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World > Middle East >
Oman > Geography (Facts)
| Location: |
Middle East, bordering the Arabian Sea, Gulf of Oman, and Persian Gulf, between Yemen and UAE |
| Geographic coordinates: |
21 00 N, 57 00 E |
| Map references: |
Middle East |
| Area: |
total: 212,460 sq km
land: 212,460 sq km
water: 0 sq km |
| Area - comparative: |
slightly smaller than Kansas |
| Land boundaries: |
total: 1,374 km
border countries: Saudi Arabia 676 km, UAE 410 km, Yemen 288 km |
| Coastline: |
2,092 km |
| Maritime claims: |
territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
| Climate: |
dry desert; hot, humid along coast; hot, dry interior; strong southwest summer monsoon (May to September) in far south |
| Terrain: |
central desert plain, rugged mountains in north and south |
| Elevation extremes: |
lowest point: Arabian Sea 0 m
highest point: Jabal Shams 2,980 m |
| Natural resources: |
petroleum, copper, asbestos, some marble, limestone, chromium, gypsum, natural gas |
| Land use: |
arable land: 0.12%
permanent crops: 0.14%
other: 99.74% (2005) |
| Irrigated land: |
720 sq km (2003) |
| Natural hazards: |
summer winds often raise large sandstorms and dust storms in interior; periodic droughts |
| Environment - current issues: |
rising soil salinity; beach pollution from oil spills; very limited natural fresh water resources |
| Environment - international agreements: |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
| Geography - note: |
strategic location on Musandam Peninsula adjacent to Strait of Hormuz, a vital transit point for world crude oil |
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