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 Location:
Southwestern Europe, bordering the Bay of Biscay,
Mediterranean Sea, North Atlantic Ocean, and Pyrenees
Mountains, southwest of France
Geographic coordinates:
40 00 N, 4 00 W
Area:
total: 504,782 sq km
land: 499,542 sq km
water: 5,240 sq km
note: there are 2 autonomous cities - Ceuta and Melilla - and
17 autonomous communities including Balearic Islands and
Canary Islands, and three small Spanish possessions off the
coast of Morocco - Islas Chafarinas, Penon de Alhucemas, and
Penon de Velez de la Gomera
Land boundaries:
total: 1,917.8 km
Border countries:
Andorra 63.7 km, France 623 km, Gibraltar 1.2 km, Portugal
1,214 km, Morocco (Ceuta) 6.3 km, Morocco (Melilla) 9.6 km
Coastline:
4,964 km
Climate:
temperate; clear, hot summers in interior, more moderate and
cloudy along coast; cloudy, cold winters in interior, partly
cloudy and cool along coast
Terrain:
large, flat to dissected plateau surrounded by rugged hills;
Pyrenees in north
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Pico de Teide (Tenerife) on Canary Islands
3,718 m
Natural resources:
coal, lignite, iron ore, copper, lead, zinc, uranium, tungsten,
mercury, pyrites, magnesite, fluorspar, gypsum, sepiolite,
kaolin, potash, hydropower, arable land
Land use:
arable land: 27.18%
permanent crops: 9.85%
other: 62.97% (2005)
Irrigated land:
37,800 sq km (2003)
Natural hazards:
periodic droughts
Environment - current issues:
pollution of the Mediterranean Sea from raw sewage and
effluents from the offshore production of oil and gas; water
quality and quantity nationwide; air pollution; deforestation;
desertification
© Images:
Nasa
World Wind 1.3 under
Nasa Open Source Agreement Version 1.3
© Texts:
World Factbook. See the
Copyright Information for further information
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