Editing Mediterranean Sea (section)

== Seabed ==
The Mediterranean Sea has numerous [[Underwater environment|underwater]] [[Geology|geological]] features formed by the [[subduction]] of the [[African plate|African Plate]] beneath the [[Eurasian plate|Eurasian Plate]].<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Tugend |first1=J. |last2=Chamot-Rooke |first2=N. |last3=Arsenikos |first3=S. |last4=Blanpied |first4=C. |last5=Frizon de Lamotte |first5=D. |date=2019 |title=Geology of the Ionian Basin and Margins: A Key to the East Mediterranean Geodynamics |url=https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1029/2018TC005472 |journal=Tectonics |volume=38 |issue=8 |pages=2668–2702 |doi=10.1029/2018TC005472 |bibcode=2019Tecto..38.2668T |issn=1944-9194}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |url=https://www.researchgate.net/figure/A-Seismotectonic-map-of-the-Central-Mediterranean-area-Topography-and-bathymetry-are_fig1_234072715 |page=29, Figure 1 |first1=Flora |last1=Gallais |first2=Marc-Andre |last2=Gutscher |first3=Dirk |last3=Klaeschen |first4=David |last4=Graindorge |date=2012 |title=Two-stage growth of the Calabrian accretionary wedge in the Ionian Sea (Central Mediterranean): Constraints from depth-migrated multichannel seismic data |journal=Marine Geology |volume=326-328 |issue=28–45 |doi=10.1016/j.margeo.2012.08.006|bibcode=2012MGeol.326...28G }}</ref> The sea is divided naturally into western and [[Eastern Mediterranean|eastern]] regions by the [[Malta Escarpment]] that runs from the island of [[Sicily]] to the [[Africa]]n coast.<ref name=":0">{{Cite encyclopedia |date=3 January 2025 |title=Mediterranean Sea - Geology, Climate, Biodiversity {{!}} Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/place/Mediterranean-Sea/Physiographic-and-geologic-features |access-date=5 January 2025 |encyclopedia=Encyclopedia Britannica |edition=Online}}</ref><ref name=":1">{{cite book |last1=Vanney |first1=JR. |last2=Gennesseaux |first2=M. |date=1985 |chapter=Mediterranean Seafloor Features: Overview and Assessment |editor-last1=Stanley |editor-first1=D. J. |editor-last2=Wezel |editor-first2=FC |title=Geological Evolution of the Mediterranean Basin |publisher=Springer |location=New York, NY |url=https://www.vliz.be/imisdocs/publications/261914.pdf |pages=3–32}}</ref><ref name=":2">{{cite journal |last1=Mascle |first1=Jean |last2=Chaumillon |first2=Eric |date=1998 |title=An overview of Mediterranean Ridge collisional accretionary complex as deduced from multichannel seismic data |journal=Geo-Marine Letters |volume=18 |issue=2 |pages=81–89 |doi=10.1007/s003670050056 |bibcode=1998GML....18...81M |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/225774193}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |url=https://www.researchgate.net/figure/Morpho-structural-map-of-the-Calabrian-accretionary-wedge-and-its-adjacent-regions-Black_fig11_234072715 |first1=Flora |last1=Gallais |first2=Marc-Andre |last2=Gutscher |first3=Dirk |last3=Klaeschen |first4=David |last4=Graindorge |date=2012 |title=Two-stage growth of the Calabrian accretionary wedge in the Ionian Sea (Central Mediterranean): Constraints from depth-migrated multichannel seismic data |journal=Marine Geology |volume=326-328 |issue=28–45 |page=31, Figure 3 |doi=10.1016/j.margeo.2012.08.006|bibcode=2012MGeol.326...28G }}</ref>

