Geography of Grenada

Grenada

Nickname: The Spice Isle
Map of Grenada
Geography
Location	Caribbean Sea
Coordinates	12°07′N 61°40′W
Archipelago	Grenadines
Area	348.5 km2 (134.56 sq mi)
Length	19 km (11.8 mi)
Width	34 km (21.1 mi)
Coastline	121 km (75.2 mi)
Highest elevation	840 m (2,760 ft)
Highest point	Mount St. Catherine
Country
Grenada
Largest city	St. George's (pop. 7,500)
Demographics
Population	109,100 (as of 2012)
Density	313 /km2 (811 /sq mi)
Ethnic groups	Blacks 82% Mulatto 12% South Asians (Indo-Grenadians) 3% and whites 2.9%, trace Arawak/Carib Amerindian

Grenada - NASA NLT Landsat 7 (Visible Color) Satellite Image

This article describes the geography of Grenada.

Grenada is a Caribbean island (one of the Grenadines) between the Caribbean Sea and Atlantic Ocean, north of Trinidad and Tobago. It is located at 12°07′N 61°40′W. There are no large inland bodies of water on the island, which consists entirely of the state of Grenada. The coastline is 121 km long.

The island has 15 constituencies and speaks English. It is volcanic in origin and its topography/landscape is mountainous.

Natural resources include timber, tropical fruit and deepwater harbors.

Grenada and its largely uninhabited outlying territories are the most southerly of the Windward Islands. The Grenadine Islands chain consists of some 600 islets; those south of the Martinique Channel belong to Grenada, while those north of the channel are part of the nation of St. Vincent and the Grenadines. Located about 160 kilometers north of Venezuela, at approximately 12° north latitude and 61° west longitude, Grenada and its territories occupy a small area of 433 square kilometers. Grenada, known as the Spice Isle because of its production of nutmeg and mace, is the largest at 310 square kilometers, or about the size of Detroit. The island is oval shaped and framed by a jagged southern coastline; its maximum width is thirty-four kilometers, and its maximum length is nineteen kilometers. St. George's, the capital and the nation's most important harbor, is favorably situated near a lagoon on the southwestern coast. Of all the islands belonging to Grenada, only two are of consequence: Carriacou, with a population of a few thousand, and its neighbor Petit Martinique, roughly 40 kilometers northeast of Grenada and populated by some 700 inhabitants.

Part of the volcanic chain in the Lesser Antilles arc, Grenada and its possessions generally vary in elevation from under 300 meters to over 600 meters above sea level. Grenada is more rugged and densely foliated than its outlying possessions, but other geographical conditions are more similar. Grenada's landmass rises from a narrow, coastal plain in a generally north-south trending axis of ridges and narrow valleys. Mount St. Catherine is the highest peak at 840 meters.

Although many of the rocks and soils are of volcanic origin, the volcanic cones dotting Grenada are long dormant. The only known active volcano in the area is Kick 'em Jenny, just north between Grenada and Carriacou. Some of the drainage features on Grenada remain from its volcanic past. There are a few crater lakes, the largest of which is Grand Etang. The swift upper reaches of rivers, which occasionally overflow and cause flooding and landslides, generally cut deeply into the conic slopes. By contrast, many of the water courses in the lowlands tend to be sluggish and meandering.

==Table of Islands|Bird Island]] || || ||align="right"|0.03 ||align="right"|0 |-style="background:#FFFFFF;" |5.2 ||Caille Island ||West beach ||Whale bay||align="right"|0.70 ||align="right"|0 |-style="background:#FFFFFF;" |5.3 ||Diamond Island ||southwest point || ||align="right"|0.22 ||align="right"|0 |-style="background:#FFFFFF;" |5.4 ||Green Island || || ||align="right"|0.14 ||align="right"|0 |-style="background:#FFFFFF;" |5.5 ||Les Tantes ||Grand Tantes || Petit Tantes||align="right"|0.3 ||align="right"|0 |-style="background:#FFFFFF;" |5.6 ||Ronde Island ||South dock ||Corn Store Bay ||align="right"|2.70 ||align="right"|0 |-style="background:#FFFFFF;" |5.7 ||Sandy Island ||west beach || ||align="right"|0.11 ||align="right"|0 |-style="background:#FFFFFF;" |5.8 ||Sugarloaf Island ||Southwest point mansion || ||align="right"|0.08 ||align="right"|2 |-style="background:#FFFFFF;" |6 ||Other|| Hog Island||||align="right"| 0.11 ||align="right"| 0 |-style="background:#F2E0CE;" | class="sortbottom" |  || Grenada and the Grenadines||St. George's|| St. David’s, Grenville, Sauteurs, Gouyave, Hillsborough, ||align="right"|348.5||align="right"|109100 |}

Statistics

Area

• Total: 348.5 km²
• Land: 344 km²

Maritime claims

• Exclusive economic zone: 200 nmi (370.4 km; 230.2 mi)
• Territorial sea: 12 nmi (22.2 km; 13.8 mi)

Land use

• Arable land: 15%
• Permanent crops: 18%
• Permanent pastures: 3%
• Forests and woodland: 9%
• Other: 55% (1993 est.)

Irrigated land

NA km²

Natural hazards

Lies on edge of hurricane belt; hurricane season lasts from June to November

Environment - current issues

NA

Environment - international agreements

Party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Whaling

Geography - note

The administration of the islands of the Grenadines group is divided between Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (northern Grenadines) and Grenada (southern Grenadines)

See also

• List of islands of Grenada
• Caribbean
• Grenada
• Grenadines
• Parishes of Grenada
• List of islands in the Caribbean: Grenada

• Outline of Grenada
• Index of Grenada-related articles
• List of cities in Grenada
• List of islands of Grenada

References

•  This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the Library of Congress Country Studies.
•  This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the CIA World Factbook.

External links

• Geography of Grenada travel guide from Wikivoyage