Geography of East Timor

Map of East Timor indicating cities and principal roads.

This article describes the geography of East Timor.

Location

Southeast Asia (or Oceania depending on definitions) , northwest of Australia in the Lesser Sunda Islands at the eastern end of the Indonesian archipelago; note - East Timor includes the eastern half of the island of Timor, the Ocussi-Ambeno region on the northwest portion of the island of Timor, and the islands of Atauro and Jaco

Geographic coordinates

8°50′S 125°55′E

Map references

Southeast Asia, Wallacea

Area

• Total: 14,874 km²
• Land: NA km²
• Water: NA km²

Land boundaries

• Total: 228 km (142 mi)
• Border countries: Indonesia (228 km/142 mi)

Coastline

6,789 km (4,218 mi)

Maritime claims

• Contiguous zone: NA nmi
• Extended fishing zone: NA nmi
• Territorial sea: NA nmi
• Exclusive fishing zone: NA nmi
• Continental shelf: NA nmi
• Exclusive economic zone: NA nmi

Climate

Tropical; hot, humid; distinct rainy and dry seasons

Terrain

Mountainous

Elevation extremes

• Lowest point: Timor Sea, Savu Sea, and Banda Sea 0 m
• Highest point: Tatamailau (2,963 m/9,721 ft)

Natural resources

Gold, petroleum, natural gas, manganese, marble

Land use

• Arable land: NA%
• Permanent crops: NA%
• Other: NA%

Irrigated land

1,065 km² (411 sq mi) (est.)

Natural hazards

Floods and landslides are common; earthquakes, tsunamis

Environment - current issues

Widespread use of slash and burn agriculture has led to deforestation and soil erosion

Environment - international agreements

NA

Geography - note

Timor is the Malay word for "Orient"; the island of Timor is part of the Malay Archipelago and is the largest and easternmost of the Lesser Sunda Islands. It was a portuguese territory until 1975, when it was invaded by Indonesia.

East Timor is the only Asian nation to lie entirely within the Southern Hemisphere.

References

• Much of the material in this article is adapted from the CIA World Factbook 2000 and 2003.