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Montserrat Geography Profile

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LocationCaribbean, island in the Caribbean Sea, southeast of Puerto Rico
Geographic coordinates16 45 N, 62 12 W
Map referencesCentral America and the Caribbean
Areatotal: 102 sq km

land: 102 sq km

water: 0 sq km
Area - comparativeabout 0.6 times the size of Washington, DC
Land boundariestotal: 0 km
Coastline40 km
Maritime claimsterritorial sea: 12 nm

exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm
Climatetropical; little daily or seasonal temperature variation
Terrainvolcanic island, mostly mountainous, with small coastal lowland
Elevation extremeshighest point: Soufriere Hills volcano pre-eruption height was 915 m; current lava dome is subject to periodic build up and collapse; estimated dome height was 1,050 m in 2015

lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
Natural resourcesNEGL
Land useagricultural land: 30% (2018 est.)

arable land: 20% (2018 est.)

permanent crops: 0% (2018 est.)

permanent pasture: 10% (2018 est.)

forest: 25% (2018 est.)

other: 45% (2018 est.)
Irrigated land0 sq km (2012)
Natural hazards

volcanic eruptions; severe hurricanes (June to November)

volcanism: Soufriere Hills volcano (915 m), has erupted continuously since 1995; a massive eruption in 1997 destroyed most of the capital, Plymouth, and resulted in approximately half of the island becoming uninhabitable; the island of Montserrat is part of the volcanic island arc of the Lesser Antilles that extends from Saba in the north to Grenada in the south

Geography - notethe island is entirely volcanic in origin and comprised of three major volcanic centers of differing ages

Source: CIA World Factbook
This page was last updated on September 18, 2021