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| Great Belt | |
|---|---|
 Straits of Denmark and southwestern Baltic Sea. The Great Belt (labelled with its Danish nameStorebælt) is slightly left of center | |
  Great Belt | |
| Coordinates | 55°19′59″N11°00′00″E / 55.333°N 11.000°E /55.333; 11.000 |
| Type | strait |
| Basin countries | Denmark |
| Max. length | 60 km (37 mi) |
| Max. width | 32 km (20 mi) |
| Min. width | 16 km (10 mi) |
| Max. depth | 60 m (197 ft) |
| Islands | Samsø in the north andLangeland to the south |
TheGreat Belt (Danish:Storebælt,pronounced[ˈstoːɐˌpelˀt]) is astrait between the major islands ofZealand (Sjælland) andFunen (Fyn) inDenmark. It is one of the threeDanish Straits.
Effectively dividing Denmark in two, the Belt was served by theGreat Belt ferries from the late 19th century until the islands were connected by theGreat Belt Fixed Link in 1997–98.
The Great Belt is the largest and most important of the threeDanish Straits that connect theBaltic Sea to theKattegat strait andAtlantic Ocean. The others are theØresund and theLittle Belt straits.
The Great Belt is 60 km (37 miles) long and 16–32 km (10–20 miles) wide. It flows around two major islands:Samsø in the north andLangeland to the south. AtSprogø the Great Belt divides into the East Channel and the West Channel. Both are traversed by theGreat Belt Fixed Link, but a tunnel also runs under the East Channel.
In pre-glacial times a river, which the Baltic Sea basin then contained and which geologists call theEridanos, must have passed near the region as the rise ofSouth Swedish Dome inNeogene times diverted it south from its previous path across central Sweden.[1]
The Great Belt originated as Dana River that was eroded into existence 9000–8900 years ago whenpost-glacial rebound made theAncylus Lake that occupied the Baltic depression lose its outlets aroundGothenburg tipping over in the south.[2] The forming of the Dana River is thought to have caused a dramatic erosion of sediments,peatlands and forests along its way. This led initially to a relatively rapid fall in the lake level over hundreds of years to then continue falling at a lower pace.[2]Rising sea levels allowed the sea to break through the Dana River forming the Great Belt as a proper seaway. In the processes the Ancylus Lake became theLittorina Sea as salt water entered the Baltic depression.[2]
The Great Belt is home to some popular fish:flatfish,sea trout,Atlantic cod,Atlantic mackerel andgarfish, which are fished avidly for sport and for sale. A large and rising population ofharbour porpoises lives in the Belts.[3]
The Great Belt was historically navigable to ocean-going vessels. It still is used, despite a few collisions and near collisions with theGreat Belt Bridge. TheDanish navy monitors maritime traffic in the waters around the Great Belt.
In the reign of kingEric of Pomerania the Danish government began to receive a large part of its income from the so-called 'Sound Dues' toll on international merchant ships passing through theØresund. Non-Danish vessels were restricted to the Øresund channel. Merchants paid the tax under threat of having their vessels sunk or confiscated.
During the middle of the 19th century, this practice became a diplomatic liability and the Danish government agreed to terminate it, achieving an international financial compensation in return. Danish waterways were consequently opened to foreign shipping. The eastern half of the Great Belt is aninternational waterway, legally based on the1857 Copenhagen Convention.[4] The western half of the Great Belt (betweenFunen andSprogø) and all other parts of theDanish straits are Danish territorial waters and subject to Danish jurisdiction.[citation needed]
In 1991,Finland instituted proceedings before theInternational Court of Justice against Denmark, which was planning to build a fixed traffic connection over the Great Belt (laterGreat Belt Fixed Link), including a bridge that Finland alleged would prevent the passage of certain ships to and from Finland: Finnish-built mobile offshore drilling units would be unable to pass beneath the bridge. The case was discontinued in 1992, before the Court had to rule on the merits, because Finland and Denmark reached a negotiated settlement.[5] The two countries negotiated a financial compensation of 90 millionDanish kroner, and Finland withdrew the lawsuit.[6]
On 4 April 2024, theDanish Maritime Authority ordered the closure of an area of the strait south-west ofKorsør to shipping and aviation after a missile launcher aboardHDMSNiels Juel malfunctioned during a naval exercise.[7]
55°19′59″N11°00′00″E / 55.333°N 11.000°E /55.333; 11.000
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