The Chesapeake Bay is the largest estuary in the United States. The Landsat program is the longest running enterprise for acquisition of imagery of Earth from space An estuary is a semi-enclosed Coastal body of Water with one or more Rivers or Streams flowing into it and with a free connection to the open The United States of America —commonly referred to as the It lies off the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by Maryland and Virginia. The Commonwealth of Virginia ( is an American state The Chesapeake Bay's watershed covers 64,299 square miles (166,534 km²) in the District of Columbia and parts of six states: New York, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, and West Virginia. A drainage basin is an extent of Land where Water from Rain or Snow melt drains downhill into a body of water such as a River, The square mile is an imperial and US unit of Area equal the area of a square of one statute mile. Square Kilometre ( US spelling square kilometer) symbol km2, is a decimal multiple of the SI unit of Washington DC ( formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, the District, or simply D New York ( is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States and is the nation's third most populous The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania ( often colloquially referred to as PA (its abbreviation by natives and Northeasterners is a state located in the Northeastern Delaware ( is a state located on the Atlantic Coast in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. The Commonwealth of Virginia ( is an American state West Virginia ( is a state in the Appalachian Upland South, and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States, bordered by ^[1] More than 150 rivers and streams drain into the Bay.

The Chesapeake Bay is about 200 miles (300 km) long, from the Susquehanna River in the north to the Atlantic Ocean in the south. A mile is a unit of Length, usually used to measure Distance, in a number of different systems including Imperial units United States The kilometre ( American spelling: kilometer) symbol km is a unit of Length in the Metric system, equal to one thousand The Susquehanna River (originally "Sasquesahanough" per the 1612 John Smith map is a River located in the northeastern United States. At its narrowest point between Kent County's Plum Point (near Newtown) and the Harford County shore near Romney Creek, the Bay is 2. Kent County is a County located in the US state of Maryland, on its Eastern Shore. Harford County is a County in the US state of Maryland. In 2004 its Population was estimated to be 233340 8 miles (4. 5 km) wide; at its widest point, just south of the mouth of the Potomac River, it is 30 miles (50 km) wide. The Potomac River flows into the Chesapeake Bay, located along the mid- Atlantic coast of the United States. Total shoreline for the Bay and its tributaries is 11,684 miles (18,804 km), and the surface area of the bay and its major tributaries is 4,479 square miles (11,601 km²).

The bay is spanned in two places. The Chesapeake Bay Bridge crosses the bay in Maryland from Sandy Point (near Annapolis) to Kent Island; the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel in Virginia connects Virginia Beach to Cape Charles. The Chesapeake Bay Bridge (commonly known as the Bay Bridge) is a major dual-span Bridge in the U Annapolis is the capital of the US state of Maryland, as well as the County seat of Anne Arundel County. Kent Island is the largest Island in the Chesapeake Bay, and a historic place in Maryland. The Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel (CBBT is a 23-mile (37-km long facility that connects the Delmarva Peninsula with southeastern Virginia in the United States Virginia Beach (pronounced /vɚˌdʒɪnjəˈbiːtʃ/ is an Independent city located in the South Hampton Roads area and one of the largest cities in Cape Charles is a town in Northampton County, Virginia, United States.

The word Chesepiooc is an Algonquian word commonly believed to mean "Great Shellfish Bay;" however, a reconstruction of Virginian Algonquian implies that the word may mean something like "Great Water" or it might just be the name of a village at the mouth of the bay. The Algonquian (also Algonkian, and pronounced both and) languages are a subfamily of Native American languages that includes most of the languages in the Algic ^[2]

Contents 1 Geology 2 History 3 Watershed 4 Fishing industry 5 Deteriorating environmental conditions 6 Tourism 7 See also 8 References 9 External links