The '''western Mediterranean region''' may be separated into three main underwater basins:<ref>{{cite journal |url=https://www.researchgate.net/figure/Schematic-structural-map-of-the-western-Mediterranean-region-showing-the-main-orogenic_fig1_359801917 |title=Palaeostrait tectono-sedimentary facies during late Cenozoic microplate rifting and dispersal in the western Mediterranean |last1=Cavazza |first1=William |last2=Longhitano |first2=Sergio |date=2022  |journal=Geological Society Special Publications |volume=523 |issue=1 |page=2, Figure 1 |doi=10.1144/SP523-2021-95}}</ref>

* the '''[[Alboran Sea|Alboran]] Basin''' lies between the [[Morocco|Moroccan]] and [[Spain|Spanish]] coasts, east of [[Gibraltar]], west of [[Sardinia]] and [[Corsica]], which acts as a gateway between the [[Atlantic Ocean]] and the Mediterranean Sea and is a [[biodiversity hotspot]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Marine Protected Areas and key biodiversity areas of the Alboran Sea and adjacent areas |url=https://europe.oceana.org/reports/marine-protected-areas-and-key-biodiversity-areas-of-the-alboran-sea-and-adjacent-areas/ |access-date=7 January 2025 |website=Oceana Europe |language=en-US}}</ref>
* the '''Algerian Basin''' stretches from the [[Algeria]]n coast to the [[France|French]] coast, and includes depths of up to {{convert|2800|m}}.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Bouyahiaoui |first1=B. |last2=Sage |first2=F. |last3=Abtout |first3=A. |last4=Klingelhoefer |first4=F. |last5=Yelles-Chaouche |first5=K. |last6=Schnürle |first6=P. |last7=Marok |first7=A. |last8=Déverchère |first8=J. |last9=Arab |first9=M. |last10=Galve |first10=A. |last11=Collot |first11=J.Y. |date=1 June 2015 |title=Crustal structure of the eastern Algerian continental margin and adjacent deep basin: implications for late Cenozoic geodynamic evolution of the western Mediterranean |url=https://academic.oup.com/gji/article/201/3/1912/771442 |journal=Geophysical Journal International |volume=201 |issue=3 |pages=1912–1938 |doi=10.1093/gji/ggv102 |doi-access=free |issn=0956-540X}}</ref> There has been significant [[hydrocarbon exploration]], particularly off the coasts of Algeria, [[Libya]], and [[Tunisia]];<ref>{{cite report |vauthors=Smith, CJ, Dailianis, T, Papadopoulou, K-N, Gerovasileiou, V, Sevastou, K, Grehan, A, Billett, B, McOwen, C, Amaro, T, Bakran-Petricioli, T, Bekkby, T, Bilan, M, Boström, C, Carriero-Silva, M, Carugati, L, Cebrian, E, Cerrano, C, Christie, H, Danovaro, R, Eronat, EGT, Fiorentino, D, Fraschetti, S, Gagnon, K, Gambi, C, Hereu, B, Kipson, S, Kotta, J, Linares, C, Morato, T, Ojaveer, H, Orav-Kotta, H, Pham, CK, Rinde, E, Sarà, A, Scrimgeour, R |date=2017 |title=Current marine pressures and mechanisms driving changes in marine habitats |page=64 |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/322226825}}</ref> The [[Campi Flegrei Mar Sicilia|Campi Flegrei del Mar di Sicilia]] is a field of [[submarine volcano]]es located about {{convert|40|km}} southwest of Sicily very close to [[sea level]] and which temporarily emerge above sea level during significant [[Types of volcanic eruptions|eruptions]]. These include [[Graham Island (Mediterranean Sea)|Ferdinandea]], also known as [[Graham Island (Mediterranean Sea)|Graham Island]], and [[Empedocles (volcano)|Empedocles]];<ref>{{Cite web |title=Global Volcanism Program {{!}} Campi Flegrei del Mar di Sicilia |url=https://volcano.si.edu/volcano.cfm?vn=211070 |access-date=9 January 2025 |publisher=Smithsonian Institution {{!}} Global Volcanism Program}}</ref>
* the '''Tyrrhenian Basin''', also referred to as the [[Tyrrhenian Sea]], between [[Italy]] and the islands of Sardinia and Corsica.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":1" /> The basin includes [[Marsili]], a large [[undersea volcano]] in the Tyrrhenian Sea, about {{convert|175|km}} south of [[Naples]], and the [[Palinuro Seamount]], one of the largest in the Tyrrhenian Sea and lies about {{convert|30|km}} northeast from Marsili. Marsili is one of the largest volcanoes in [[Europe]], with a length of {{convert|70|km}} and a width of 30 kilometres, larger than [[Mount Etna]] and part of the [[Aeolian Islands]] [[volcanic arc]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Global Volcanism Program {{!}} Marsili |url=https://volcano.si.edu/volcano.cfm?vn=211080 |access-date=9 January 2025 |publisher=Smithsonian Institution {{!}} Global Volcanism Program}}</ref>

