Chapter 238
France metropolitan France: generally cool winters and mild summers, but mild winters and hot summers along the Mediterranean; occasional strong, cold, dry, north-to-northwesterly wind known as mistral French Guiana: tropical; hot, humid; little seasonal temperature variation Guadeloupe and Martinique: subtropical tempered by trade winds; moderately high humidity; rainy season (June to October); vulnerable to devastating cyclones (hurricanes) every eight years on average Reunion: tropical, but temperature moderates with elevation; cool and dry (May to November), hot and rainy (November to April)
French Polynesia tropical, but moderate
French Southern and Antarctic Lands Ile Amsterdam et Ile Saint-Paul: oceanic with persistent westerly winds and high humidity Iles Crozet: windy, cold, wet, and cloudy Iles Kerguelen: oceanic, cold, overcast, windy Iles Eparses: tropical
Gabon tropical; always hot, humid
Gambia, The tropical; hot, rainy season (June to November); cooler, dry season (November to May)
Gaza Strip temperate, mild winters, dry and warm to hot summers
Georgia warm and pleasant; Mediterranean-like on Black Sea coast
Germany temperate and marine; cool, cloudy, wet winters and summers; occasional warm mountain (foehn) wind
Ghana tropical; warm and comparatively dry along southeast coast; hot and humid in southwest; hot and dry in north
Gibraltar Mediterranean with mild winters and warm summers
Greece temperate; mild, wet winters; hot, dry summers
Greenland arctic to subarctic; cool summers, cold winters
Grenada tropical; tempered by northeast trade winds
Guam tropical marine; generally warm and humid, moderated by northeast trade winds; dry season (January to June), rainy season (July to December); little seasonal temperature variation
Guatemala tropical; hot, humid in lowlands; cooler in highlands
Guernsey temperate with mild winters and cool summers; about 50% of days are overcast
Guinea generally hot and humid; monsoonal-type rainy season (June to November) with southwesterly winds; dry season (December to May) with northeasterly harmattan winds
Guinea-Bissau tropical; generally hot and humid; monsoonal-type rainy season (June to November) with southwesterly winds; dry season (December to May) with northeasterly harmattan winds
Guyana tropical; hot, humid, moderated by northeast trade winds; two rainy seasons (May to August, November to January)
Haiti tropical; semiarid where mountains in east cut off trade winds
Heard Island and McDonald Islands antarctic
Holy See (Vatican City) temperate; mild, rainy winters (September to May) with hot, dry summers (May to September)
Honduras subtropical in lowlands, temperate in mountains
Hong Kong subtropical monsoon; cool and humid in winter, hot and rainy from spring through summer, warm and sunny in fall
Hungary temperate; cold, cloudy, humid winters; warm summers
Iceland temperate; moderated by North Atlantic Current; mild, windy winters; damp, cool summers
India varies from tropical monsoon in south to temperate in north
Indian Ocean northeast monsoon (December to April), southwest monsoon (June to October); tropical cyclones occur during May/June and October/November in the northern Indian Ocean and January/February in the southern Indian Ocean
Indonesia tropical; hot, humid; more moderate in highlands
Iran mostly arid or semiarid, subtropical along Caspian coast
Iraq mostly desert; mild to cool winters with dry, hot, cloudless summers; northern mountainous regions along Iranian and Turkish borders experience cold winters with occasionally heavy snows that melt in early spring, sometimes causing extensive flooding in central and southern Iraq
Ireland temperate maritime; modified by North Atlantic Current; mild winters, cool summers; consistently humid; overcast about half the time
Isle of Man temperate; cool summers and mild winters; overcast about one-third of the time
Israel temperate; hot and dry in southern and eastern desert areas
Italy predominantly Mediterranean; Alpine in far north; hot, dry in south
Jamaica tropical; hot, humid; temperate interior
Jan Mayen arctic maritime with frequent storms and persistent fog
Japan varies from tropical in south to cool temperate in north
Jersey temperate; mild winters and cool summers
Jordan mostly arid desert; rainy season in west (November to April)
Kazakhstan continental, cold winters and hot summers, arid and semiarid
Kenya varies from tropical along coast to arid in interior
Kiribati tropical; marine, hot and humid, moderated by trade winds
Korea, North temperate with rainfall concentrated in summer
