Our Coastal Zone

The Solent is a stretch of sea, c.30 mi (50 km) long and between 3/4 to 5 mi (1.2-8 km) wide, separating the Isle of Wight from the mainland of Britain, on the south coast of England.   It is considered to be the drowned valley of a river which once flowed east between what are now the Isle of Wight and the mainland of Hampshire and West Sussex.

The Solent encompasses a major estuarine system with four coastal plain estuaries (Yar, Medina, King's Quay Shore, Hamble) and four bar-built estuaries (Newtown Harbour, Beaulieu, Langstone Harbour, Chichester Harbour).

The Solent and its inlets are unique in Britain and Europe for their hydrographic regime of four tides each day, and for the complexity of the marine and estuarine habitats present within the area.

To learn more about the geography of the area please use the links on the left hand side.