The '''[[eastern Mediterranean]]''' region may also be subdivided into the following underwater basins:

* the '''Ionian Basin''', which is a deep and narrow oceanic basin, stretches south of [[Italy]], [[Albania]], and [[Greece]] and contains the [[Calypso Deep]], also known as the Oinousses or Vavilov Deep, featuring the deepest point in the Mediterranean Sea, located in the [[Hellenic Trench]], {{convert|62.6|km}} southwest of [[Pylos]], Greece, with a maximum depth of approximately {{convert|16000|ft|m|order=flip}};<ref name=":0" />
* the '''[[Levantine Sea|Levantine Basin]]''' to the south of [[Anatolia]] separated from the Ionian Basin by the [[Mediterranean Ridge]]. The {{convert|1300|km|adj=on|}}-long [[Mid-ocean ridge|submarine ridge]] running from [[Calabria]] along the south of [[Crete]], to the southwest corner of [[Turkey]] is a {{convert|150|to|300|km|adj=on}}-wide curved feature, which is also known for its [[mud volcano]]es and dome-like structures and has been the subject of studies on the [[Messinian salinity crisis]].<ref name=":2" /> The [[Eratosthenes Seamount]], a [[Carbonate platform|carbonate]] [[seamount]] is found in the Levantine basin about {{convert|100|km}} south of western [[Cyprus]].
* the island of Crete delineates the Levantine Basin from the '''Aegean Sea''', which is that portion of the Mediterranean Sea north of Crete and is bordered on the east by the coast of Turkey and on the west and north by the coast of Greece. Numerous [[List of islands of Greece|Greek islands]] and seamounts are located in the [[Aegean Sea]];<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{cite book |last1=Sakellariou |first1=Dimitris |last2=Drakopoulou |first2=Paraskevi |last3=Rousakis |first3=Grigoris |last4=Livanos |first4=Isidoros |last5=Loukaidi |first5=Vassiliki |last6=Kyriakidou |first6=Chara  |last7=Morfis |first7=Ioannis |last8=Panagiotopoulos |first8=Ioannis |last9=Tsampouraki-Kraounaki |first9=Konstantina |last10=Manta |first10=Kyriaki |last11=Leontopoulou |first11=Georgia |date=2022 |chapter=Geomorphological Features |url=https://www.researchgate.net/figure/Location-of-the-seamount-areas-in-the-South-Aegean-Sea-discussed-in-this-chapter_fig5_360554511 |title=Deep-sea Atlas of the Eastern Mediterranean Sea - Current Knowledge |publisher=IUCN |location=Gland, Switzerland |page=51, Figure 2.21}}</ref> and 
* the '''Adriatic Sea''', which is northwest of the eastern Mediterranean Sea's main body, is bordered to the east by [[Slovenia]], [[Croatia]], [[Bosnia and Herzegovina]], [[Montenegro]], and Albania, and to the west and north by Italy.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":1" />

