The Tubbataha Natural Park, also known as the Tubbataha Reefs Natural Park, is a protected area of the Philippines located in the middle of the Sulu Sea. The marine and bird sanctuary consists of two huge atolls and the smaller Jessie Beazley Reef covering a total area of 97,030 hectares. It is located 150 kilometres (93 mi) southeast of Puerto Princesa, the capital of Palawan. The uninhabited islands and reefs are part of the island municipality of Cagayancillo, located roughly 130 kilometers (81 mi) to the northeast of the reef.
Whitetip reef shark at Tubbataha
Tubbataha Reefs Natural Park, driftwood, palms, and birds
A remote ranger station in the middle of the Sulu Sea
The USS Guardian aground in January 2013
The Sulu Sea is a body of water in the southwestern area of the Philippines, separated from the South China Sea in the northwest by Palawan and from the Celebes Sea in the southeast by the Sulu Archipelago. Borneo is found to the southwest and Visayas to the northeast.
Satellite image from NASA showing the internal waves formed in the Sulu Sea
The sea as viewed from Palawan
Shark found in the Tubbataha National Marine Park, Sulu Sea, Philippines