Geographic coordinates: 3 15 N, 73 00 E
Map references: Asia
Area:
total:
300 sq km
land:
300 sq km
water:
0 sq km
Area - comparative: about 1.7 times the size of Washington, DC
Land boundaries: 0 km
Coastline: 644 km
Maritime claims:
measured from claimed archipelagic baselines
contiguous zone:
24 nm
exclusive economic zone:
200 nm
territorial sea:
12 nm
Climate: tropical; hot, humid; dry, northeast monsoon (November to March); rainy, southwest monsoon (June to August)
Terrain: flat, with white sandy beaches
Elevation extremes:
lowest point:
Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point:
unnamed location on Wilingili island in the Addu Atoll 2.4 m
Natural resources: fish
Land use:
arable land:
10%
permanent crops:
0%
permanent pastures:
3%
forests and woodland:
3%
other:
84% (1993 est.)
Irrigated land: NA sq km
Natural hazards: low level of islands makes them very sensitive to sea level rise
Environment - current issues: depletion of freshwater aquifers threatens water supplies; global warming and sea level rise; coral reef bleaching
Environment - international agreements:
party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified:
Law of the Sea
Geography - note: 1,190 coral islands grouped into 26 atolls (200 inhabited islands, plus 80 islands with tourist resorts); archipelago of strategic location astride and along major sea lanes in Indian Ocean
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