Korea, South temperate, with rainfall heavier in summer than winter
Kosovo influenced by continental air masses resulting in relatively cold winters with heavy snowfall and hot, dry summers and autumns; Mediterranean and alpine influences create regional variation; maximum rainfall between October and December
Kuwait dry desert; intensely hot summers; short, cool winters
Kyrgyzstan dry continental to polar in high Tien Shan; subtropical in southwest (Fergana Valley); temperate in northern foothill zone
Laos tropical monsoon; rainy season (May to November); dry season (December to April)
Latvia maritime; wet, moderate winters
Lebanon Mediterranean; mild to cool, wet winters with hot, dry summers; Lebanon mountains experience heavy winter snows
Lesotho temperate; cool to cold, dry winters; hot, wet summers
Liberia tropical; hot, humid; dry winters with hot days and cool to cold nights; wet, cloudy summers with frequent heavy showers
Libya Mediterranean along coast; dry, extreme desert interior
Liechtenstein continental; cold, cloudy winters with frequent snow or rain; cool to moderately warm, cloudy, humid summers
Lithuania transitional, between maritime and continental; wet, moderate winters and summers
Luxembourg modified continental with mild winters, cool summers
Macau subtropical; marine with cool winters, warm summers
Macedonia warm, dry summers and autumns; relatively cold winters with heavy snowfall
Madagascar tropical along coast, temperate inland, arid in south
Malawi sub-tropical; rainy season (November to May); dry season (May to November)
Malaysia tropical; annual southwest (April to October) and northeast (October to February) monsoons
Maldives tropical; hot, humid; dry, northeast monsoon (November to March); rainy, southwest monsoon (June to August)
Mali subtropical to arid; hot and dry (February to June); rainy, humid, and mild (June to November); cool and dry (November to February)
Malta Mediterranean; mild, rainy winters; hot, dry summers
Marshall Islands tropical; hot and humid; wet season May to November; islands border typhoon belt
Mauritania desert; constantly hot, dry, dusty
Mauritius tropical, modified by southeast trade winds; warm, dry winter (May to November); hot, wet, humid summer (November to May)
Mayotte tropical; marine; hot, humid, rainy season during northeastern monsoon (November to May); dry season is cooler (May to November)
Mexico varies from tropical to desert
Micronesia, Federated States of tropical; heavy year-round rainfall, especially in the eastern islands; located on southern edge of the typhoon belt with occasionally severe damage
Moldova moderate winters, warm summers
Monaco Mediterranean with mild, wet winters and hot, dry summers
Mongolia desert; continental (large daily and seasonal temperature ranges)
Montenegro Mediterranean climate, hot dry summers and autumns and relatively cold winters with heavy snowfalls inland
Montserrat tropical; little daily or seasonal temperature variation
Morocco Mediterranean, becoming more extreme in the interior
Mozambique tropical to subtropical
Namibia desert; hot, dry; rainfall sparse and erratic
Nauru tropical with a monsoonal pattern; rainy season (November to February)
Navassa Island marine, tropical
Nepal varies from cool summers and severe winters in north to subtropical summers and mild winters in south
Netherlands temperate; marine; cool summers and mild winters
Netherlands Antilles tropical; ameliorated by northeast trade winds
New Caledonia tropical; modified by southeast trade winds; hot, humid
New Zealand temperate with sharp regional contrasts
Nicaragua tropical in lowlands, cooler in highlands
Niger desert; mostly hot, dry, dusty; tropical in extreme south
Nigeria varies; equatorial in south, tropical in center, arid in north
Niue tropical; modified by southeast trade winds
Norfolk Island subtropical; mild, little seasonal temperature variation
Northern Mariana Islands tropical marine; moderated by northeast trade winds, little seasonal temperature variation; dry season December to June, rainy season July to October
Norway temperate along coast, modified by North Atlantic Current; colder interior with increased precipitation and colder summers; rainy year-round on west coast
Oman dry desert; hot, humid along coast; hot, dry interior; strong southwest summer monsoon (May to September) in far south
