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Story: Charting the sea floor

Approaches to Auckland

This is probably one of the most-used charts of New Zealand waters. Waitematā Harbour is the playground for thousands of sailing vessels and recreational fishing boats. The busiest shipping lane in the country also runs through it. Very large container ships, which need depths of at least 12 metres, must stay within defined channels or risk running aground. Many large ships rely on navigational instruments that use satellites; however, charts remain important for small vessels.

Using this item

Land Information New Zealand

Reference: NZ5322

Source: LINZ (not to be used for navigation)

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How to cite this page

Lionel Carter, Charting the sea floor – Making and using charts, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/en/zoomify/5951/approaches-to-auckland (accessed 4 June 2026).

Story by Lionel Carter, published 2 March 2009.