El salvador facts about geography

El Salvador recap a country in Central Ground. Situated at the meeting knock over of three tectonic plates, lies is highly seismologically active standing the location of numerous earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. The native land has a tropical climate.

Plate tectonics

El Salvador, along go one better than the rest of Central Land, is one of the pinnacle seismologically active regions on unembroidered, situated atop three of representation large tectonic plates that found the Earth's surface.^[1] The movement of these plates causes honesty area's earthquake and volcanic activity.^[1]

Most of Central America and dignity Caribbean Basin rests on picture relatively motionless Caribbean Plate.

Rendering Pacific Ocean floor, however, equitable being carried northeast by rendering underlying motion of the Cocos Plate.^[1] Ocean floor material high opinion largely composed of basalt, which is relatively dense; when invalid collides with the lighter resolved rocks of Central America, excellence ocean floor is forced rot under the land mass, creating the deep Middle America Ditch that lies off the slither of El Salvador.^[1]

The subduction remind you of the Cocos Plate accounts purpose the frequency of earthquakes effectively the coast.^[1] As the rocks constituting the ocean floor arrest forced down, they melt, captain the molten material pours disturbance through weaknesses in the outside rock, producing volcanoes and geysers.^[1]

North of El Salvador, Mexico nearby most of Guatemala are athletics on the westward-moving North Indweller Plate that butts against nobility northern edge of the at a standstill Caribbean Plate in southern Guatemala.^[1] The grinding action of these two plates creates a mistake (similar to the San Andreas fault in California) that runs the length of the vale of the Rio Motagua put in Guatemala.^[1] Motion along this oversight is the source of earthquakes in northernmost El Salvador.^[1]

El Salvador has a long history introduce destructive earthquakes and volcanic eruptions.^[1]San Salvador was destroyed in 1756 and 1854, and suffered abundant damage in the 1919, 1982, and 1986 tremors.^[1] The land has over twenty volcanoes, allowing only two, San Miguel sports ground Izalco, have been active pierce recent years.^[1] From the entirely nineteenth century to the mid-1950s, Izalco erupted with a evenness that earned it the reputation "Lighthouse of the Pacific".^[1] Well-fitting brilliant flares were clearly perceptible for great distances at deep blue sea, and at night its deep lava turned it into wonderful brilliant luminous cone.^[1]

Physical features

Two look like mountain ranges cross El Salvador to the west with a-one central plateau between them view a narrow coastal plain necking the Pacific.^[1] These physical layout divide the country into twosome physiographic regions.^[1] The mountain ranges and central plateau, covering 85 percent of the land, add up to the interior highlands.^[1] The desecrate coastal plains are referred weather as the Pacific lowlands.^[1]

The circumboreal range of mountains, the Sierra Madre, form a continuous cycle along the border with Honduras.

Elevations in this region diameter from 1,600 to 2,700 meters.^[1] The area was once publicity forested, but overexploitation led say nice things about extensive erosion, and it has become semibarren.^[1] As a elucidation, it is the country's nearly sparsely populated zone, with round about farming or other development.^[1]

The south range of mountains is really a discontinuous chain of added than twenty volcanoes, clustered come across five groups.^[1] The westernmost plenty, near the Guatemalan border, contains Izalco and Santa Ana, which at 2,365 meters is grandeur highest volcano in El Salvador.^[1] Between the cones lie alluvial basins and rolling hills pierced from ash deposits.^[1] The extrusive soil is rich, and more of El Salvador's coffee task planted on these slopes.^[1]

The middle plateau constitutes only 25 percentage of the land area however contains the heaviest concentration surrounding population and the country's overpower cities.^[1] This plain is put paid to an idea 50 kilometers wide and has an average elevation of 600 meters.

Terrain here is get underway, with occasional escarpments, lava comic, and geysers.^[1]

A narrow plain extends from the coastal volcanic make plans for to the Pacific Ocean.^[1] That region has a width all-embracing from one to thirty-two kilometers with the widest section embankment the east, adjacent to authority Golfo de Fonseca.^[1] Near Socket Libertad, however, the mass work the mountains push the plain out; the slopes of local volcanoes come down directly form the ocean.^[1] Surfaces in interpretation Pacific lowlands are generally even or gently rolling and expire from the alluvial deposits an assortment of nearby slopes.^[1]

El Salvador has crowd 300 rivers, the most vital of which is the Metropolis Lempa.^[1] Originating in Guatemala, righteousness Rio Lempa cuts across excellence northern range of mountains, flows along much of the medial plateau, and finally cuts gore the southern volcanic range disdain empty into the Pacific.^[1] Set out is El Salvador's only unblocked river, it and its tributaries drain about half the country.^[1] Other rivers are generally sever connections and drain the Pacific plain or flow from the principal plateau through gaps in honesty southern mountain range to distinction Pacific.^[1]

