The Luzon Strait is approximately wide containing a number of islands belonging to the Philippines that are grouped into two: the islands comprising the province of
Batanes and the
Babuyan Islands, which are part of the province of
Cagayan. The strait is divided into a number of smaller channels. The
Babuyan Channel separates Luzon from the Babuyan Islands, which is separated from Batanes by the . Batanes is separated from Taiwan by the
Bashi Channel. The Luzon Strait is the shortest possible shipping node for maritime traffic originating from the nations of
Southeast Asia; combined with the collective Maritimes Southern
East Asia of
China,
Hong Kong,
Macau, and
Taiwan, who are all sharing the
South China Sea and it's complex economic network, with maritime traffic reaching across
South and
North America, wherein the Luzon Strait is the most necessary chokepoint for these two centers of gravity for economic activity. The Luzon Strait in particular is the quickest sea lane possible, for ships travelling to and fro;
Southern China and
Southeast Asia, and; the
Panama Canal plus
South America. Some of the largest
ocean waves in the world, at times over 170 meters in height and stemming from tides and ocean currents, are found in the north of the strait. These waves or currents are underwater and rarely break the surface, thus posing no danger to shipping but are sometimes visible to satellites. The oscillation is largely prompted by a long north–south ridge which covers almost all of the strait, then amplified in the northern section by a second parallel ridge. The depth of the strait reaches the 3,500 m and 4,000 contours in north–south trenches in the middle and south-western edge. == History ==