Drake Passage
Topic: World Physical Features and Natural Regions · NCERT: Beyond NCERT
Meaning
The Drake Passage is the wide stretch of sea between Cape Horn, at the southern tip of South America, and the Antarctic Peninsula. It links the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. The Antarctic Circumpolar Current flows through it. This strong ocean current flows all the way around Antarctica, from west to east. No land stands in its way, so the winds and waves here are among the roughest on Earth. Ships sailing between the two oceans around South America pass this way.
Example
Ships heading from Ushuaia (Argentina) to the Antarctic Peninsula cross the Drake Passage. It is the shortest sea route from South America to Antarctica.
Don't confuse with
- Strait of Magellan: this is a narrow, sheltered channel through southern Chile. Ships use it to avoid the open Drake Passage.
- Bering Strait: this links the Pacific and the Arctic, between Russia and Alaska. It is not near Antarctica.
Related concepts
- Strait of Hormuz
- Bab-el-Mandeb
- Strait of Malacca
- Mozambique Channel
- Strait of Gibraltar
- Bosphorus
- Turkish Straits
- Kerch Strait
- Taiwan Strait
- Bering Strait