Geography of Mongolia
Location: Mongolia is a country in Northern Asia, between China and Russia
Geographic coordinates: 46 00 N, 105 00 E
Map references: Asia
Area:
total:
1.565 million kmē
land:
1.565 million kmē
water:
0 kmē
Area - comparative: slightly smaller than Alaska
Land boundaries:
total:
8,114 km
border countries:
China 4,673 km, Russia 3,441 km
Coastline: 0 km (landlocked)
Maritime claims: none (landlocked)
Climate: desert; continental (large daily and seasonal temperature ranges)
Terrain: vast semidesert and desert plains; mountains in west and southwest; Gobi Desert in southeast
Elevation extremes:
lowest point:
Hoh Nuur 518 m
highest point:
Tavan Bogd Uul 4,374 m
Natural resources: oil, coal, copper, molybdenum, tungsten, phosphates, tin, nickel, zinc, wolfram, fluorspar, gold
Land use:
arable land:
1%
permanent crops:
0%
permanent pastures:
80%
forests and woodland:
9%
other:
10% (1993 est.)
Irrigated land: 800 kmē (1993 est.)
Natural hazards: dust storms can occur in the spring; grassland fires
Environment - current issues: limited natural fresh water resources; policies of the former communist regime promoting rapid urbanization and industrial growth have raised concerns about their negative effects on the environment; the burning of soft coal in power plants and the lack of enforcement of environmental laws have severely polluted the air in Ulaanbaatar; deforestation, overgrazing, the converting of virgin land to agricultural production have increased soil erosion from wind and rain; desertification and mining activities have also had a deleterious effect on the environment
Environment - international agreements:
party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified:
none of the selected agreements
Geography - note: landlocked; strategic location between China and Russia
- See also : Mongolia
