Geography of Guam

Guam
Native name: <span class="nickname" ">Guåhån
Map of Guam (See detailed map)

Geography
Location	Pacific Ocean
Coordinates	13°26′31″N 144°46′35″E / 13.44194°N 144.77639°E / 13.44194; 144.77639Coordinates: 13°26′31″N 144°46′35″E / 13.44194°N 144.77639°E / 13.44194; 144.77639
Archipelago	Mariana Islands
Area	544 km² (210 sq mi)
Length	51 km (31.7 mi)
Width	15 km (9.3 mi)
Highest elevation	406 m (1,332 ft)
Highest point	Mount Lamlam
Country
United States
Territory	Guam
Largest settlement	Dededo (pop. 46,000)
Demographics
Population	173,456 (as of 2007)
Density	320.44 /km² (829.94 /sq mi)
Ethnic groups	Native Chamorros (57%), Filipino (25.5%), White (10%), Chinese, Japanese and Korean ancestry

Pass of the ISS over Mongolia, looking out west towards the Pacific Ocean, China, and Japan. As the video progresses, you can see major cities along the coast and the Japanese islands on the Philippine Sea. The island of Guam can be seen further down the pass into the Philippine Sea, and the pass ends just to the east of New Zealand. A lightning storm can be seen as light pulses near the end of the video.

This article describes the geography of the United States territory of Guam.

Location

Oceania, island in the North Pacific Ocean, about a quarter of the way from the Philippines to Hawaii, United States

Geographic coordinates

13°26′31″N 144°46′35″E / 13.44194°N 144.77639°E

Map references

Oceania

Area

Total: 54 km²
Land: 544 km²
Water: 0 km²

Area (comparative)

Three times the size of Washington, D.C.

Land boundaries

Approximately 30 miles (51 km) long and 9 miles (15 km) wide, narrowing to 4 miles (7 km) at the center.

Coastline

125.5 km (78.0 mi)

Maritime claims

Territorial sea: 12 nm (22.224 km)
Exclusive economic zone: 200 nm (370.4 km)
The southern maritime boundary of Guam forms a border with the Federated States of Micronesia, and the northern maritime boundary forms a border with the Commonwealth of the Northern Marianas Islands.

Climate

Tropical marine; generally warm and humid, moderated by northeast trade winds; dry season from January to June, wet season from July to December; little seasonal temperature variation.

Terrain

Volcanic origin, surrounded by coral reefs; relatively flat coralline limestone plateau (source of most freshwater), with steep coastal cliffs and narrow coastal plains in north, low-rising hills in center, mountains in south

Elevation extremes

Lowest point: Pacific Ocean, 0 metres (0 ft)^[1]
Highest points:
1. Mount Lamlam, 406 meters (1,332 ft)^[1]
2. Mount Jumullong Manglo, 391 meters (1,283 ft)
3. Mount Bolanos, 368 meters (1,207 ft)

Natural resources

Commercial fishing (mostly servicing and unloading of longline fleets and commercial vessels), recreational fishing of Indo-Pacific Blue Marlin (Makaira mazara), Wahoo (Acanthocybium solandri), Mahi-mahi (Coryphaena hippurus), Yellowfin tuna (Thunnus albacares), and deepwater reef fish, tourism (especially from Japan but increasingly from China and South Korea).

Land use

Arable land: 1.85%
Permanent crops: 16.67%
Other: 81.48% (2012 est.)

Irrigated land

2 ^km2

Natural hazards

Frequent squalls during wet season; relatively rare, but potentially very destructive typhoons (typhoons are possible in any season but most common from August through December)

Environment - current issues

Extirpation of native bird population by the rapid proliferation of the Brown tree snake (Boiga irregularis), an exotic species. Island also supports feral populations of introduced deer, Pigs (Sus scrofa) and Carabao (Bubalus bubalis carabanesis).

Geography - note

Largest and southernmost island in the Mariana Islands archipelago; strategic location in western North Pacific Ocean.

Extreme points

This is a list of the extreme points of Guam, the points that are farther north, south, east or west than any other location.

Northernmost point – Ritidian Point
Easternmost point – Pati Point
Southernmost point – Cocos Island
Southernmost point (mainland) – Aga Point
Westernmost point – Orote Point

References

1 2 "Elevations and Distances in the United States". U.S. Geological Survey. 29 April 2005. Retrieved November 9, 2006.

Territory of Guam

Hagåtña (capital)

Topics	Communications Demographics Earthquakes Economy Geography History Transportation

Islands	Guam Cocos Island

Villages	Agana Heights Agat Asan‑Maina Barrigada Chalan‑Pago‑Ordot Dededo Hagåtña Inarajan Mangilao Merizo Mongmong‑Toto‑Maite Piti Santa Rita Sinajana Talofofo Tamuning Umatac Yigo Yona

Peaks	Mount Alifan Mount Almagosa Mount Bolanos (368 m) Mount Jumullong Manglo (391 m) Mount Lamlam (406 m)

Geography of the United States

States	Alabama Alaska Arizona Arkansas California Colorado Connecticut Delaware Florida Georgia Hawaii Idaho Illinois Indiana Iowa Kansas Kentucky Louisiana Maine Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota Mississippi Missouri Montana Nebraska Nevada New Hampshire New Jersey New Mexico New York North Carolina North Dakota Ohio Oklahoma Oregon Pennsylvania Rhode Island South Carolina South Dakota Tennessee Texas Utah Vermont Virginia Washington West Virginia Wisconsin Wyoming

Federal district	Washington, D.C.

Insular areas	American Samoa Guam Northern Mariana Islands Puerto Rico U.S. Virgin Islands

Outlying islands	Baker Island Howland Island Jarvis Island Johnston Atoll Navassa Island Wake Island

Geography of Oceania

Sovereign states	Australia Federated States of Micronesia Fiji Kiribati Marshall Islands Nauru New Zealand Palau Papua New Guinea Samoa Solomon Islands Tonga Tuvalu Vanuatu

Associated states of New Zealand	Cook Islands Niue

Dependencies and other territories	American Samoa Christmas Island Cocos (Keeling) Islands Easter Island French Polynesia Guam Hawaii New Caledonia Norfolk Island Northern Mariana Islands Pitcairn Islands Tokelau Wallis and Futuna

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Tuesday, July 14, 2015. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.