Geology

The Chesapeake Bay is the ria, or drowned valley, of the Susquehanna, meaning that was where the river flowed when sea level was lower. A ria is a Landform, often referred to as a drowned river valley. It is not a fjord, as the Laurentide Ice Sheet never reached as far south as the northernmost point on the bay. A fjord or fiord (fjɔːd|fiːɔːd or fiːɔːd is a long narrow Inlet with steep sides created in a valley carved by glacial activity. The Laurentide Ice Sheet was a massive sheet of ice that covered hundreds of thousands of square miles including most of Canada and a large portion of the northern The Bay was formed starting about 10,000 years ago when rising sea levels at the end of the last ice age flooded the Susquehanna river valley. ^[1]

The Bay's geology, its present form and its very location have also been affected by a bolide impact event at the end of the Eocene (about 35. See also Impact crater An impact event is the Collision of a large Meteoroid, Asteroid or Comet (generically The Eocene epoch (558 ± 02 - 339 ± 01 Ma) is a major division of the Geologic timescale and the second epoch of the Palaeogene period in 5 million years ago), forming the Chesapeake Bay impact crater. The Chesapeake Bay impact crater was formed by a Bolide that impacted the eastern shore of North America about 35 Parts of the bay, especially the Calvert County, Maryland coastline, are lined by cliffs composed of deposits from receding waters millions of years ago. Calvert County is a County located in the US state of Maryland. These cliffs, generally known as Calvert Cliffs, are famous for their fossils, especially fossilized shark teeth, which are commonly found washed up on the beaches next to the cliffs. Calvert Cliffs State Park is a State park in Calvert County, Maryland, situated on the Chesapeake Bay. FOSSIL is a standard protocol for allowing serial communication for Telecommunications programs under the DOS Operating system. Sharks ( Superorder Selachimorpha) are a type of Fish with a full cartilaginous Skeleton and a highly streamlined body Scientists' Cliffs is a beach community in Calvert County named for the desire to create a retreat for scientists when the community was founded in 1935. Scientists' Cliffs Maryland is a private residential community located in Port Republic, Calvert County Maryland along the Chesapeake Bay. Calvert County is a County located in the US state of Maryland. ^[3]

Much of the bay is quite shallow. At the point where the Susquehanna River flows into the bay, the average depth is 30 feet (9 m), although this soon diminishes to an average of 10 feet (3 m) from the city of Havre de Grace for about 35 miles (56 km), to just north of Annapolis. Havre de Grace ( HDG) is a city in Harford County Maryland, United States. On average, the depth of the bay is 21 feet (7 meters), including tributaries;^[4] over 24% of the bay is less than 6 ft (2 m) deep. A foot (plural feet or foot; symbol or abbreviation ft or sometimes &prime – the prime symbol) is a non-SI unit The metre or meter is a unit of Length. It is the basic unit of Length in the Metric system and in the International

The climate of the area surrounding the bay is primarily humid subtropical, with hot, very humid summers and cold to mild winters. Humid subtropical climate ( Köppen Cfa or Cwa) is a climate zone characterized by hot humid summers and chilly to mild winters Only the area around the mouth of the Susquehanna River is continental in nature, and the mouth of the Susquehanna River and the Susquehanna flats often freeze in winter. It is exceedingly rare for the surface of the bay to freeze in winter, as happened most recently in the winter of 1976-1977. ^[5]

Since the bay is an estuary, it has fresh water and brackish water. Brackish water has three salinity zones — oligohaline, mesohaline, and polyhaline. Polyhaline is a salinity category term applied to Brackish Estuaries and other water bodies with a Salinity of between 18 and 30 ppt ( Parts per thousand The fresh water zone runs from the mouth of the Susquehanna River to north Baltimore. The oligohaline zone has very little salt. Salinity varies from 0. 5 ppt to 10 ppt and freshwater species can survive there. In Chemistry, concentration is the measure of how much of a given substance there is mixed with another substance The north end of the oligohaline zone is north Baltimore and the south end is the Chesapeake Bay Bridge. The mesohaline zone has a medium amount of salt and runs from the Bay Bridge to the mouth of the Rapahannock River. the salinity ranges from 10. 7 ppt to 18 ppt. The polyhaline zone is the saltiest zone and some of the water can be as salty as sea water. It runs from the mouth of the Rappahannock River to the mouth of the bay. The Rappahannock River is a river in eastern Virginia in the United States, approximately 184 mi (294 km in length The salinity ranges from 18. 7 ppt to 36 ppt. (36 ppt is as salty as the ocean. )

