Marshall Islands Geography:
Location:
Oceania, group of atolls and reefs in the North Pacific Ocean, about one-half of the way from Hawaii to Australia
Geographic coordinates:
9 00 N, 168 00 E
Map references:
Area:
total:
181.3 sq km
land:
181.3 sq km
water:
0 sq km
note: Includes the atolls of Bikini, Enewetak, Kwajalein, Majuro, Rongelap, and Utirik
Area - comparative:
About the size of Washington, DC
Land boundaries:
total: 0 km
border countries: NA
Coastline:
370 km
Maritime claims:
contiguous zone: 24 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
Climate:
Tropical; hot and humid; wet season from May to November; islands border typhoon belt
Terrain:
Low coral limestone and sand islands
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location on Likiep 10 m
Natural resources:
Coconut products, marine products, deep seabed minerals
Land use:
arable land: 16.67%
permanent crops: 38.89%
other: 44.44%
(2001)
Irrigated land:
0 sq km
Natural hazards:
Infrequent typhoons
Environment - current issues:
Inadequate supplies of potable water; pollution of Majuro lagoon from household waste and discharges from fishing vessels
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements (not ratified)
Geography - Note:
Two archipelagic island chains of 30 atolls and 1,152 islands; Bikini and Enewetak are former US nuclear test sites; Kwajalein, the famous World War II battleground, is now used as a US missile test range |
