South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands Geography Profile 2008

Location

Southern South America, islands in the South Atlantic Ocean, east of the tip of South America

Geographic coordinates

54 30 S, 37 00 W

Map references

Antarctic Region

Area

total: 3,903 sq km
land: 3,903 sq km
water: 0 sq km
note: includes Shag Rocks, Black Rock, Clerke Rocks, South Georgia Island, Bird Island, and the South Sandwich Islands, which consist of 11 islands

Area - comparative

slightly larger than Rhode Island

Land boundaries

0 km

Coastline

NA km

Maritime claims

territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm

Climate

variable, with mostly westerly winds throughout the year interspersed with periods of calm; nearly all precipitation falls as snow

Terrain

most of the islands, rising steeply from the sea, are rugged and mountainous; South Georgia is largely barren and has steep, glacier-covered mountains; the South Sandwich Islands are of volcanic origin with some active volcanoes

Elevation extremes

lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mount Paget (South Georgia) 2,934 m

Natural resources

fish

Land use

arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0%
other: 100% (largely covered by permanent ice and snow with some sparse vegetation consisting of grass, moss, and lichen) (2005)

Irrigated land

0 sq km

Natural hazards

the South Sandwich Islands have prevailing weather conditions that generally make them difficult to approach by ship; they are also subject to active volcanism

Environment - current issues

NA

Geography - note

the north coast of South Georgia has several large bays, which provide good anchorage; reindeer, introduced early in the 20th century, live on South Georgia