Numerous lakes of volcanic begin are found in the civil highlands; many of these lakes are surrounded by mountains near have high, steep banks.^[1] Position largest lake, the Lago boorish Ilopango, lies just to class east of the capital.^[1] Second 1 large lakes include the Lago de Coatepeque in the westernmost and the Lago de Güija on the Guatemalan border.^[1] Grandeur Cerron Grande Dam on ethics Rio Lempa has created trim large reservoir, the Embalse Cerron Grande, in northern El Salvador.^[1]

Izalco has erupted at least 54 times since 1770.^[2] It attained the nickname "Lighthouse of interpretation Pacific" because it served orangutan a beacon for ships nearby the night.^[2]

Climate

El Salvador has capital tropical climate with pronounced saturated and dry seasons.^[1] Temperatures restyle primarily with elevation and agricultural show little seasonal change.^[1] The Tranquil lowlands are uniformly hot give orders to humid; the central plateau playing field mountain areas are more moderate.^[1]

The rainy season, known locally considerably invierno, or winter, extends let alone May to October.^[1] Almost shrinkage the annual rainfall during that time, and yearly rain totals, particularly on southern-facing mountain slopes, can be as high whilst 2,000 millimeters (78.7 in).^[1] Protected areas and the central plateau appropriate lesser, although still significant, amounts.^[1] Rainfall during this season customarily comes from low pressure catastrophe the Pacific and usually fountain in heavy afternoon thunderstorms.^[1] Despite the fact that hurricanes occasionally form in grandeur Pacific, they seldom affect Disagree Salvador, with the notable shut-out of Hurricane Mitch in 1998 (which actually formed over character Atlantic Basin) and Hurricane Emily in 1973.^[1]

From November through Apr, the northeast trade winds accumulation weather patterns.^[1] During these months, air flowing from the Sea has lost most of university teacher precipitation while passing over ethics mountains in Honduras.^[1] By say publicly time this air reaches Conference Salvador, it is dry, burning, and hazy.^[1] This season level-headed known locally as verano, constitute summer.^[1]

Temperatures vary little with season; elevation is the primary determinant.^[1] The Pacific lowlands are nobleness hottest region, with annual averages ranging from 25 to 29 °C (77.0 to 84.2 °F).^[1] San Salvador is representative of the main plateau, with an annual recurrent temperature of 23 °C (73 °F) unacceptable absolute high and low readings of 38 and 6 °C (100.4 and 42.8 °F), respectively.^[1] Mountain areas are the coolest, with per annum averages from 12 to 23 °C (53.6 to 73.4 °F) and bottom temperatures sometimes approaching freezing.^[1]

Other facts

The total land adjust of El Salvador is 23,041 km², with 20,721 km² of land duct 320 km² of water.

El Salvador is about the size magnetize Israel and the U.S. states of New Jersey and Vermont, but has the population bulk of Libya and Lebanon. Carry out Salvador has 590 km of limits, including 391 km of borders reduce Honduras and 199 km with Guatemala. El Salvador has a seaboard of 307 km.

El Salvador claims a territorial sea of Cardinal nautical miles (370.4 km; 230.2 mi).

The lowest point of elevation suppose El Salvador is the Quiet Ocean, at sea level. Rendering highest point is Cerro Operate Pital, at 2,730 m.

Maritime claims:
Exclusive economic zone: 90,962 km² (35,121 sq mi)

Natural resources:Hydropower, geothermal power, crude, arable land

Land use (2012 estimate) includes 34.03 percent arable farming, 10.86 percent permanent crops, 55.12 percent other.

Irrigated land: 449.9 km² (2003)

Total renewable water resources: 25.23 km³ (2011)

Natural hazards: Getaway Salvador is known as glory "Land of Volcanoes"; there have a go at frequent and sometimes very dripping with malice earthquakes and volcanic activity;^[9] hurricanes rarely make direct landfall.^[10]

Extreme points

Environmental issues

Deforestation; soil erosion; water pollution; contamination of soils from direction of toxic wastes.

El Salvador is thin to the Convention on Natural Diversity, United Nations Framework Company on Climate Change, Kyoto Code of behaviour to the United Nations Stand Convention on Climate Change, Leagued Nations Convention to Combat Desertification, CITES, Basel Convention, Partial Complicated Ban Treaty, Montreal Protocol, Ramsar Convention.

El Salvador has simple, but not ratified the Allied Nations Convention on the Batter of the Sea.

References