Pacific Ocean planetary air pressure systems and resultant wind patterns exhibit remarkable uniformity in the south and east; trade winds and westerly winds are well-developed patterns, modified by seasonal fluctuations; tropical cyclones (hurricanes) may form south of Mexico from June to October and affect Mexico and Central America; continental influences cause climatic uniformity to be much less pronounced in the eastern and western regions at the same latitude in the North Pacific Ocean; the western Pacific is monsoonal - a rainy season occurs during the summer months, when moisture-laden winds blow from the ocean over the land, and a dry season during the winter months, when dry winds blow from the Asian landmass back to the ocean; tropical cyclones (typhoons) may strike southeast and east Asia from May to December
Pakistan mostly hot, dry desert; temperate in northwest; arctic in north
Palau tropical; hot and humid; wet season May to November
Panama tropical maritime; hot, humid, cloudy; prolonged rainy season (May to January), short dry season (January to May)
Papua New Guinea tropical; northwest monsoon (December to March), southeast monsoon (May to October); slight seasonal temperature variation
Paracel Islands tropical
Paraguay subtropical to temperate; substantial rainfall in the eastern portions, becoming semiarid in the far west
Peru varies from tropical in east to dry desert in west; temperate to frigid in Andes
Philippines tropical marine; northeast monsoon (November to April); southwest monsoon (May to October)
Pitcairn Islands tropical; hot and humid; modified by southeast trade winds; rainy season (November to March)
Poland temperate with cold, cloudy, moderately severe winters with frequent precipitation; mild summers with frequent showers and thundershowers
Portugal maritime temperate; cool and rainy in north, warmer and drier in south
Puerto Rico tropical marine, mild; little seasonal temperature variation
Qatar arid; mild, pleasant winters; very hot, humid summers
Romania temperate; cold, cloudy winters with frequent snow and fog; sunny summers with frequent showers and thunderstorms
Russia ranges from steppes in the south through humid continental in much of European Russia; subarctic in Siberia to tundra climate in the polar north; winters vary from cool along Black Sea coast to frigid in Siberia; summers vary from warm in the steppes to cool along Arctic coast
Rwanda temperate; two rainy seasons (February to April, November to January); mild in mountains with frost and snow possible
Saint Barthelemy tropical, with practically no variation in temperature; has two seasons (dry and humid)
Saint Helena Saint Helena: tropical marine; mild, tempered by trade winds Ascension Island: tropical marine; mild, semi-arid Tristan da Cunha: temperate marine; mild, tempered by trade winds (tends to be cooler than Saint Helena)
Saint Kitts and Nevis tropical, tempered by constant sea breezes; little seasonal temperature variation; rainy season (May to November)
Saint Lucia tropical, moderated by northeast trade winds; dry season January to April, rainy season May to August
Saint Martin temperature averages 80-85 degrees all year long; low humidity, gentle trade winds, brief, intense rain showers; July-Novemeber is the hurricane season
Saint Pierre and Miquelon cold and wet, with much mist and fog; spring and autumn are windy
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines tropical; little seasonal temperature variation; rainy season (May to November)
Samoa tropical; rainy season (November to April), dry season (May to October)
San Marino Mediterranean; mild to cool winters; warm, sunny summers
Sao Tome and Principe tropical; hot, humid; one rainy season (October to May)
Saudi Arabia harsh, dry desert with great temperature extremes
Senegal tropical; hot, humid; rainy season (May to November) has strong southeast winds; dry season (December to April) dominated by hot, dry, harmattan wind
Serbia in the north, continental climate (cold winters and hot, humid summers with well distributed rainfall); in other parts, continental and Mediterranean climate (relatively cold winters with heavy snowfall and hot, dry summers and autumns)
Seychelles tropical marine; humid; cooler season during southeast monsoon (late May to September); warmer season during northwest monsoon (March to May)
Sierra Leone tropical; hot, humid; summer rainy season (May to December); winter dry season (December to April)
Singapore tropical; hot, humid, rainy; two distinct monsoon seasons - Northeastern monsoon (December to March) and Southwestern monsoon (June to September); inter-monsoon - frequent afternoon and early evening thunderstorms
