Geography of the United States Virgin Islands
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Location: Caribbean, islands 1,100 miles (1,800 km) southeast of Florida, 600 miles (1,000 km) north of Venezuela, 50 miles (80 km) east of Puerto Rico; between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, bordering the Virgin Islands Trough and the Anegada Passage and roughly 100 miles (200 km) south of the Puerto Rico Trench
Map references: Central America and the Caribbean
Islands: Saint Croix, Saint Thomas, Saint John, Water Island, many other islands
Area:
total: 352 km²
land: 349 km²
water: 3 km²
Area - comparative: twice the size of Washington, D.C.
Land boundaries: 0 km
Coastline: 188 km
Maritime claims:
exclusive economic zone: 200 nmi (370 km)
territorial sea: 12 nmi (22 km)
Climate: subtropical, tempered by easterly trade winds, relatively low humidity, little seasonal temperature variation; rainy season May to November
Terrain: most of the islands, including Saint Thomas and Saint John, are volcanic in origin and are mostly hilly to rugged and mountainous with little level land; Saint Croix was formed by a coral reef and is flatter
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Crown Mountain (Saint Thomas) 474 m
Natural resources: sun, sand, sea, surf
Land use:
arable land: 15%
permanent crops: 6%
permanent pastures: 26%
forests and woodland: 6%
other: 47% (1993 est.)
Irrigated land: NA km²
Natural hazards: several hurricanes in recent years; frequent and severe droughts and floods; occasional earthquakes; rare tsunamis
Environment - current issues: lack of natural freshwater resources
Geography - note: important location along the Anegada Passage - a key shipping lane for the Panama Canal; Charlotte Amalie, Saint Thomas is one of the best natural, deepwater harbors in the Caribbean; well-known beaches include Magens Bay (Saint Thomas) and Trunk Bay (Saint John); coral reefs include Virgin Islands Coral Reef National Monument and the Buck Island Reef National Monument; more than half of Saint John and nearly all of Hassel Island are owned by the U.S. National Park Service
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