|
Serving
Students at
Santa Ana
College and
Santiago
Canyon College
SOUTH KOREA
Map
|
Location:
Eastern Asia, southern half of the Korean Peninsula bordering the Sea of
Japan and the Yellow Sea
Geographic
coordinates: 37 00 N, 127 30 E
Map
references: Asia
Area:
total:
98,480 sq km
land:
98,190 sq km
water:
290 sq km
Area
- comparative: slightly larger than Indiana
Land
boundaries:
total:
238 km
border
countries: North Korea 238 km
Coastline:
2,413 km
Maritime
claims:
contiguous
zone: 24 nm
continental
shelf: not specified
exclusive
economic zone: 200 nm
territorial
sea: 12 nm; between 3 nm and 12 nm in the Korea Strait
Terrain:
mostly hills and mountains; wide coastal plains in west and south
Elevation
extremes:
lowest
point: Sea of Japan 0 m
highest
point: Halla-san 1,950 m
Natural
resources: coal, tungsten, graphite, molybdenum, lead, hydropower potential
Land
use:
arable
land: 19%
permanent
crops: 2%
permanent
pastures: 1%
forests
and woodland: 65%
other:
13% (1993 est.)
Irrigated
land: 13,350 sq km (1993 est.)
Natural
hazards: occasional typhoons bring high winds and floods; low-level
seismic activity common in southwest
Environment
- current issues: air pollution in large cities; water pollution from the
discharge of sewage and industrial effluents; drift net fishing
Environment
- international agreements:
party
to: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate
Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification,
Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone
Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94,
Wetlands, Whaling signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol
Geography
South
Korea is slightly larger than Indiana at 98,500 sq. km. (38,000 sq. mi.).
Major cities are the Capital--Seoul (11 million), Pusan (3.9 million),
Taegu (2.5 million), Inchon (2.4 million), Kwangju (1.4 million), Taejon
(1.3 million). The country lies below the 38th parallel on the Korean
peninsula, bordering the East Sea and the Yellow Sea. It is mountainous
in the east; in the west and south are many harbors on the mainland and
offshore islands.
The terrain
consists of partially forested mountain ranges separated by narrow, deep,
valleys; cultivated plains along the coasts, particularly in the west and
south.
Map
Links
for More Information
CIA
World Factbook: South Korea Geography
CIA
World Factbook: North Korea Geography
Geography of Korea
Climate
.
Sources:
Central
Intelligence Agency |