History

Lucas Vásquez de Ayllón was the first European to explore and map the Chesapeake Bay. Lucas Vázquez de Ayllón (c 1475 probably Toledo Spain &ndash 18 October, 1526, (San Miguel de Guadalupe colony was a Spanish explorer He established a short-lived Spanish mission settlement, "San Miguel de Guadalupe", in the early 16th century near the future site of Jamestown. Spain () or the Kingdom of Spain (Reino de España is a country located mostly in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Jamestown, located on Jamestown Island in the Virginia Colony, was founded on May 14 1607

Captain John Smith of England explored and mapped the bay between 1607 and 1609. Captain Sir John Smith (c January 1580– June 21 1631) Admiral of New England was an English Soldier, Sailor England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland The "Captain John Smith Chesapeake National Historic Trail", the United States' first-ever all-water National Historic Trail, was created in July 2006. Captain John Smith Chesapeake National Historic Trail is a series of water routes in the United States extending approximately 3000 miles (4800 km along the Chesapeake National Historic Trail is a designation for a Protected area in the United States containing historic trails and surrounding areas The bill passed by voice vote in the House of Representatives and by unanimous consent in the Senate. ^[6]

The Chesapeake Bay was the site of the Battle of the Chesapeake in 1781, during which the French fleet defeated the Royal Navy in the decisive naval battle of the American Revolutionary War. Background After a strategically indecisive campaign in the southern states, in the summer of 1781 British troops under Lord Cornwallis headed to the coast at Yorktown This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics. The Royal Navy of the United Kingdom is the oldest of the British armed services (and is therefore known as the Senior Service) In this article the inhabitants of the thirteen colonies that supported the American Revolution are primarily referred to as "Americans" with occasional references to "Patriots"

Today, the Calvert Cliffs Nuclear Power Plant uses water from the bay to cool its reactor. The Calvert Cliffs Nuclear Power Plant (CCNPP is a Nuclear power plant located on the western shores of the Chesapeake Bay in Lusby, Calvert

The bay is also known for the Chesapeake Bay Retriever, a dog breed developed in this area. The Chesapeake Bay Retriever is a breed of Dog that was developed along the Chesapeake Bay. Dog breeds are groups of closely related and visibly similar domestic Dogs with characteristic traits that are selected and maintained by humans bred from a known foundation

Watershed

The largest rivers flowing into the bay, from north to south, are:

• Susquehanna River
• Patapsco River
• Chester River
• Choptank River
• Patuxent River
• Potomac River
• Rappahannock River
• Nanticoke River
• York River
• Back River
• James River

Fishing industry

The bay was once known for its great seafood production, especially blue crabs, clams and oysters. The Susquehanna River (originally "Sasquesahanough" per the 1612 John Smith map is a River located in the northeastern United States. The Patapsco is a River in central Maryland which flows into the Chesapeake Bay in Baltimore Maryland. The Chester River is a major tributary of the Chesapeake Bay on the Delmarva Peninsula. The Choptank River is a major tributary of the Chesapeake Bay on the Delmarva Peninsula. The Patuxent River is a Tributary of the Chesapeake Bay in the state of Maryland. The Potomac River flows into the Chesapeake Bay, located along the mid- Atlantic coast of the United States. The Rappahannock River is a river in eastern Virginia in the United States, approximately 184 mi (294 km in length The Nanticoke River is a major tributary of the Chesapeake Bay on the Delmarva Peninsula. The York River is a navigable Estuary, approximately 40 mi (64 km long in eastern Virginia in the United States. The Back River is an Estuarine inlet of the Chesapeake Bay between the independent cities of Hampton and Poquoson in the Hampton Roads area The James River in the US state of Virginia is a long River, including its Jackson River source The common name oyster is used for a number of different groups of Bivalve Mollusks most of which live in marine habitats or Brackish water. The blue crab ( Callinectes sapidus, from the Greek calli ="beautiful" nectes ="swimmer" and Latin Clam is a word which can be used for all some or only a few Species of Bivalve Mollusks the word is a Common name which has The common name oyster is used for a number of different groups of Bivalve Mollusks most of which live in marine habitats or Brackish water. The plentiful oyster harvests led to the development of the skipjack, the state boat of Maryland, which is the only remaining working boat type in the United States still under sail power. The skipjack is a type of Sailboat developed on the Chesapeake Bay for oyster dredging. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the Other characteristic bay area workboats include:^[7]