Until the 1960s, the Mediterranean was believed to be the primary remaining portion of the earlier (200 million years old) [[Mesozoic]] [[Tethys Ocean]], which once encircled the [[Eastern Hemisphere]]. However, since the late 20th century, research using the theory of seafloor spreading has indicated that most of the current Mediterranean seafloor is not a portion of the Tethys sea floor.<ref name=":0" /> Some researchers consider the Ionian Basin, to the east of the Malta Escarpment, to be the remnant of the Tethys Ocean.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Micallef |first1=Aaron |last2=Camerlenghi |first2=Angelo |last3=Georgiopoulou |first3=Aggeliki |last4=Garcia-Castellanos |first4=Daniel |last5=Gutscher |first5=Marc-André |last6=Lo Iacono |first6=Claudio |last7=AI Huvenne |first7=Veerle |last8=Mountjoy |first8=Joshu J. |last9=Paull |first9=Charles K. |last10=Le Bas |first10=Timothy |last11=Spatola |first11=Daniele |last12=Facchin |first12=Lorenzo |last13=Accettella |first13=Daniela |date=2019 |title=Geomorphic evolution of the Malta Escarpment and implications for the Messinian evaporative drawdown in the eastern Mediterranean Sea |url=https://oceanrep.geomar.de/48710/7/Micallef%20et%20al.%20preprint.pdf |journal=Geomorphology |language=en |volume=327 |issue=327 |pages=264–283 |doi=10.1016/j.geomorph.2018.11.012}}</ref> Over the course of the last 44 million years, the continental plates of Africa and [[Eurasia]] have converged and receded, resulting in the current tectonically active basin and its surrounding mountain chains. According to the interpretation of geologic data, there are currently several major places where Africa and Eurasia collide, causing land submergence, mountain building, and volcanism.<ref name=":0" />

[[Sediment core]]s drilled in 1970 and 1975 led to theories that about 6 million years ago, the Mediterranean was around {{convert|10000|ft|m|order=flip}} below the current sea level and included arid deserts blanketed with evaporite salts. It was thought that Gibraltar's high ridges prevented Atlantic waters from entering until roughly 5.5 million years ago, when they broke through and flooded the Mediterranean. According to more recent seismic and microfossil research, the seafloor was never entirely dry. Rather approximately 5 million years ago, the seafloor was made up of many basins with varying topography and sizes, spanning in depth from {{convert|650|to|5000|ft|order=flip}}. Salts were likely accumulated on the bottom of highly salinised waters of widely differing depths. The uncertainty of the timing and nature of sea-bottom salt formation and evidence from later seismic research and [[core sample]]s has been the subject of intense scientific debate.<ref name=":0" />

=== Malta Escarpment ===
The [[Malta Escarpment]] is a {{convert|250|km|adj=on}} [[Underwater environment|undersea]] [[limestone]] [[escarpment]] that stretches south from Sicily's eastern coast to the [[Malta|Maltese islands]]' eastern coast and beyond, primarily formed due to tectonic activities.<ref name=":0" /> There are more than 500 undersea canyons along the cliffs, which can reach heights of {{convert|3.5|km}} in some locations. Rich biological communities may be found in the canyons, which also serve as channels for contaminants and nutrients due to underwater currents. These deep valleys are special due to the fact that they were not carved out by surface rivers. Underwater [[landslide]]s are among the natural hazards found on the Malta Escarpment. The [[University of Malta]], [[National Oceanography Centre Southampton|UK National Oceanography Centre]], [[National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research|New Zealand National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research]], [[University College Dublin]] and [[National Institute of Oceanography and Applied Geophysics|Italy’s Istituto Nazionale di Oceanografia e Geofisica]] collaborated on a recent study financed by the [[European Union]] that focused on the Escarpment.<ref name=":1" /><ref>{{Cite web |last=Malta |first=Times of |date=14 September 2014 |title=Massive canyon found in Mediterranean sea cliff |url=https://timesofmalta.com/article/Massive-canyon-found-in-Mediterranean-sea-cliff.535575 |access-date=7 January 2025 |website=Times of Malta |language=en-gb}}</ref>