EB">basins</a> was probably initiated or renewed at that time.</p><span class="marker MOD2 mod-inline"></span><span class="marker PREMOD3 mod-inline"></span><div class="assemblies"><div class="w-100"><figure class="md-assembly m-0 mb-md-0 card card-borderless print-false" data-assembly-id="281805" data-asm-type="image"><div class="md-assembly-wrapper card-media " data-type="image"><a href="https://cdn.britannica.com/64/241464-050-CF377DDC/Locator-map-Irish-Sea.jpg" class="gtm-assembly-link position-relative d-flex align-items-center justify-content-center media-overlay-link card-media" data-href="/media/1/294164/281805"><picture><source media="(min-width: 680px)" srcset="https://cdn.britannica.com/64/241464-050-CF377DDC/Locator-map-Irish-Sea.jpg"><img src="https://cdn.britannica.com/64/241464-050-CF377DDC/Locator-map-Irish-Sea.jpg?w=300" alt="Irish Sea" data-width="2000" data-height="2000" loading="eager"></picture><button class="magnifying-glass btn btn-circle position-absolute shadow btn-white top-10 right-10" aria-label="Zoom in"><em class="material-icons link-blue" data-icon="zoom_in"></em></button></a></div><figcaption class="card-body"><div class="md-assembly-caption text-muted font-14 font-serif line-clamp"><span><a class="gtm-assembly-link md-assembly-title font-weight-bold d-inline font-sans-serif mr-5 media-overlay-link" href="https://cdn.britannica.com/64/241464-050-CF377DDC/Locator-map-Irish-Sea.jpg" data-href="/media/1/294164/281805">Irish Sea</a><button class="js-more-btn d-none btn btn-unstyled font-12 bg-white js-content" aria-label="Toggle more/less fact data"><span class="link-blue">(more)</span></button></span></div></figcaption></figure></div></div><p class="topic-paragraph">Surface tidal currents reach a speed of more than 4 knots in St. George’s Channel, near the Irish coast, and are locally strong elsewhere. Currents are weakest in the west-central Irish Sea. The greatest ranges of tide occur on the northwest English coast. Tidal streams enter the Irish Sea from both the north and the south, meeting near latitude 54° N, just south of the Isle of Man.</p><a class="link-module shadow-sm d-block qa-quiz-module" href="/quiz/all-about-oceans-and-seas-quiz" data-link-module-iframe-link=""> <img loading="lazy" src="https://cdn.britannica.com/48/172748-131-287B3EAC/wave-ocean-sea-waves-hurricane-cyclone-storm.jpg" alt="wave. ocean. Cresting ocean wave. Large sea waves. storm, hurricane, tropical cyclone" class="rounded-sm mr-15" width="70" /> <div class="line-clamp clamp-5"> <div class="module-title bg-green">Britannica Quiz</div> <div class="font-weight-semi-bold mt-5">All About Oceans and Seas Quiz</div> </div> </a><div class="one-good-fact-module"> </div><span class="marker MOD3 mod-inline"></span><span class="marker PREMOD4 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">On the sea’s eastern shores, <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Liverpool-England" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">Liverpool</a> is the largest British port; Manchester is joined to the Irish Sea by the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/Manchester-Ship-Canal" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">Manchester Ship Canal</a>. On the west, <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Dublin" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">Dublin</a>, with extensive quays on the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/River-Liffey" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">River Liffey</a>, handles much of the <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off eb" data-term="cargo" href="https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/cargo" data-type="EB">cargo</a> trade of the Republic of Ireland. Herring and whiting are fished, and there is some trawling for cod and <a href="https://www.britannica.com/animal/pleuronectiform" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">flatfish</a>. Fleetwood, lying north of Liverpool, is the chief British fishing port, and Ardglass, Portavogie, and Kilkeel are important in Northern Ireland. Dun Laoghaire, Howth, Skerries, and Mornington—all near Dublin—are important fishing ports for the Republic of Ireland.</p><span class="marker MOD4 mod-inline"></span></section> <span class="md-signature"><a href="/editor/The-Editors-of-Encyclopaedia-Britannica/4419">The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica</a></span> <span class="md-signature">This article was most recently revised and updated by <a href="/editor/Maren-Goldberg/6738">Maren Goldberg</a>.</span><span class="marker end-of-content"></span><span class="marker after-article"></span></div> <div id="chatbot-root"></div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="ai-dialog-placeholder"></div> </div> </div> <aside class="col-md-da-320"></aside> </div> </div> </div> </div> </article></div> </div></div> </div> </main> <div id="md-footer"></div> <noscript><iframe src="//www.googletagmanager.com/ns.html?id=GTM-5W6NC8" height="0" width="0" style="display:none;visibility:hidden"></iframe></noscript> <script type="text/javascript" id="_informizely_script_tag"> var IzWidget = IzWidget || {}; (function (d) { var scriptElement = d.createElement('script'); scriptElement.type = 'text/javascript'; scriptElement.async = true; scriptElement.src = "https://insitez.blob.core.windows.net/site/f780f33e-a610-4ac2-af81-3eb184037547.js"; var node = d.getElementById('_informizely_script_tag'); node.parentNode.insertBefore(scriptElement, node); } )(document); </script>  <script> window.ap3c = window.ap3c || {}; var ap3c = window.ap3c; ap3c.cmd = ap3c.cmd || []; ap3c.cmd.push(function() { ap3c.init('ZO4siT4cLwnykPnzZWJtd3Byb2Q', 'https://engage.email.britannica.com/'); ap3c.track({v: 0}); }); ap3c.activity = function(act) { ap3c.act = (ap3c.act || []); ap3c.act.push(act); }; var s, t; s = document.createElement('script'); s.type = 'text/javascript'; s.src = "https://engage.email.britannica.com/app.js"; t = document.getElementsByTagName('script')[0]; t.parentNode.insertBefore(s, t); </script> <script class="marketing-page-info" type="application/json"> {"pageType":"Topic","templateName":"DESKTOP","pageNumber":1,"pagesTotal":1,"pageId":294164,"pageLength":359,"initialLoad":true,"lastPageOfScroll":false} </script> <script class="marketing-content-info" type="application/json"> [] </script> <script src="https://cdn.britannica.com/mendel-resources/3-130/js/libs/jquery-3.5.0.min.js?v=3.130.14"></script> <script type="text/javascript" data-type="Init Mendel Code Splitting"> (function() { $.ajax({ dataType: 'script', cache: true, url: 'https://cdn.britannica.com/mendel-resources/3-130/dist/topic-page.js?v=3.130.14' }); })(); </script> <script class="analytics-metadata" type="application/json"> {"leg":"B","adLeg":"B","userType":"ANONYMOUS","pageType":"Topic","pageSubtype":null,"articleTemplateType":"MEDIUM","gisted":false,"pageNumber":1,"hasSummarizeButton":false,"hasAskButton":false} </script> <script type="text/javascript"> EBStat={accountId:-1,hostnameOverride:'webstats.eb.com',domain:'www.britannica.com', json:''}; </script> <script type="text/javascript"> ( function() { $.ajax( { dataType: 'script', cache: true, url: '//www.britannica.com/webstats/mendelstats.js?v=1' } ) .done( function() { try {writeStat(null,EBStat);} catch(err){} } ); })(); </script> <div id="bc-fixed-dialogue"></div> </body> </html>

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Irish Sea | Islands, Wildlife, Marine Life | Britannica