Savu Sea

The Savu Sea (or the Sawu Sea) is a small sea within Indonesia named for the island of Savu (Sawu) on its southern boundary. It is bounded by Savu and Rai Jua to the south, the islands of Rote and Timor (split between East Timor and Indonesia) to the east, Flores and the Alor archipelago to the north/northwest, and the island of Sumba to the west/northwest. Between these islands, it flows into the Indian Ocean to the south and west, the Flores Sea to the north, and the Banda Sea to the northeast.

The Savu Sea reaches about 3500 m in depth. It spans about 600 km from west to east, and 200 km from north to south. The largest city on the sea is Kupang, the capital of East Nusa Tenggara province on the island of Timor, with about 450,000 inhabitants.

Extent

The International Hydrographic Organization (IHO) defines the Savu Sea as being one of the waters of the East Indian Archipelago. The IHO defines its limits as follows:

On the North. By the Southern limits of Flores Sea [The North coasts of Flores, Komodo, Banta and a line to Tanjong Naroe the Northeast point of Soembawa, thence along its North coast to Tanjong Sarokaja (8°22′S 117°10′E / 8.367°S 117.167°E / -8.367; 117.167)] and Banda Sea [125° East ... [on] Alor Island, thence round the East point and along the North coasts of the Alor, Pantar, Lomblen and Adoenara Islands and thence across the Northern end of Flores Stait to Tanjong Serbete the Eastern extreme of Flores].

Savu

Savu (also known as Sawu, Sabu, Sawoe, Havu, Hawu, Hawoe) is the largest of a group of three islands, situated midway between Sumba and Rote, west of Timor, in Indonesia's eastern province, East Nusa Tenggara. Ferries connect the islands to Waingapu, on Sumba, and Kupang, in West Timor. It is also possible to fly to Savu from Kupang.

Geography

The Savu Islands (Indonesian: Kepulauan Sawu) include Rai Hawu (or Savu), Rai Jua and Rai Dana. The three islands are fringed by coral reefs and sandy beaches. Rai Hawu is the principal island. Rai Jua is a smaller island west of Rai Hawu. Rai Dana is a small, uninhabited island, situated 30 km south-west of Rai Jua. From April to October, deep ocean swells pound the southern coastlines.

The land is covered for the most part by grassland and palms. The climate is dry for much of the year because of the hot winds which blow from Australia. The main rains fall between November and March. Between 82% and 94% of all rain falls during the west monsoon with little or no rain falling between August and October. The mean annual rainfall for Savu Island is 1,019 mm. During the dry season many streams run dry and local inhabitants must depend on wells for their water supplies.

Savu (disambiguation)

Savu is an island in East Nusa Tenggara province, Indonesia.

Savu may also refer to:

People with the given name or family name Savu include: