Geography of the Marshall Islands

The Marshalls consist of 29 atolls and five isolated islands, which form two parallel groups—the "Ratak" (sunrise) chain and the "Ralik" (sunset) chain. The Marshalls share maritime boundaries with Micronesia and Kiribati. Two-thirds of the nation's population lives in Majuro and Ebeye. The outer islands are sparsely populated due to lack of employment opportunities and economic development.

Location: Oceania, group of atolls and reefs in the North Pacific Ocean, about one-half of the way from Hawaii to Papua New Guinea

Geographic coordinates: 9°00′N 168°00′E

Map references: Oceania

Area:
total: 181.3 km²
land: 181.3 km²
water: 0 km²
note: the archipelago includes the atolls of Bikini, Enewetak, Kwajalein, Majuro, Rongelap, and Utirik

Area - comparative: about the size of Washington, DC

Land boundaries: 0 km

Coastline: 370.4 km

Maritime claims:
territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm

Maritime boundaries:

Climate: topical; hot and humid; wet season from May to November; islands border typhoon belt

Terrain: low coral limestone and sand islands

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 meters
highest point: unnamed location on Likiep 10 meters / 33 feet above sea level

Natural resources: coconut products, marine products, deep seabed minerals

Land use:
arable land: 11.11%
permanent crops: 44.44%
other: 44.44% (2011)

Irrigated land: 0 km² (2011)

Natural hazards: infrequent typhoons

Environment - current issues: inadequate supplies of potable water; pollution of Majuro lagoon from household waste and discharges from fishing vessels

Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Geography - note: two archipelagic island chains of 30 atolls and 1,152 islands; Bikini and Enewetak are former US nuclear test sites; Kwajalein, the famous World War II battle ground, is now used as a US missile test range; the island city of Ebeye is the second largest settlement in the Marshall Islands, after the capital of Majuro, and one of the most densely populated locations in the Pacific.