Geography of Monaco
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It has been suggested that Administrative divisions of Monaco be merged into this article or section. (Discuss) Proposed since February 2012. |
| Geography of Monaco | |
|---|---|
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| Continent | Europe |
| Region | Western Europe |
| Coordinates | 43°45′07″N 07°26′13″E / 43.75194°N 7.43694°E |
| Area | Ranked 235th 1.98 km2 (0.76 sq mi) 99.99% land 0.010000000000005 % water |
| Borders | France: 4.4 km (2.7 mi) |
| Highest point | Chemin des Révoires: 161 m (528 ft) |
| Lowest point | Mediterranean Sea: 0 m (0 ft) |
| Longest river | Saint-Jean: 0.12 km (0.075 miles) |
| Largest lake | Fontvieille: 0.5 ha (1.24 acres) |
Monaco is a sovereign city state, with 10 wards,[1] located on the French Riviera in the western part of Europe.[2] Bordered by France on three sides, with one side bordering the Mediterranean Sea, its center is about 16 km (9.9 mi) from Italy, and is only 15 km (9.3 mi) south east of Nice, France.[3] Its area is 1.98 km2 (0.76 sq mi) or 198 ha (490 acres), with a population of 35,986, making Monaco the second smallest and the most densely populated country in the world, as of 2012.[4] Having a land border of only 4.4 km (2.7 mi), a coastline of 4.1 km (2.5 mi), a maritime claim that extends 22.2 kilometres (12.0 nmi; 13.8 mi), and a width that varies between 1.7 km (1.1 mi) and 349 meters (382 yards), Monaco is unique.[5][6] The highest point in the country is a narrow pathway named Chemin des Révoires on the slopes of Mont Agel, in the Les Révoires district, it is 161 m (528 ft) above sea level.[7] Monaco's most populated quartier is Monte Carlo, and the most populated ward is Larvotto/Bas Moulins.[8] After a recent expansion of Port Hercules,[9] Monaco's total area is 2.05 km2 (0.79 sq mi),[10] with new plans to extend the district of Fontvieille, with land reclaimed from the Mediterranean Sea.[11][12] There are two ports in Monaco, Hercules and Fontvieille, as well the neighboring French port of Cap d'Ail.[13] Monaco's only natural resource is fishing,[14] with almost the entirely country being an urban area, Monaco lacks any sort of commercial agriculture industry.[15] Monaco has a warm-summer Mediterranean climate, which is influenced by the oceanic climate and the humid subtropical climate.[16]
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[edit] Suburbs and features
Monaco is the second smallest country in the world; only the Vatican City is smaller. Monaco is also the world's second smallest monarchy (and principality to be more exact), and one of the most densely populated countries in the world. The state consists of only one municipality (commune). There is no geographical distinction between the State and City of Monaco, although responsibilities of the government (state-level) and of the municipality (city-level) are different. According to the constitution of 1911, the principality was subdivided into three municipalities:
- Monaco (Monaco-Ville), the old city on a rocky promontory extending into the Mediterranean, known as the Rock of Monaco, or simply Le Rocher (the Rock), where the palace is located
- Monte Carlo, the principal residential and resort area with the Monte Carlo Casino in the east and northeast
- La Condamine, the northwest section including the port area, Port Hercule
The municipalities were merged into one in 1917, after accusations that the government was acting according to the motto "divide and conquer" and they were accorded the status of wards (quartiers) thereafter.