Slovakia temperate; cool summers; cold, cloudy, humid winters
Slovenia Mediterranean climate on the coast, continental climate with mild to hot summers and cold winters in the plateaus and valleys to the east
Solomon Islands tropical monsoon; few extremes of temperature and weather
Somalia principally desert; northeast monsoon (December to February), moderate temperatures in north and hot in south; southwest monsoon (May to October), torrid in the north and hot in the south, irregular rainfall, hot and humid periods (tangambili) between monsoons
South Africa mostly semiarid; subtropical along east coast; sunny days, cool nights
South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands variable, with mostly westerly winds throughout the year interspersed with periods of calm; nearly all precipitation falls as snow
Southern Ocean sea temperatures vary from about 10 degrees Celsius to -2 degrees Celsius; cyclonic storms travel eastward around the continent and frequently are intense because of the temperature contrast between ice and open ocean; the ocean area from about latitude 40 south to the Antarctic Circle has the strongest average winds found anywhere on Earth; in winter the ocean freezes outward to 65 degrees south latitude in the Pacific sector and 55 degrees south latitude in the Atlantic sector, lowering surface temperatures well below 0 degrees Celsius; at some coastal points intense persistent drainage winds from the interior keep the shoreline ice-free throughout the winter
Spain temperate; clear, hot summers in interior, more moderate and cloudy along coast; cloudy, cold winters in interior, partly cloudy and cool along coast
Spratly Islands tropical
Sri Lanka tropical monsoon; northeast monsoon (December to March); southwest monsoon (June to October)
Sudan tropical in south; arid desert in north; rainy season varies by region (April to November)
Suriname tropical; moderated by trade winds
Svalbard arctic, tempered by warm North Atlantic Current; cool summers, cold winters; North Atlantic Current flows along west and north coasts of Spitsbergen, keeping water open and navigable most of the year
Swaziland varies from tropical to near temperate
Sweden temperate in south with cold, cloudy winters and cool, partly cloudy summers; subarctic in north
Switzerland temperate, but varies with altitude; cold, cloudy, rainy/snowy winters; cool to warm, cloudy, humid summers with occasional showers
Syria mostly desert; hot, dry, sunny summers (June to August) and mild, rainy winters (December to February) along coast; cold weather with snow or sleet periodically in Damascus
Taiwan tropical; marine; rainy season during southwest monsoon (June to August); cloudiness is persistent and extensive all year
Tajikistan midlatitude continental, hot summers, mild winters; semiarid to polar in Pamir Mountains
Tanzania varies from tropical along coast to temperate in highlands
Thailand tropical; rainy, warm, cloudy southwest monsoon (mid-May to September); dry, cool northeast monsoon (November to mid-March); southern isthmus always hot and humid
Timor-Leste tropical; hot, humid; distinct rainy and dry seasons
Togo tropical; hot, humid in south; semiarid in north
Tokelau tropical; moderated by trade winds (April to November)
Tonga tropical; modified by trade winds; warm season (December to May), cool season (May to December)
Trinidad and Tobago tropical; rainy season (June to December)
Tunisia temperate in north with mild, rainy winters and hot, dry summers; desert in south
Turkey temperate; hot, dry summers with mild, wet winters; harsher in interior
Turkmenistan subtropical desert
Turks and Caicos Islands tropical; marine; moderated by trade winds; sunny and relatively dry
Tuvalu tropical; moderated by easterly trade winds (March to November); westerly gales and heavy rain (November to March)
Uganda tropical; generally rainy with two dry seasons (December to February, June to August); semiarid in northeast
Ukraine temperate continental; Mediterranean only on the southern Crimean coast; precipitation disproportionately distributed, highest in west and north, lesser in east and southeast; winters vary from cool along the Black Sea to cold farther inland; summers are warm across the greater part of the country, hot in the south
United Arab Emirates desert; cooler in eastern mountains
United Kingdom temperate; moderated by prevailing southwest winds over the North Atlantic Current; more than one-half of the days are overcast
