The "Sovereignty and jurisdiction maritime spaces of France" product contains the areas of sovereignty and jurisdiction maritime spaces of France all around the world.<br /><br /> It is constituted of 2D areas objects split into four categories :<br /> - the territorial sea (from baselines to a distance of 12 nautical miles or to maritime boundaries with neighbouring countries);<br /> - the contiguous zone (from 12 nautical miles to 24 nautical miles from the baselines or to maritime boundaries with neighbouring countries);<br /> - the exclusive economic zone (EEZ) (from 12 nautical miles to 200 nautical miles from the baselines or to maritime boundaries with neighbouring countries);<br /> - the continental shelf over the 200 nautical miles limit (from 200 nautical miles from the baselines to the limits recommended by the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLCS) or to the maritime boundaries with neighbouring countries).<br /> Internal waters, which constitute a space of sovereignty beyond the baselines, are not included in the "Sovereignty and jurisdiction maritime spaces of France" product.<br /> The "Sovereignty and jurisdiction maritime spaces of France" product may not be considered as an enforceable right. Only the “Maritime limits and boundaries” product, that can be displayed and interrogated on the website data.shom.fr (maritime boundaries category) and also downloaded on the French national portal of maritime limits (https://maritimelimits.gouv.fr), may be considered so.<br /><br /> December 2022 version.

In the Law of the Sea, the continental shelf located beyond 200 nautical miles affects the seabed and its subsoil on which the coastal State exerts sovereign rights for purposes of exploration and exploitation of its natural ressources. In those areas, the wealth generated by the exploitation of the natural ressources are shared via the International Seabed Authority between the States which have signed UNCLOS (in particular with the developping States or the ones which do not have access to the sea). The outer limit of the continental shelf beyond 200 nautical miles is determined in compliance with the criterias of Article 76 of UNCLOS and notably by the examination of a submission deposited by the Coastal State to the Commission for the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLCS). the outer limit of the French continental shelf beyond 200 nautical miles is the final result of the national program EXTRAPLAC after the adoption of recommandations by CLCS, the delineation of the attributed areas with neighbouring States if necessary and the publication by decree. The theme "Outer limit of the continental shelf beyond 200 nautical miles" gathers the limits of the extended continental shelf which has been recommended by CLCS and published by a decree of the French Republic.

The combined error grid of the SIO V31 gravity anomaly model (D. T. Sandwell, H. Harper, B. Tozer et al., Gravity field recovery from geodetic altimeter missions, Advances in Space Research, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.asr.2019.09.011) is computed with a method described in a paper submitted to Earth and Space Science (AGU). The model’s extension is North Atlantic.

In compliance with Article 57 of UNCLOS, the outer limit of the exclusive economic zone (EEZ) is located at 24 nautical miles from the baselines. This limit distinguishes the EEZ from the High Sea. Beyond this limit, an extension of the continental shelf is possible subject to the criterias of Article 76 of UNCLOS. The objects of the theme "Outer limit of the exclusive economic zone" result from Shom computations and are compliant with Article 10 of the French Order No 2016-1687 of 8 December 2016. They are published by decree of the French Republic.

Information layer containing the SAR Zones (Search and Rescue). This layer contains a description of the French search and rescue (SAR) areas and the location of the associated Maritime Rescue Coordination Center (MRCC). it covers the areas of responsibility of France. The layer was produced by the Shom pursuant to the Circular Circular of the International Maritime Organization (IMO No. SAR.8 / Circ.4 of 1 December 2012).

Compilation of marine gravity surveys acquired in the Northeast Atlantic by Shom between 2001 and 2016. These surveys were compiled to perform a quantification of the error of the gravity anomaly models derived from satellite altimetry. This dataset represents more than 22,000 measurement points distributed in 9 ascii survey files sampled at 1 kilometer. The file’s format is as follows: longitude latitude Gravity_anomaly error line_label.

In the absence of a maritime boundary agreement with a neighbouring State, the French Republic can unilateraly claim a delimitation. This boundary has indeed a provisional aspect pending the ratification of a boundary agreement. The theme "Maritime limits unilaterally claimed" gathers those limits unilaterally claimed by France. Some of those elkements are published by decree.

French Ministry of Culture / DRASSM – Shom The product "Limit of preventive archeology licence fee" contains the limits for the preventive archeology licence fee (1 nautical mile) as defined in the French Heritage Code. This limit is managed by the Department of Underwater Archeological Research (DRASSM) of the Ministry of Culture. This limit, defined by the Heritage Code at 1 nautical mile from the low-water line, permits to delineate the areas where the licence fee for preventive archeology at sea is applied. In Mainland France in the Gironde estuary, the limit for the preventive archeology licence fee is stopped by the crosswise limit of the sea as defined by the decree of 26 August 1857. In French Guiana, the limit for the preventive archeology licence fee is stopped in Maroni and Oyapock rivers by the crosswise limits of the sea respectively defined the order of 30 January 1991 and the order No 863 of 26 May 1986, until meeting the land boundary which delineates the rivers with the neighbouring States. The product "Limit of preventive archeology licence fee" is to use in addition to the digital product “Maritime Limits and Boundaries” of Shom (French: “Délimitations maritimes”) which represents the limits of the French maritime spaces of sovereignty or jurisdiction through the World. The product “Maritime Limits and Boundaries” (French: “Délimitations maritimes”) can be viewed on data.shom.fr (Maritime boundaries Category) and downloaded on the French national portal of maritime limits (https://maritimelimits.gouv.fr).

In the Law of the Sea, a straight baseline is composed by a loxodrome connecting two points of the low-water line or low-tide elevations if there is a lighthouse or similar permanent infrastructure on them. The conditions to draw such lines are defined in Article 7 of UNCLOS. The straight baselines are part of the baselines of a coastal State below which the internal waters are defined. Those straight baselines, in addition with the normal baseline, compose the inner limit of the territorial sea and are the basis of the computations of the outer limits of other maritime spaces defined by UNCLOS. They are also composed of the closure line for bays and rivers in compliance with Aricles 9 and 10 of UNCLOS. The objects of the theme "Straight baselines" result from Shom computations and are published by decree of the French Republic.

The combined error grid of the SIO V31 gravity anomaly model (D. T. Sandwell, H. Harper, B. Tozer et al., Gravity field recovery from geodetic altimeter missions, Advances in Space Research, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.asr.2019.09.011) is computed with a method described in a paper submitted to Earth and Space Science (AGU). The model’s extension is North Atlantic.