Geography of North Korea
Location:
Eastern Asia, northern half of the Korean Peninsula bordering the Korea Bay[?] and the Sea of Japan, between China and South Korea
Geographic coordinates:
40 00 N, 127 00 E
Map references:
Asia
Area:
Area - comparative:
slightly smaller than Mississippi
Land boundaries:
Coastline:
2,495 km
Maritime claims:
Climate:
temperate with rainfall concentrated in summer
Terrain:
mostly hills and mountains separated by deep, narrow valleys; coastal plains wide in west, discontinuous in east
Elevation extremes:
Natural resources:
coal, lead, tungsten, zinc, graphite, magnesite, iron ore, copper, gold, pyrites, salt, fluorspar, hydropower
Land use:
Irrigated land:
14,600 sq km (1993 est.)
Natural hazards:
late spring droughts often followed by severe flooding; occasional typhoons during the early fall
Environment - current issues:
localized air pollution attributable to inadequate industrial controls; water pollution; inadequate supplies of potable water
Environment - international agreements:
Geography - note:
strategic location bordering China, South Korea, and Russia; mountainous interior is isolated and sparsely populated
total:
120,540 sq km
land:
120,410 sq km
water:
130 sq km
total:
1,673 km
border countries:
China 1,416 km, South Korea 238 km, Russia 19 km
territorial sea:
12 nm
exclusive economic zone:
200 nm
note:
military boundary line 50 nm in the Sea of Japan and the exclusive economic zone limit in the Yellow Sea where all foreign vessels and aircraft without permission are banned
lowest point:
Sea of Japan 0 m
highest point:
Paektu-san 2,744 m
arable land:
14%
permanent crops:
2%
permanent pastures:
0%
forests and woodland:
61%
other:
23% (1993 est.)
party to:
Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Environmental Modification, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution
signed, but not ratified:
Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Law of the Sea