A warm tropical sea east of the Bay of Bengal, fringed by the Andaman Islands, Thailand and Myanmar with coral reefs and clear water.
Area
797,700 km²
Ocean basin
Indian
Location
A tropical sea of islands and reefs
Average depth
about 1,000 m
Maximum depth
about 4,198 m
Salinity
~32–35 ppt
Temperature
Warm, 26–30°C
Region
East of the Bay of Bengal
About the Andaman Sea
The Andaman Sea lies between the Andaman and Nicobar Islands and the coasts of Myanmar, Thailand and Malaysia. Its warm, clear waters and coral reefs — around islands like Phuket and the Similans — make it a world-famous diving region. It was struck by the devastating 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, which reshaped many of its coastlines.
Did you know?
Its Andaman and Nicobar Islands are home to some of the last peoples on Earth who still live almost untouched by the modern world.
Highlights
- Fringed by the Andaman & Nicobar Islands
- World-famous coral reefs and diving
- Home to isolated island peoples
Photo gallery
Life in the Andaman Sea
Creatures, seabirds and marine plants — including some of the rarest and strangest — that live in these waters.
Creatures of the deep
Whale shark
The largest fish alive — a spotted, harmless giant that strains plankton from the sea.
Manta ray
A gentle giant that “flies” through the water on wings up to seven metres across.
Dugong
A gentle seagrass-grazing “sea cow” of warm Indo-Pacific coasts, cousin to the manatee.
Nudibranch (sea slug)
Dazzlingly coloured sea slugs that steal stings — and even sunlight — from the food they eat.
Christmas tree worm
A tube worm whose feathery, spiralled crowns dot tropical corals in every colour.
Seabirds
Frigatebird
A pirate of tropical skies; the male balloons a scarlet throat pouch to court mates.
Marine plants & algae
Coralline algae
Stony pink algae that cement coral reefs together and help them grow.
Mangrove
Salt-tolerant coastal trees whose tangled roots shelter young fish and buffer storms.
Turtle grass
A tropical seagrass whose meadows feed turtles, manatees and dugongs.
Surface & deep in the Andaman Sea
The sea is warm where the Sun reaches it and cold far below. Flip between the sunlit surface and the deep water to feel the difference — these are typical figures for a sea.
Sunlit surface
22°C
typical surface temperature
Seas warm strongly at the surface in summer, but their deeper water stays cold and still — the sunlight simply never reaches it.
Recorded range for the Andaman Sea: Warm, 26–30°C