| Location: |
Southern Africa, island in the Indian Ocean, east of Madagascar |
| Geographic coordinates: |
21 06 S, 55 36 E |
| Map references: |
World |
| Area: |
total: 2,517 sq km
water: 10 sq km
land: 2,507 sq km |
| Area - comparative: |
slightly smaller than Rhode Island |
| Land boundaries: |
0 km |
| Coastline: |
207 km |
| Maritime claims: |
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
| Climate: |
tropical, but temperature moderates with elevation; cool and dry from May to November, hot and rainy from November to April |
| Terrain: |
mostly rugged and mountainous; fertile lowlands along coast |
| Elevation extremes: |
lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: Piton des Neiges 3,069 m |
| Natural resources: |
fish, arable land, hydropower |
| Land use: |
arable land: 13.6%
permanent crops: 1.2%
other: 85.2% (2001) |
| Irrigated land: |
120 sq km (1998 est.) |
| Natural hazards: |
periodic, devastating cyclones (December to April); Piton de la Fournaise on the southeastern coast is an active volcano |
| Environment - current issues: |
NA |
| Geography - note: |
this mountainous, volcanic island has an active volcano, Piton de la Fournaise; there is a tropical cyclone center at Saint-Denis, which is the monitoring station for the whole of the Indian Ocean |
