Suisun Bay

Suisun Bay (pronounced "sue-soon") is a shallow tidal estuary located in central California of The United States of America. It lies at the confluence of the Sacramento and San Joaquin Rivers and forms the entrance to the Sacramento Delta, an inverted river delta.

Related Topics:
Tidal estuary - California - The United States of America - Sacramento - San Joaquin River - Sacramento Delta - Inverted river delta

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The bay was named in 1811, after the Suisunes, a Native American tribe of the area. The name is Patwin in orign of unknown meaning, and is the namesake of Suisun City, Suison River, and the Suison Valley.

Related Topics:
1811 - Suisunes - Native American - Patwin - Suisun City - Suison River - Suison Valley

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On its western end, Suisun Bay is drained by the Carquinez Strait, which connects to San Pablo Bay, a northern extension of San Francisco Bay.

Related Topics:
Carquinez Strait - San Pablo Bay - San Francisco Bay

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In addition to the major bridges at the Carquenez Strait, it is spanned in its center by the Benicia-Martinez Bridge and at its eastern end by the highway 160 crossing between Antioch and Oakley.

Related Topics:
Benicia - Martinez - Antioch - Oakley

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It is especially famous for hosting the anchorage of the Ghost Fleet, a collection of U.S. Navy reserve merchant ships, created in the period following World War II. Many of these ships were removed for sale as scrap metal during the 1990s (being towed to Japan and mostly returned as automobiles), but over 80 ships still remain at anchor in the bay. This location also held at anchor the famous Glomar Explorer after its once secret but now famous attempt to recover a lost, sunken Soviet submarine. The Glomar Explorer has now been activated for other duties fitting its original "cover", which was deep ocean seabead mineral exploration and recovery.

Related Topics:
''Ghost Fleet'' - U.S. Navy reserve merchant ships - World War II - 1990s - Japan - Automobiles - Glomar Explorer - Soviet - Submarine

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On April 28, 2004, a petroleum pipeline operated by Kinder-Morgan Energy Partners ruptured, spilling an estimated 1,500 barrels (240 m²) of diesel fuel into the bay.

Related Topics:
April 28 - 2004 - Petroleum - Pipeline - Kinder-Morgan Energy Partners - Diesel

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