| Location: |
Oceania, group of islands in the South Pacific Ocean, about three-quarters of the way from Hawaii to Australia |
| Geographic coordinates: |
16 00 S, 167 00 E |
| Map references: |
Oceania |
| Area: |
total: 12,200 sq km
land: 12,200 sq km
water: 0 sq km
note: includes more than 80 islands, about 65 of which are inhabited |
| Area - comparative: |
slightly larger than Connecticut |
| Land boundaries: |
0 km |
| Coastline: |
2,528 km |
| Maritime claims: |
measured from claimed archipelagic baselines
territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin |
| Climate: |
tropical; moderated by southeast trade winds from May to October; moderate rainfall from November to April; may be affected by cyclones from December to April |
| Terrain: |
mostly mountainous islands of volcanic origin; narrow coastal plains |
| Elevation extremes: |
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Tabwemasana 1,877 m |
| Natural resources: |
manganese, hardwood forests, fish |
| Land use: |
arable land: 1.64%
permanent crops: 6.97%
other: 91.39% (2005) |
| Irrigated land: |
NA |
| Natural hazards: |
tropical cyclones or typhoons (January to April); volcanic eruption on Aoba (Ambae) island began 27 November 2005, volcanism also causes minor earthquakes; tsunamis |
| Environment - current issues: |
a majority of the population does not have access to a reliable supply of potable water; deforestation |
| Environment - international agreements: |
party to: Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 94
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
| Geography - note: |
a Y-shaped chain of four main islands and 80 smaller islands; several of the islands have active volcanoes |