United States mostly temperate, but tropical in Hawaii and Florida, arctic in Alaska, semiarid in the great plains west of the Mississippi River, and arid in the Great Basin of the southwest; low winter temperatures in the northwest are ameliorated occasionally in January and February by warm chinook winds from the eastern slopes of the Rocky Mountains
United States Pacific Island Wildlife Refuges Baker, Howland, and Jarvis Islands: equatorial; scant rainfall, constant wind, burning sun Johnston Atoll and Kingman Reef: tropical, but generally dry; consistent northeast trade winds with little seasonal temperature variation Midway Islands: subtropical with cool, moist winters (December to February) and warm, dry summers (May to October); moderated by prevailing easterly winds; most of the 1,067 mm (42 in) of annual rainfall occurs during the winter Palmyra Atoll: equatorial, hot; located within the low pressure area of the Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ) where the northeast and southeast trade winds meet, it is extremely wet with between 4,000-5,000 mm (160-200 in) of rainfall each year
Uruguay warm temperate; freezing temperatures almost unknown
Uzbekistan mostly midlatitude desert, long, hot summers, mild winters; semiarid grassland in east
Vanuatu tropical; moderated by southeast trade winds from May to October; moderate rainfall from November to April; may be affected by cyclones from December to April
Venezuela tropical; hot, humid; more moderate in highlands
Vietnam tropical in south; monsoonal in north with hot, rainy season (May to September) and warm, dry season (October to March)
Virgin Islands subtropical, tempered by easterly trade winds, relatively low humidity, little seasonal temperature variation; rainy season September to November
Wake Island tropical
Wallis and Futuna tropical; hot, rainy season (November to April); cool, dry season (May to October); rains 2,500-3,000 mm per year (80% humidity); average temperature 26.6 degrees C
West Bank temperate; temperature and precipitation vary with altitude, warm to hot summers, cool to mild winters
Western Sahara hot, dry desert; rain is rare; cold offshore air currents produce fog and heavy dew
World a wide equatorial band of hot and humid tropical climates - bordered north and south by subtropical temperate zones - that separate two large areas of cold and dry polar climates
Yemen mostly desert; hot and humid along west coast; temperate in western mountains affected by seasonal monsoon; extraordinarily hot, dry, harsh desert in east
Zambia tropical; modified by altitude; rainy season (October to April)
Zimbabwe tropical; moderated by altitude; rainy season (November to March)
This page was last updated on 18 December 2008
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@2060 Coastline (km)
Afghanistan 0 km (landlocked)
Akrotiri 56.3 km
Albania 362 km
Algeria 998 km
American Samoa 116 km
Andorra 0 km (landlocked)
Angola 1,600 km
Anguilla 61 km
Antarctica 17,968 km
Antigua and Barbuda 153 km
Arctic Ocean 45,389 km
Argentina 4,989 km
Armenia 0 km (landlocked)
Aruba 68.5 km
Ashmore and Cartier Islands 74.1 km
Atlantic Ocean 111,866 km
Australia 25,760 km
Austria 0 km (landlocked)
Azerbaijan 0 km (landlocked); note - Azerbaijan borders the Caspian Sea (713 km)
Bahamas, The 3,542 km
Bahrain 161 km
Bangladesh 580 km
Barbados 97 km
Belarus 0 km (landlocked)
Belgium 66.5 km
Belize 386 km
Benin 121 km
Bermuda 103 km
Bhutan 0 km (landlocked)
Bolivia 0 km (landlocked)
Bosnia and Herzegovina 20 km
Botswana 0 km (landlocked)
Bouvet Island 29.6 km
Brazil 7,491 km
British Indian Ocean Territory 698 km
British Virgin Islands 80 km
Brunei 161 km
Bulgaria 354 km
Burkina Faso 0 km (landlocked)
Burma 1,930 km
Burundi 0 km (landlocked)
Cambodia 443 km
Cameroon 402 km
Canada 202,080 km
Cape Verde 965 km
Cayman Islands 160 km
Central African Republic 0 km (landlocked)
Chad 0 km (landlocked)
Chile 6,435 km
China 14,500 km
Christmas Island 138.9 km
Clipperton Island 11.1 km
Cocos (Keeling) Islands 26 km
Colombia 3,208 km (Caribbean Sea 1,760 km, North Pacific Ocean 1,448 km)
Comoros 340 km
Congo, Democratic Republic of the 37 km
Congo, Republic of the 169 km
Cook Islands 120 km
Coral Sea Islands 3,095 km
Costa Rica 1,290 km
Cote d'Ivoire 515 km
Croatia 5,835 km (mainland 1,777 km, islands 4,058 km)
Cuba 3,735 km
Cyprus 648 km
Czech Republic 0 km (landlocked)
Denmark 7,314 km
Dhekelia 27.5 km
Djibouti 314 km
Dominica 148 km
Dominican Republic 1,288 km
Ecuador 2,237 km
Egypt 2,450 km
El Salvador 307 km
Equatorial Guinea 296 km
Eritrea 2,234 km (mainland on Red Sea 1,151 km, islands in Red Sea 1,083 km)
Estonia 3,794 km