- Fontvieille was added as fourth ward, a newly constructed area reclaimed from the sea (in the 1970s)
- Moneghetti became the fifth ward, created from a part of La Condamine
- Larvotto became the sixth ward, created from a part of Monte Carlo
- La Rousse/Saint Roman (including Le Ténao) became the seventh ward, also created from a part of Monte Carlo
Subsequently, three additional wards were created:
- Saint Michel, from a part of Monte Carlo
- La Colle, from a part of La Condamine
- Les Révoires, from a part of La Condamine
An additional ward was planned by new land reclamation, to be settled from 2014. Prince Albert II announced in his New Year Speech 2009 that plans had been put on hold due to the current economic climate.[citation needed]
[edit] Traditional quarters and modern geographic areas
The four traditional quarters of Monaco are: Monaco-Ville, La Condamine, Monte Carlo and Fontvieille. However, the suburb of Moneghetti, the high-level part of La Condamine, is generally seen today as an effective fifth quarter of the Monaco, having a very distinct atmosphere and topography when compared with low-level La Condamine.[17]
[edit] Wards
Currently the principality is subdivided into ten wards (with their official numbers; Le Portier, the proposed ward, was anticipated as number 11):
| No. | Ward | Area (m²) |
Population (Census of 2000) |
Density km2 |
City Blocks (îlots) |
Remarks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Former municipality of Monaco | ||||||
| 05 | Monaco-Ville | 184,750 | 1,034 | 5597 | 19 | Old City with palace |
| Former municipality of Monte Carlo | ||||||
| 01 | Monte Carlo/Spélugues (Bd. Des Moulins-Av. de la Madone) | 281,461 | 3,034 | 10779 | 20 | the casino and resort area |
| 02 | La Rousse/Saint Roman (Annonciade-Château Périgord) | 105,215 | 3,223 | 30633 | 15 | in the northeast, incl. Le Ténao |
| 03 | Larvotto/Bas Moulins (Larvotto-Bd Psse Grace) | 328,479 | 5,443 | 16570 | 15 | eastern beach area |
| 10 | Saint Michel (Psse Charlotte-Park Palace) | 142,223 | 3,807 | 26768 | 24 | central residential area |
| Former municipality of La Condamine | ||||||
| 04 | La Condamine | 237,283 | 3,847 | 16213 | 27 | port area in the northwest |
| 07 | La Colle (Plati-Pasteur-Bd Charles III) | 188,073 | 2,822 | 15005 | 15 | on the western border with Cap d'Ail |
| 08 | Les Révoires (Hector Otto-Honoré Labande) | 75,747 | 2,515 | 33203 | 11 | containing the Jardin Exotique de Monaco |
| 09 | Moneghetti/ Bd de Belgique (Bd Rainier III-Bd de Belgique) | 107,056 | 3,003 | 28051 | 18 | |
| New land reclaimed from the sea | ||||||
| 06 | Fontvieille | 324,157 | 3,292 | 10156 | 9 | started 1971 |
| 11 | Le Portier | 275,000(1) | - | - | - | plans put on hold by Prince Albert II in 2009 |
| Monaco | 1,974,444 | 32,020 | 16217 | 173 | ||
| (1) Area not included in total, as it is only proposed | ||||||
Note: for statistical purposes, the wards of Monaco are further subdivided into 173 city blocks (îlots), which are comparable to the census blocks in the United States.
[edit] Climate
See also: Monaco#Climate Monaco has a warm-summer Mediterranean climate (Köppen climate classification: Csa), which is influenced by the oceanic climate and the humid subtropical climate.
As a result, it has warm, dry summers and mild, rainy winters. Cool and rainy interludes can interrupt the dry summer season, the average length of which is also shorter. Summer afternoons are infrequently hot (indeed, temperatures > 30 °C / 86 °F are rare) as the atmosphere is temperate because of constant sea breezes. On the other hand, the nights are very mild, this being due to the fairly high temperature of the sea in summer. Generally, temperatures do not drop below 20 °C (68 °F) in this season. In the winter, frosts and snowfalls are extremely rare and generally occur once or twice every ten years.
