Geography of Spain

Map of Spain

Location: Southwestern Europe, bordering the Bay of Biscay, Mediterranean Sea, North Atlantic Ocean, and Pyrenees Mountains; southwest of France and east of Portugal

Geographic coordinates: 40 00 N, 4 00 W

Map references: Europe

Area:
total: 504,782 km²
land: 499,542 km²
water: 5,240 km²
note: includes Balearic Islands, Canary Islands, and five places of sovereignty (plazas de soberanía) on and off the coast of Morocco - Ceuta, Melilla, Islas Chafarinas, Peñón de Alhucemas, and Peñón de Vélez de la Gomera

Land boundaries:
total: 1,917.8 km
border countries: Andorra 63.7 km, France 623 km, Gibraltar 1.2 km, Portugal 1,214 km, Morocco (Ceuta) 6.3 km, Morocco (Melilla) 9.6 km

Coastline: 4,964 km

Maritime claims:
contiguous zone: 24 nautical miles
exclusive economic zone: 200 nautical miles (applies only to the Atlantic Ocean)
territorial sea: 12 nautical miles

Climate: temperate; clear, hot summers in interior, more moderate and cloudy along coast; cloudy, cold winters in interior, partly cloudy and cool along coast

Terrain: large, flat to dissected plateau surrounded by rugged hills; Pyrenees in north

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Pico del Teide (Tenerife) in the Canary Islands 3,718 m
Note. Highest mountain in continental Spain is Mulhacén, in Granada, Andalucía, at 3,481 m

Natural resources: coal, lignite, iron ore, uranium, mercury, pyrites, fluorspar, gypsum, zinc, lead, tungsten, copper, kaolin, potash, hydropower, arable land

Land use:
arable land: 30%
permanent crops: 9%
permanent pastures: 21%
forests and woodland: 32%
other: 8% (1993 est.)

Irrigated land: 34,530 km² (1993 est.)

Natural hazards: periodic droughts

Environment - current issues: pollution of the Mediterranean Sea from raw sewage and effluents from the offshore production of oil and gas; water quality and quantity nationwide; air pollution; deforestation; desertification

Environment - international agreements:
party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification

Geography - note: strategic location along approaches to Strait of Gibraltar

Biggest cities

• Madrid 3.092.759
• Barcelona 1.582.738
• Valencia 780.653
• Sevilla 709.975
• Zaragoza 626.081
• Malaga 547.105
• Murcia 391.146
• Las Palmas of Great Canary 377.600
• Palma of Majorca 367.277
• Bilbao 353.567
• Valladolid 321.143
• Cordoba 318.628
• Alicante 305.911
• Vigo 292.566
• Gijón 270.875
• Hospitalet de Llobregat 246.415
• La Coruña 243.902
• Granada 237.663
• Vitoria 223.257
• Santa Cruz de Tenerife 220.022
• Badalona 214.440
• Oviedo 207.699
• Elche 207.163
• Mostoles 201.789

Biggest metropolitan areas

• Madrid 7.603.285
• Barcelona 4.667.136
• Valencia 1.465.423
• Sevilla 1.294.081
• Malaga 1.019.292
• Bilbao 946.829
• Asturias 850.097
• Alicante 676.237
• Zaragoza 656.922
• Las Palmas of Great Canary 609.628
• Murcia 557.583
• Palma of Majorca 462.010
• Granada 450.439
• Vigo 420.672
• Santa Cruz de Tenerife 409.621
• Cadiz 406.095
• San Sebastian 395.758
• La Coruña 388.692
• Valladolid 377.562
• Tarragona 348.921
• Cordoba 318.628

See Also

• Spain
• Autonomous communities of Spain
• Provinces of Spain
• Geography of Europe

External links

IberianatureA guide to the environment, geography, climate, wildlife, natural history and landscape of Spain