Geography of Monaco
| Geography of Monaco | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Continent | Europe |
| Region | Western Europe |
| Coordinates | 43°44′N 7°24′E / 43.733°N 7.4°E |
| Area | Ranked 248th 1.98 km2 (0.76 sq mi) 99.99% land 0.010000000000005 % water |
| Borders | France: 4.4 km (2.7 mi) |
| Highest point | Chemin des Révoires: 161 m (528 ft) |
| Lowest point | Mediterranean Sea: 0 m (0 ft) |
| Longest river | Saint-Jean: 0.12 km (0.075 miles) |
| Largest lake | Fontvieille: 0.5 ha (1.24 acres) |
The Principality of Monaco is a sovereign city state, with 5 Quartiers, 10 Wards,1 located on the French Riviera in the western part of Europe.2 Bordered by France on three sides, with one side bordering the Mediterranean Sea, its center is about 16 km (9.9 mi) from Italy, and is only 15 km (9.3 mi) south east of Nice, France.3 Its area is 1.98 km2 (0.76 sq mi) or 198 ha (490 acres), with a population of 35,986, making Monaco the second smallest and the most densely populated country in the world, as of 2012.4 Having a land border of only 4.4 km (2.7 mi), a coastline of 4.1 km (2.5 mi), a maritime claim that extends 22.2 kilometres (12.0 nmi; 13.8 mi), and a width that varies between 1.7 km (1.1 mi) and 349 meters (382 yards), Monaco is unique.56 The highest point in the country is a narrow pathway named Chemin des Révoires on the slopes of Mont Agel, in the Les Révoires district, it is 161 m (528 ft) above sea level.7 Monaco's most populated Quartier is Monte Carlo, and the most populated Ward is Larvotto/Bas Moulins.8 After a recent expansion of Port Hercules,9 Monaco's total area is 2.05 km2 (0.79 sq mi),10 with new plans to extend the district of Fontvieille, with land reclaimed from the Mediterranean Sea.1112 There are two ports in Monaco, Hercules and Fontvieille, as well the neighboring French port of Cap d'Ail.13 Monaco's only natural resource is fishing,14 with almost the entirely country being an urban area, Monaco lacks any sort of commercial agriculture industry.15 Monaco has a warm-summer Mediterranean climate, which is influenced by the oceanic climate and the humid subtropical climate.16
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Suburbs and features
Monaco is the second smallest country (by size) in the world; only Vatican City is smaller.17 Monaco is also the world's second smallest monarchy,18 and is the most densely populated country in the world.19 The state consists of only one municipality (commune).20 There is no geographical distinction between the State and City of Monaco, although responsibilities of the government (state-level) and of the municipality (city-level) are different.21 According to the constitution of 1911, the Principality was subdivided into three municipalities:
- Monaco (Monaco-Ville), the old city on a rocky promontory extending into the Mediterranean, known as the Rock of Monaco, or simply Le Rocher (the Rock), where the palace is located;
- Monte Carlo, the principal residential and resort area with the Monte Carlo Casino in the east and northeast;
- La Condamine, the southwestern section including the port area, Port Hercule.
The municipalities were merged into one in 1917, after accusations that the government was acting according to the motto "divide and conquer," and they were accorded the status of Wards or Quartiers thereafter.22
- Fontvieille was added as fourth ward, a newly constructed area reclaimed from the sea (in the 1970s) also a new district inside of Fontvieille is planned;
- Moneghetti became the fifth ward, created from a part of La Condamine;
- Larvotto became the sixth ward, created from a part of Monte Carlo;
- La Rousse/Saint Roman (including Le Ténao) became the seventh ward, also created from a part of Monte Carlo.
Subsequently, three additional wards were created:
- Saint Michel, from a part of Monte Carlo;
- La Colle, from a part of La Condamine;
- Les Révoires, from a part of La Condamine.