• the log canoe
• the pungy
• the bugeye
• the Chesapeake Bay deadrise

Today, the body of water is less productive than it used to be, because of runoff from urban areas (mostly on the Western Shore) and farms (especially on the Eastern Shore), overharvesting, and invasion of foreign species. The log canoe is a type of Sailboat developed in the Chesapeake Bay region The pungy is a type of Schooner developed in and peculiar to the Chesapeake Bay region The bugeye is a type of sailboat developed in the Chesapeake Bay for oyster dredging. The Chesapeake Bay deadrise is a type of work boat used in the Chesapeake Bay. Surface runoff is a term used to describe when soil is infiltrated to full capacity and excess Water, from Rain, Snowmelt, or other sources flows Maryland's Western Shore, not to be confused with Western Maryland, is an area of Maryland west of the Chesapeake Bay. The Eastern Shore of Maryland is composed of the state's nine counties east of the Chesapeake Bay. Introduced species|Weed Invasive species is a phrase with several definitions The bay though, still yields more fish and shellfish (about 45,000 short tons or 40,000 tonnes yearly) than any other estuary in the United States. Fish are aquatic Vertebrate animals that are typically ectothermic (previously Cold-blooded) covered with scales, and equipped with two Shellfish is a Culinary and Fisheries term for those aquatic Invertebrate animals that are used as Food: various species of molluscs Units of mass There are three similar units of Mass called the ton: Long ton (simply ton in countries such as the United This article is about the tonne or metric ton For other tons see Ton.

The bay is famous for its rockfish, also known as striped bass. The striped bass ( Morone saxatilis, also called rock or rockfish is the state fish of Maryland, Rhode Island, South Carolina, and Once on the verge of extinction, rockfish have made a significant comeback due to legislative action that put a moratorium on rockfishing, which allowed the species to repopulate. Rockfish are now able to be fished in strictly controlled and limited quantities.

Oyster farming is a growing industry for the bay to help maintain the bay's productivity as well as a natural effort for filtering impurities in the bay in an effort to reduce the disastrous effects of man-made pollution. Water pollution is the contamination of Water bodies such as Lakes Rivers Oceans and Groundwater caused by human activities

In 2005, local governments began debate on the introduction to certain parts of the bay of a species of Asian oyster, to revive the lagging shellfish industry. The common name oyster is used for a number of different groups of Bivalve Mollusks most of which live in marine habitats or Brackish water.

