| Cook Strait | |
|---|---|
| Te Moana-o-Raukawa (Māori) | |
 Satellite image of Cook Straight taken by the Sentinel-2 mission | |
.png)  Cook Strait   Cook Strait Cook Strait (Oceania) | |
| Coordinates | 41°13′46″S 174°28′59″E / 41.22944°S 174.48306°E |
| Basin countries | New Zealand |
| Min. width | 22 km (14 mi) |
| Average depth | 128 m (420 ft) |
| External videos | |
|---|---|
 Ship entering a Cook Strait swell – YouTube |
Cook Strait (Māori: Te Moana-o-Raukawa, lit. 'The Sea of Raukawa') is a strait that separates the North and South Islands of New Zealand. The strait connects the Tasman Sea on the northwest with the South Pacific Ocean on the southeast. It is 22 kilometres (14 mi) wide at its narrowest point,[1] and is considered one of the most dangerous and unpredictable waters in the world.[2] Regular ferry services run across the strait between Picton in the Marlborough Sounds and Wellington.
The strait is named after James Cook, the first European commander to sail through it, in 1770.[3] In Māori it is named Te Moana-o-Raukawa, which means The Sea of Raukawa. Raukaua is a type of woody shrub native to New Zealand.[4] The waters of Cook Strait are dominated by strong tidal flows. The tidal flow through Cook Strait is unusual in that the tidal elevation at the ends of the strait are almost exactly out of phase with one another, so high water on one side meets low water on the other.
- ^ McLintock, A. H., ed. (1966) Cook Strait from An Encyclopaedia of New Zealand, updated 18-Sep-2007. Note: This is the distance between the North Island and Arapaoa Island; some sources give a slightly larger reading of around 24.5 kilometres (15.2 mi), that between the North Island and the South Island.
- ^ McLauchlan, Gordon (ed.) (1987) New Zealand encyclopedia, Bateman, P. 121. ISBN 978-0-908610-21-1.
- ^ Reed, A.W. (2002) The Reed dictionary of New Zealand place names. Auckland: Reed Books. ISBN 0-790-00761-4., p. 99.
- ^ "TE MOANA-O-RAUKAWA". Wellington City Libraries. Retrieved 27 May 2017.