Quartiers
The four traditional Quartiers of Monaco are: Monaco-Ville, La Condamine, Monte Carlo and Fontvieille.2324 However, the suburb of Moneghetti, the high-level part of La Condamine, is generally seen today as an effective fifth Quartier of the Monaco, having a very distinct atmosphere and topography when compared with low-level La Condamine.25
Wards
Currently Monaco is subdivided into ten Wards, with their official numbers; either Fontvieille II or Le Portier, would become the affective eleventh ward, if built:2627
| No. | Ward | Area (km²) |
Population (Census of 2008) |
Density km2 |
City Blocks (îlots) |
Remarks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Former municipality of Monaco | ||||||
| 05 | Monaco-Ville | 0.19 | 1,034 | 5597 | 19 | Old City |
| Former municipality of Monte Carlo | ||||||
| 01 | Monte Carlo/Spélugues (Bd. Des Moulins-Av. de la Madone) | 0.30 | 3,834 | 10779 | 20 | Casino and resort area |
| 02 | La Rousse/Saint Roman (Annonciade-Château Périgord) | 0.13 | 3,223 | 30633 | 17 | Northeast area, includes Le Ténao |
| 03 | Larvotto/Bas Moulins (Larvotto-Bd Psse Grace) | 0.34 | 5,443 | 16570 | 17 | Eastern beach area |
| 10 | Saint Michel (Psse Charlotte-Park Palace) | 0.16 | 3,907 | 26768 | 24 | Central residential area |
| Former municipality of La Condamine | ||||||
| 04 | La Condamine | 0.28 | 3,947 | 16213 | 28 | Northwest port area |
| 07 | La Colle (Plati-Pasteur-Bd Charles III) | 0.11 | 2,829 | 15005 | 15 | On the western border with Cap d'Ail |
| 08 | Les Révoires (Hector Otto-Honoré Labande) | 0.09 | 2,545 | 33203 | 11 | Contains the Jardin Exotique de Monaco |
| 09 | Moneghetti/ Bd de Belgique (Bd Rainier III-Bd de Belgique) | 0.10 | 3,003 | 28051 | 17 | Central-north residential area |
| New land reclaimed from the sea | ||||||
| 06 | Fontvieille | 0.35 | 3,901 | 10156 | 10 | Started 1981 |
| 11(1) | Fontvieille II | 0.05(2) | – | - | 4(3) | Proposed by Prince Albert II after Le Portier was shelved |
| 11(1) | Le Portier | 0.12(2) | – | - | 6(3) | Plans put on hold by Prince Albert II in 2009 |
| 10 | Monaco28 | 2.05 | 35,352 | 16217 | 178 | |
| (1) Number not included in the total, as it is only proposed | ||||||
| (2) Area not included in the total, as it is only proposed | ||||||
| (3) City blocks (îlots) not included in the total, as it is only proposed | ||||||
Note: for statistical purposes, the Wards of Monaco are further subdivided into 178 city blocks (îlots), which are comparable to the census blocks in the United States.29
Climate
See also: Monaco#Climate
Monaco has a warm-summer Mediterranean climate (Köppen climate classification: Csa), which is influenced by the oceanic climate and the humid subtropical climate. As a result, it has warm, dry summers and mild, rainy winters.30 Cool and rainy interludes can interrupt the dry summer season, the average length of which is also shorter. Summer afternoons are infrequently hot (indeed, temperatures > 30 °C / 86 °F are rare) as the atmosphere is temperate because of constant sea breezes. On the other hand, the nights are very mild, this being due to the fairly high temperature of the sea in summer. Generally, temperatures do not drop below 20 °C (68 °F) in this season. In the winter, frosts and snowfalls are extremely rare and generally occur once or twice every ten years.