| Climate data for Monaco | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Average high °C (°F) | 12.3 (54.1) |
12.5 (54.5) |
14.0 (57.2) |
16.1 (61.0) |
19.4 (66.9) |
23.0 (73.4) |
25.8 (78.4) |
25.9 (78.6) |
23.8 (74.8) |
19.9 (67.8) |
16.1 (61.0) |
13.4 (56.1) |
18.5 (65.3) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 10.2 (50.4) |
10.4 (50.7) |
11.8 (53.2) |
13.9 (57.0) |
17.1 (62.8) |
20.8 (69.4) |
23.5 (74.3) |
23.7 (74.7) |
21.6 (70.9) |
17.8 (64.0) |
14.0 (57.2) |
11.4 (52.5) |
16.4 (61.5) |
| Average low °C (°F) | 8.1 (46.6) |
8.2 (46.8) |
9.6 (49.3) |
11.6 (52.9) |
14.8 (58.6) |
18.5 (65.3) |
21.2 (70.2) |
21.5 (70.7) |
19.3 (66.7) |
15.6 (60.1) |
11.9 (53.4) |
9.3 (48.7) |
14.1 (57.4) |
| Precipitation mm (inches) | 82.7 (3.256) |
76.4 (3.008) |
70.5 (2.776) |
62.2 (2.449) |
48.6 (1.913) |
36.9 (1.453) |
15.6 (0.614) |
31.3 (1.232) |
54.4 (2.142) |
108.2 (4.26) |
104.2 (4.102) |
77.5 (3.051) |
768.5 (30.256) |
| Avg. precipitation days | 6.8 | 6.4 | 6.1 | 6.3 | 5.2 | 4.1 | 1.9 | 3.1 | 4.0 | 5.8 | 7.0 | 6.0 | 62.7 |
| Sunshine hours | 148.8 | 152.6 | 201.5 | 228.0 | 269.7 | 297.0 | 341.0 | 306.9 | 240.0 | 204.6 | 156.0 | 142.6 | 2,668.7 |
| Source: Monaco website[16] | |||||||||||||
[edit] Location
43°44′N 7°24′E / 43.733°N 7.4°E
[edit] Extreme points
The following points are the extreme points on land, and do not include locations in Monaco's coastal waters.
- North: 1, Avenue Varavilla, (43°45′07″N 07°26′13″E / 43.75194°N 7.43694°E)
- South: Monaco Heliport, (43°43′29″N 07°25′05″E / 43.72472°N 7.41806°E)
- East: Near the Monte-Carlo Sporting Club, (43°44′50″N 07°26′23″E / 43.74722°N 7.43972°E)
- West: Near the southern end of Boulevard du Jardin Exotique, (43°43′48″N 07°24′33″E / 43.73°N 7.40917°E)
[edit] Altitude
- Highest point: At the upper end of the Chemin des Révoires, 161 m (528 ft)
- Lowest point: Mediterranean Sea, 0 m (0 ft)
[edit] References
- ^ http://monaco.me/monaco/monaco-districts/
- ^ http://wikitravel.org/en/Monaco
- ^ https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/mn.html
- ^ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_sovereign_states_and_dependent_territories_by_population_density
- ^ http://geography.about.com/library/cia/blcmonaco.htm
- ^ http://visitmonaco.com/us/About-Monaco/Geography/Monaco%27s-Areas
- ^ http://www.archeo-alpi-maritimi.com/cheminsanciensturbie.php
- ^ http://cloud.gouv.mc/devwww/wwwnew.nsf/e89a6190e96cbd1fc1256f7f005dbe6e/64a1643c86f9f661c12575ae004cc473/$FILE/ATTW9ZI8/Recensement2008_p8-9.pdf
- ^ http://cloud.gouv.mc/devwww/wwwnew.nsf/1909$/1ddf179c1910b5fbc1256fc60036dcc6gb?OpenDocument&Count=10000&InfoChap=%20Files%20and%20Reports&InfoSujet=2002%20Archives%20-%20Extension%20of%20%22La%20Condamine%20Port%22&6Gb
- ^ http://cloud.gouv.mc/devwww/wwwnew.nsf/e89a6190e96cbd1fc1256f7f005dbe6e/64a1643c86f9f661c12575ae004cc473/$FILE/ATTW9ZI8/Recensement2008_p8-9.pdf
- ^ http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/monaco/6894991/Monaco-to-build-into-the-sea-to-create-more-space.html
- ^ http://cloud.gouv.mc/devwww/wwwnew.nsf/1909$/3952ae296ac3807cc1256f73002bd426gb?OpenDocument&6Gb&Count=10000
- ^ http://www.ports-monaco.com/lang-en.html
- ^ www.youtube.com/watch?v=nyIYViMSlOE
- ^ http://geography.about.com/od/monacomaps/a/monacogeography.htm
- ^ a b "Climatological information for Monaco" - Monaco website
- ^ Tourist Board official website.
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