Location Southeastern Asia, island in the Indian Ocean, south of Indonesia

Geographic coordinates 10 30 S, 105 40 E

Map references Southeast Asia

Area
total: 135 sq km
water: 0 sq km
land: 135 sq km

Area - comparative about 0.7 times the size of Washington, DC

Land boundaries 0 km

Coastline 80 km

Maritime claims
contiguous zone: 12 NM
exclusive fishing zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM

Climate tropical; heat and humidity moderated by trade winds

Terrain steep cliffs along coast rise abruptly to central plateau

Elevation extremes
lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: Murray Hill 361 m

Natural resources phosphate, beaches

Land use
arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0%
other: 100%
note: mainly tropical rainforest; 63% of the island is a national park (1998 est.)

Irrigated land NA sq km

Natural hazards the narrow fringing reef surrounding the island can be a maritime hazard

Environment - current issues NA

Geography - note located along major sea lanes of Indian Ocean

NOTE: The information regarding Christmas Island on this page is re-published from the 2002 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Christmas Island Geography 2002 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Christmas Island Geography 2002 should be addressed to the CIA.