Deteriorating environmental conditions

In the 1970s, the Chesapeake Bay contained one of the planet's first identified marine dead zones, where hypoxic waters were so depleted in oxygen they were unable to support life, resulting in massive fish kills. A wetland is an area of Land consisting of Soil that is Saturated with Moisture, such as a Swamp, Marsh, or Bog This page is about the oceanic phenomenon see Dead Zone for other uses For other uses of the term "hypoxia" see Hypoxia. Hypoxia or oxygen depletion is a phenomenon that occurs in aquatic environments Large algae blooms, nourished by the runoff of farm and industrial waste throughout the watershed, prevent sunlight from reaching the bottom of the bay. Algae ( sing. alga are a large and diverse group of simple typically Autotrophic organisms ranging from Unicellular to Multicellular forms Distinguish from Wastwater (a lake in the Lake District in northwest England The resulting loss of aquatic vegetation has depleted the habitat for many of the bay's animal creatures. Aquatic plants &mdash also called hydrophytic plants or hydrophytes &mdash are plants that have adapted to living in or on aquatic environments One particularly harmful algae is Pfiesteria piscicida, which can affect both fish and humans. Pfiesteria piscicida is a Dinoflagellate species of the genus Pfiesteria that some researchers claim is responsible for many Harmful The depletion of oysters due to overharvesting and damaged habitat has had a particularly harmful effect on the quality of the bay. The bay's oyster industry has also suffered from two diseases: MSX and Dermo. The common name oyster is used for a number of different groups of Bivalve Mollusks most of which live in marine habitats or Brackish water. The common name oyster is used for a number of different groups of Bivalve Mollusks most of which live in marine habitats or Brackish water. ^[8] Oysters serve as natural water filters, and their decline has further reduced the water quality of the bay. Water that was once clear for metres is now so turbid that a wader may lose sight of his feet before his knees are wet. Turbidity is the cloudiness or haziness of a fluid caused by individual particles ( suspended solids) that are generally invisible to the Naked eye

Efforts of federal, state and local governments, working in partnership through the Chesapeake Bay Program, and the Chesapeake Bay Foundation and other nonprofit environmental groups, to restore or at least maintain the current water quality have had mixed results. The Chesapeake Bay Program is the regional partnership that directs and conducts the restoration of the Chesapeake Bay. The Chesapeake Bay Foundation (CBF, the United States' largest regional conservation organization is dedicated to protect and save the Chesapeake Bay and its tributary rivers Water quality is the physical chemical and biological characteristics of Water in relationship to a set of standards One particular obstacle to cleaning up the bay is that much of the polluting substances arise far upstream in tributaries lying within states far removed from the bay itself. A tributary is a Stream or River which flows into a mainstem (or parent river

It has been estimated that in pre-colonial times, oysters could filter all the water in the Bay in about 3. 3 days, but in 1988 it was calculated that depletion of oyster beds had increased this time to 325 days. ^[9] Efforts at oyster farming is one method Marylanders are using to clean up the pollution.

Tourism

The Chesapeake Bay is still a main feature for tourists who visit Maryland and Virginia each year. Fishing, crabbing, swimming, boating and sailing are still extremely popular activities enjoyed on the waters of the Chesapeake Bay. This tourist attraction has a major impact on Maryland's economy.

See also

• Delmarva Peninsula
• Dead zone (ecology)
• Chesapeake, a novel by author James A. Michener
• Chessie (sea monster)
• The National Estuarine Research Reserve System
• List of islands in Maryland (with the islands in the Bay)
• Coastal and Estuarine Research Federation

References

External links

• Saving The Chesapeake Bay
• Chesapeake Bay Foundation
• Chesapeake Research Consortium
• Alliance for the Chesapeake Bay
• Chesapeake Bay Program
• Chesapeake Bay Journal
• Chesapeake Bay Gateways Network
• Chesapeake Community Modeling Program
• Chesapeake Bay Bridge (near Annapolis, MD)
• Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel
• Maryland Sea Grant
• Scientist's Cliffs
• National Geographic- Saving The Chesapeake
• National Geographic- Exploring The Chesapeake Then and Now
• National Geographic Magazine Jamestown/Werowocomoco Interactive
• John Smith Water Trail Blog - Musings and Meanders on the Chesapeake Bay
• Captain John Smith Chesapeake National Historic Water Trail
• Sailing the Chesapeake Bay
• NutrientNet, an online nutrient trading tool developed by the World Resources Institute, designed to address water quality issues in the Chesapeake Bay and elsewhere. See also the PA NutrientNet website designed for Pennsylvania's nutrient trading program.

Coordinates: 37°02′N 76°03′W / 37.033, -76.05

A geographic coordinate system enables every location on the Earth to be specified in three coordinates using mainly a spherical coordinate system.

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