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 Point Salines Airport, Grenada
Location: Caribbean, island between the Caribbean Sea and
Atlantic Ocean, north of Trinidad and Tobago
Geographic coordinates: 12 07 N, 61 40 W
Map references: Central America and the Caribbean
Area:
total: 340 sq km
land: 340 sq km
water: 0 sq km
Area - comparative: twice the size of Washington, DC
Land boundaries: 0 km
Coastline: 121 km
Maritime claims:
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
territorial sea: 12 nm
Climate: tropical; tempered by northeast trade winds
Terrain: volcanic in origin with central mountains
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Mount Saint Catherine 840 m
Natural resources: timber, tropical fruit, deepwater harbors
Land use:
arable land: 15%
permanent crops: 18%
permanent pastures: 3%
forests and woodland: 9%
other: 55% (1993 est.)
Irrigated land: NA sq km
Natural hazards: lies on edge of hurricane belt; hurricane
season lasts from June to November
Environment - current issues: NA
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification,
Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Geography - note: the administration of the islands of the
Grenadines group is divided between Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
and Grenada
Geography
Grenada is by far the largest of the three, with a width of twelve
miles (18 km) and a length of twenty-one miles (34 km). Its 133
sq. miles (440 sq. km.) are mountainous, volcanic terrain, reaching
heights of over 2,750 feet atop Mount St. Catherine.
This small nation consists of three islands: Grenada, Carriacou,
and Petit Martinique. The three islands of Grenada are located in
the Eastern Caribbean at the southern extremity of the Windward
Islands, only 100 miles north of Venezuela.
To the north lie St. Vincent and the Grenadines; to the south Trinidad
and Tobago. Carriacou, smaller sister island of Grenada. It is hilly
but not mountainous. With smoother terrain, Carriacou is an ideal
destination for walking.
It possesses fine sand beaches and natural harbours, as well as
offering excellent views out over the northern Grenadine islands.
Petite Martinique, the third and by far the smallest island in the
state, consists of little more than the tip of a volcanic cone poking
through the water. It is only now being developed for visitors.
Climate
It is tempered by the steady and cooling trade winds, with an average
temperature ranging from 24C/75F to 30C/87F.
The lowest temperatures occur between November and February. Because
of Grenada's remarkable topography, the island also experiences
climate changes according to altitude. The driest season is between
January and May.
Even during the rainy season, from June to December, it rarely rains
for more than an hour at a time and generally not every day.
Grenada is an independent country in the Caribbean Sea. It lies
about 140 kilometres north of Trinidad. The island of Grenada makes
up most of the country.
It is the southernmost of the Windward Islands, a chain forming
part of the Lesser Antilles in the West Indies
The nation of Grenada also includes several tiny islands near the
main island. In addition, it includes Carriacou--which lies about
27 kilometres northeast of the main island--and several other small
islands of the Grenadine chain, including Petit Martinique
The smallest independent country in the western hemisphere, Grenada
was seized by a Marxist military council on 19 October 1983.
Six days later the island was invaded by US forces and those of
six other Caribbean nations, which quickly captured the ringleaders
and their hundreds of Cuban advisers.
Free elections were reinstituted the following year.
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