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:
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 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: 13.2%
permanent crops: 2%
other: 84.8% (1998 est.)
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