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Nippan Bay

📍 Lombok, Indonesia

Brown Tang (Zebrasoma scopas) — recorded at Nippan Bay

Nippan Bay is a dive site in Lombok, Indonesia. The sea floor at the site position lies at about 30 meters. Currents typically run at 2.3 km/h and reach 4 km/h on the strongest days. Water temperatures range from 28°C in August to 30°C in November. The typical daily tidal range is about 1.2 m. Species recorded in the area include Brown Tang, Manybar Goatfish, Spotted Boxfish, Yellow-headed Moray and Striped Eel Catfish.

Dive Conditions

⬇️
Seabed Depth
30m
💨
Current
2.3 km/h (4.0)
🌡️
Water Temp
28–30 °C

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Typical Current 2.3 km/h (up to 4.0)
Seabed Depth 30 m
Water Temperature 28–30 °C
Tidal Range 1.2 m (typical daily)
GPS -8.3934°, 116.0481°

Data sources: currents and water temperature from Open-Meteo Marine (CC BY 4.0), hourly model values 2024; seabed depth from the GEBCO 2020 Grid, sampled at the site coordinates (grid resolution about 450 m). Tidal range is the median daily range of modelled sea level from Open-Meteo Marine, hourly values 2024. Species observations from iNaturalist, checked against the World Register of Marine Species.

Conditions at Nippan Bay through the year

Sea surface temperature at the site coordinates, averaged per month from hourly model values for 2024. The water is warmest in November at about 30 °C and coolest in August at about 28 °C, a spread of 2.1 degrees across the year.

Monthly sea surface temperature at Nippan Bay (°C)
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
29.5 29.4 29.7 30.2 29.8 29.0 28.7 28.2 28.5 29.2 30.3 30.0

Ocean current at the site runs at a typical 2.3 km/h. In the strongest tenth of the hours modelled for 2024 it reaches 4.0 km/h, which is when entries are normally timed to slack water at the turn of the tide.

The tide moves the water level by a median 1.2 m over a day, and by up to 1.7 m on the largest days of the month. That range drives how much water is exchanged over the reef and when the current turns.

In the open sea off Nippan Bay, the highest wave of the day exceeded 1.5 m on 2.0 % of days between 2015 and 2024. The roughest month was July (5 % of days), the calmest April (0 %).

Share of days with waves above 1.5 m, open sea near Nippan Bay (%, 2015–2024)
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
223014541101

The seabed directly under the site coordinates sits at about 30 m. This is a bathymetry grid value with a cell size of roughly 450 m, so it describes the depth of the area rather than the deepest point a dive can reach.

How Nippan Bay compares

These comparisons use only the measured values above, set against the 376 dive sites published on findadive.com. A percentage shows the share of other sites with a lower (or higher) value, so it reads the same way wherever the site is.

Nippan Bay compared with all listed sites and with Lombok
MeasureThis siteCompared with all sitesMedian in Lombok
Mean water temperature29.4 °Ccooler than 58 % of the other 375 sites29.4 °C (44 sites)
Water temperature in the coolest month28.2 °Cwarmer than 55 % of the other 375 sites28.2 °C (44 sites)
Typical current2.3 km/hstronger than 72 % of the other 375 sites1.8 km/h (44 sites)
Current in the strongest 10 % of hours4.0 km/hstronger than 68 % of the other 375 sites3.2 km/h (44 sites)
Median daily tidal range1.2 msmaller than 81 % of the other 375 sites1.2 m (44 sites)

Water temperature, current and tide from Open-Meteo Marine (CC BY 4.0), hourly model values for 2024 at -8.3934°, 116.0481°. Seabed depth from the GEBCO 2020 Grid. Wave statistics from ERA5-Ocean via Open-Meteo Marine (contains modified Copernicus Climate Change Service information 2015–2024), daily maximum wave height on a 0.5° grid; land shelter tested against Natural Earth coastlines.

Marine life recorded at this site

Research-grade observations from iNaturalist within about 12 km of these coordinates.

Brown Tang (Zebrasoma scopas)
Brown Tang Zebrasoma scopas A deep-bodied surgeonfish with a brown to olive body, often with faint vertical stripes, and a small, sharp spine on each side of the tail base.to 40 cm · 1-60 m · by daycoral-rich areas of lagoons and seaward reefsOften seen grazing algae in small groups; the tail spine is used in disputes and can inflict a minor cut. no rights reserved · CC0 · observation
Manybar Goatfish (Parupeneus multifasciatus)
Manybar Goatfish Parupeneus multifasciatus A slender goatfish with a pale body crossed by five dark vertical bars and a yellow stripe along the side, often seen probing the sand with its chin barbels.to 30 cm · 1-100 m · by daysandy areas near coral or rubbleLook for puffs of sand as it feeds; it often forms small groups that move quickly across the bottom. no rights reserved · CC0 · observation
Spotted Boxfish (Ostracion meleagris)
Spotted Boxfish Ostracion meleagris A small, square-shaped fish with a rigid body covered in bony plates. Its colour varies from black with white spots to yellow with black spots.to 25 cm · 1-30 m · by daycoral-rich areas of lagoons and seaward reefsWatch for its slow, hovering swimming motion, often near coral heads or over rubble patches. (c) Kelvin Perrie, some rights reserved (CC BY) · observation
Yellow-headed Moray (Gymnothorax rueppelliae)
Yellow-headed Moray Gymnothorax rueppelliae A slender moray eel with a pale body and a distinctive bright yellow head, often seen with its head protruding from a crevice.to 60 cm · 1-30 m · at nightcoral and rock crevices on reefsLook for the yellow head poking out from holes during the day; it is more active and visible after dusk. (c) Jan Ebr & Ivana Ebrová, some rights reserved (CC BY) · observation
Striped Eel Catfish (Plotosus lineatus)
Striped Eel Catfish Plotosus lineatus A small catfish with a long, eel-like body and distinctive dark and pale longitudinal stripes running from head to tail.to 32 cm · 1-12 m · day and nightsandy or silty bottoms, often near reefs or rubbleOften seen in dense, ball-shaped schools as juveniles; adults are more solitary and may hide in crevices. (c) Jan Ebr & Ivana Ebrová, some rights reserved (CC BY) · observation
Blackpatch Triggerfish (Rhinecanthus verrucosus)
Blackpatch Triggerfish Rhinecanthus verrucosus A triggerfish with a pale body, a dark patch behind the eye, and a network of blue lines on its face and fins.to 23 cm · 1-20 m · by daysandy and rubble areas near coral reefsOften hovers just above the bottom. It may retreat to a burrow if approached too quickly. (c) Jan Ebr & Ivana Ebrová, some rights reserved (CC BY) · observation
Blackbar Chromis (Pycnochromis retrofasciatus)
Blackbar Chromis Pycnochromis retrofasciatus A small, slender damselfish with a black bar across the rear body and tail base, often seen in loose aggregations above the reef.to 6 cm · 3-40 m · by dayouter reef slopes and drop-offsLook for shimmering groups hovering in mid-water above coral heads; they retreat into the coral when approached. no rights reserved · CC0 · observation
Axilspot Wrasse (Halichoeres podostigma)
Axilspot Wrasse Halichoeres podostigma A slender wrasse with a greenish body and a distinctive black spot at the base of the pectoral fin. It often hovers above the reef.to 17 cm · 1-30 m · by daysandy areas near coral or rubble patchesWatch for its characteristic swimming motion, a series of quick pectoral fin beats followed by a glide. (c) Jan Ebr & Ivana Ebrová, some rights reserved (CC BY) · observation