Geography (Yemen)
=================
Total area:
527,970 km2
Land area:
527,970 km2; includes Perim, Socotra, the former Yemen Arab Republic (YAR or
North Yemen), and the former People's Democratic Republic of Yemen (PDRY or
South Yemen)
Comparative area:
slightly larger than twice the size of Wyoming
Land boundaries:
1,746 km total; Oman 288 km, Saudi Arabia 1,458 km
Coastline:
1,906 km
Maritime claims:
Contiguous zone:
North - 18 nm; South - 24 nm
Continental shelf:
North - 200 meters (depth); South - edge of continental margin or 200 nm
Exclusive economic zone:
200 nm
Territorial sea:
12 nm
Disputes:
undefined section of boundary with Saudi Arabia; Administrative Line with
Oman; there is a proposed treaty with Oman (which has not yet been formerly
accepted) to settle the Yemeni-Omani boundary
Climate:
mostly desert; hot and humid along west coast; temperate in western
mountains affected by seasonal monsoon; extraordinarily hot, dry, harsh
desert in east
Terrain:
narrow coastal plain backed by flat-topped hills and rugged mountains;
dissected upland desert plains in center slope into the desert interior of
the Arabian Peninsula
Natural resources:
crude oil, fish, rock salt, marble; small deposits of coal, gold, lead,
nickel, and copper; fertile soil in west
Land use:
arable land 6%; permanent crops NEGL%; meadows and pastures 30%; forest and
woodland 7%; other 57%; includes irrigated NEGL%
Environment:
subject to sand and dust storms in summer; scarcity of natural freshwater
resources; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification
Note:
controls Bab el Mandeb, the strait linking the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden,
one of world's most active shipping lanes
converted with guide2html by Kochtopf