Cook Strait

External videos
External videos
	Ship entering a Cook Strait swell – YouTube

Cook Strait
Cook Strait
Māori: Te Moana-o-Raukawa
	A view from the summit of Mount Kaukau across Cook Strait to the Marlborough Sounds in the distance.
	Cook Strait Cook Strait separates the North and South islands of New Zealand. 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)

Cook Strait (Māori: Te Moana-o-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]

^ 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.

[McLintock-1] 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.

[2] McLauchlan, Gordon (ed.) (1987) New Zealand encyclopedia, Bateman, P. 121. ISBN 978-0-908610-21-1.

[3] Reed, A.W. (2002) The Reed dictionary of New Zealand place names. Auckland: Reed Books. ISBN 0-790-00761-4., p. 99.

[4] "TE MOANA-O-RAUKAWA". Wellington City Libraries. Retrieved 27 May 2017.

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Cook Strait
Māori: Te Moana-o-Raukawa
A view from the summit of Mount Kaukau across Cook Strait to the Marlborough Sounds in the distance.
Cook Strait Cook Strait separates the North and South islands of New Zealand. Show map of New Zealand Cook Strait Cook Strait (Oceania) Show map of Oceania
Coordinates	41°13′46″S 174°28′59″E / 41.22944°S 174.48306°E / -41.22944; 174.48306
Basin countries	New Zealand

Min. width	22 km (14 mi)
Average depth	128 m (420 ft)