![Cape Cod Bay map](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ea/Cape_Cod_Bay_map.png)
Nantucket
Sound
In physics, sound is a vibration that propagates as an acoustic wave, through a transmission medium such as a gas, liquid or solid.
In human physiology and psychology, sound is the ''reception'' of such waves and their ''perception'' b ...
is a roughly triangular area of the
Atlantic Ocean
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe ...
offshore from the
U.S. state
In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sove ...
of
Massachusetts
Massachusetts (Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut Massachusett_writing_systems.html" ;"title="nowiki/> məhswatʃəwiːsət.html" ;"title="Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət">Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət'' En ...
. It is long and wide, and is enclosed by
Cape Cod
Cape Cod is a peninsula extending into the Atlantic Ocean from the southeastern corner of mainland Massachusetts, in the northeastern United States. Its historic, maritime character and ample beaches attract heavy tourism during the summer mont ...
on the north,
Nantucket on the south, and
Martha's Vineyard on the west.
Between Cape Cod and Martha's Vineyard it is connected to the
Vineyard Sound
Vineyard Sound is the stretch of the Atlantic Ocean which separates the Elizabeth Islands and the southwestern part of Cape Cod from the island of Martha's Vineyard, located offshore from the state of Massachusetts in the United States. To the w ...
. Ports on Nantucket Sound include Nantucket and
Hyannis, Massachusetts.
Nantucket Sound possesses significant
marine habitat
In ecology, the term habitat summarises the array of resources, physical and biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species habitat can be seen as the physical ...
for a
diversity
Diversity, diversify, or diverse may refer to:
Business
*Diversity (business), the inclusion of people of different identities (ethnicity, gender, age) in the workforce
*Diversity marketing, marketing communication targeting diverse customers
* ...
of
ecologically
Ecology () is the study of the relationships between living organisms, including humans, and their biophysical environment, physical environment. Ecology considers organisms at the individual, population, community (ecology), community, ecosy ...
and
economically important species. "The Sound" has particular significance for several federally protected species of
wildlife
Wildlife refers to undomesticated animal species, but has come to include all organisms that grow or live wild in an area without being introduced by humans. Wildlife was also synonymous to game: those birds and mammals that were hunted ...
and a variety of
commercially and
recreationally valuable
fisheries.
The Sound is located at a confluence of the cold
Labrador Current
The Labrador Current is a cold current in the North Atlantic Ocean which flows from the Arctic Ocean south along the coast of Labrador and passes around Newfoundland, continuing south along the east coast of Canada near Nova Scotia. Near Nova Scot ...
s and the warm
Gulf Stream. This creates a unique coastal habitat representing the southern range for
Northern Atlantic
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the "Old World" of Africa, Europe and ...
species and the northern range for
Mid-Atlantic species. Nantucket Sound has much biological diversity and contains habitats that range from open sea to
salt marsh
A salt marsh or saltmarsh, also known as a coastal salt marsh or a tidal marsh, is a coastal ecosystem in the upper coastal intertidal zone between land and open saltwater or brackish water that is regularly flooded by the tides. It is domin ...
es, as well as warm-water beaches on the Cape and Islands coasts.
See also
*
—providing
ferry service in the Sound
*
Wind Over Water—A documentary film about the wind farm proposed for Nantucket Sound.
References
External links
Two Tidal Projects Gain Speed in Energy Development Race
Bodies of water of Barnstable County, Massachusetts
Geography of Nantucket, Massachusetts
Geography of Martha's Vineyard
Massachusetts natural resources
Sounds of Massachusetts
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