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Faroe Islands on NASA satellite image.
The Faroe
Islands are an island
group consisting of eighteen islands off the coast of Northern Europe, between the Norwegian Sea and
the north Atlantic
Ocean, about half-way between Iceland and Norway. Its coordinates are 62°N 7°W / 62°N
7°W / 62;
-7. It is 1,399 square kilometres
in area, and includes no major lakes or rivers. There are 1,117
kilometres of coastline, and no land boundaries with any other
country.
The Faroe Islands generally have cool summers and mild winters,
with a usually overcast sky and frequent fog and strong winds. Although at a high latitude,
due to the Gulf
Stream, their climate is ameliorated. The islands are rugged
and rocky with some low peaks; the coasts are mostly bordered by
cliffs. The Faroe Islands are notable for having the highest sea
cliffs in Europe, and some of the highest in the world otherwise.
The lowest point is at sea
level, and the highest is at Slættaratindur, which is 882 metres
above sea level. The landscape made roadbuilding difficult, and
only recently has this been remedied by building tunnels.
Many of the Faroese islands tend to be elongated in shape.
Natural
resources include fish,
whales and hydropower.
Statistics
- Geographic
coordinates
-
- Area
-
- Land: 1,393 km² [1]
- Water: 0 km² (some lakes and streams)
- Land boundaries
- 0 km
- Coastline
- 1,117 km
- Maritime claims
-
- Continental shelf: 200 nautical miles (370 km) or agreed
boundaries or median line
- Exclusive economic zone: 200 nautical miles (370 km) or agreed
boundaries or median line
- Territorial sea: 12 nautical miles (22 km)[2]
- Climate
- Subarctic oceanic climate (Koppen
climate classification Cfc) moderated by North Atlantic Current; long, mild, windy
winters; short, cool summers, damp in the South and West. Arctic climate (Koppen
climate classification ET) in some mountains.
- Terrain
- Rugged, rocky, some low peaks; cliffs along most of coast. The
coasts are deeply indented with fjords, and the narrow passages between islands
are agitated by strong tidal currents.
- Elevation extremes
-
- Natural resources
- Fish, Whales, hydropower, possible petroleum and gas.
- Land use
-
- Arable land: 2.14%
- Permanent crops: 0%
- Other: 97.86% (2001 est.)
- Environment--international agreements
-
Marine Dumping
See also
Further
reading
- Ostenfeld, C. H., and Eugenius Warming. Geography, Geology
and Climate of the Faeröes, With the Historical Notes on the
Botanical Investigation of These Islands. Copenhagen: H.H.
Thiele, 1901.
- Peacock, Martin A. Recent Lines of Fracture in the Færoes
in Relation to the Theories of Fiord Formation in Northern Basaltic
Plateaux. Glasgow: Jackson, Wylie, 1928.
References
- "Faroe Islands" World Fact Book 2004,
CIA, Washington.
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