| Climate data for Monaco | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Average high °C (°F) | 12.3 (54.1) |
12.5 (54.5) |
14.0 (57.2) |
16.1 (61.0) |
19.4 (66.9) |
23.0 (73.4) |
25.8 (78.4) |
25.9 (78.6) |
23.8 (74.8) |
19.9 (67.8) |
16.1 (61.0) |
13.4 (56.1) |
18.5 (65.3) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 10.2 (50.4) |
10.4 (50.7) |
11.8 (53.2) |
13.9 (57.0) |
17.1 (62.8) |
20.8 (69.4) |
23.5 (74.3) |
23.7 (74.7) |
21.6 (70.9) |
17.8 (64.0) |
14.0 (57.2) |
11.4 (52.5) |
16.4 (61.5) |
| Average low °C (°F) | 8.1 (46.6) |
8.2 (46.8) |
9.6 (49.3) |
11.6 (52.9) |
14.8 (58.6) |
18.5 (65.3) |
21.2 (70.2) |
21.5 (70.7) |
19.3 (66.7) |
15.6 (60.1) |
11.9 (53.4) |
9.3 (48.7) |
14.1 (57.4) |
| Precipitation mm (inches) | 82.7 (3.256) |
76.4 (3.008) |
70.5 (2.776) |
62.2 (2.449) |
48.6 (1.913) |
36.9 (1.453) |
15.6 (0.614) |
31.3 (1.232) |
54.4 (2.142) |
108.2 (4.26) |
104.2 (4.102) |
77.5 (3.051) |
768.5 (30.256) |
| Avg. precipitation days | 6.8 | 6.4 | 6.1 | 6.3 | 5.2 | 4.1 | 1.9 | 3.1 | 4.0 | 5.8 | 7.0 | 6.0 | 62.7 |
| Mean monthly sunshine hours | 148.8 | 152.6 | 201.5 | 228.0 | 269.7 | 297.0 | 341.0 | 306.9 | 240.0 | 204.6 | 156.0 | 142.6 | 2,668.7 |
| Source: Monaco website16 | |||||||||||||
Location
43°44′N 7°24′E / 43.733°N 7.4°E
Extreme points
The following points are the extreme points on land, and do not include locations in Monaco's coastal waters.
- North: 1, Avenue Varavilla, (43°45′07″N 07°26′13″E / 43.75194°N 7.43694°E)
- South: Monaco Heliport, (43°43′29″N 07°25′05″E / 43.72472°N 7.41806°E)
- East: Near the Monte-Carlo Sporting Club, (43°44′50″N 07°26′23″E / 43.74722°N 7.43972°E)
- West: Near the southern end of Boulevard du Jardin Exotique, (43°43′48″N 07°24′33″E / 43.73°N 7.40917°E)
Altitude
- Highest point: At the upper end of the Chemin des Révoires, 161 m (528 ft)
- Lowest point: Mediterranean Sea, 0 m (0 ft)
Also see
References
- ^ http://monaco.me/monaco/monaco-districts/
- ^ http://wikitravel.org/en/Monaco
- ^ https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/mn.html
- ^ http://en.wikipedia.org /wiki/List_of_sovereign_states_and_dependent_territories_by_population_density
- ^ http://geography.about.com/library/cia/blcmonaco.htm
- ^ http://visitmonaco.com/us/About-Monaco/Geography/Monaco%27s-Areas
- ^ http://www.archeo-alpi-maritimi.com/cheminsanciensturbie.php
- ^ http://cloud.gouv.mc/devwww/wwwnew.nsf/e89a6190e96cbd1fc1256f7f005dbe6e/64a1643c86f9f661c12575ae004cc473/$FILE/ATTW9ZI8/Recensement2008_p8-9.pdf
- ^ http://cloud.gouv.mc/devwww/wwwnew.nsf/1909$/1ddf179c1910b5fbc1256fc60036dcc6gb?OpenDocument&Count=10000&InfoChap=%20Files%20and%20Reports&InfoSujet=2002%20Archives%20-%20Extension%20of%20%22La%20Condamine%20Port%22&6Gb
- ^ http://cloud.gouv.mc/devwww/wwwnew.nsf/e89a6190e96cbd1fc1256f7f005dbe6e/64a1643c86f9f661c12575ae004cc473/$FILE/ATTW9ZI8/Recensement2008_p8-9.pdf
- ^ http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/monaco/6894991/Monaco-to-build-into-the-sea-to-create-more-space.html
- ^ http://cloud.gouv.mc/devwww/wwwnew.nsf/1909$/3952ae296ac3807cc1256f73002bd426gb?OpenDocument&6Gb&Count=10000
- ^ http://www.ports-monaco.com/lang-en.html
- ^ www.youtube.com/watch?v=nyIYViMSlOE
- ^ http://geography.about.com/od/monacomaps/a/monacogeography.htm
- ^ a b "Climatological information for Monaco" - Monaco website
- ^ http://triphobby.blogspot.com/2011/01/monaco-second-smallest-country-in-world.html
- ^ http://www.worldmarineguide.com/country/monaco
- ^ http://geography.about.com/od/populationgeography/a/popdensity.htm
- ^ http://wiki.answers.com/Q/Is_Monaco_a_city-state_of_a_country
- ^ http://www.monaco-consulate.com/index.php/about/history/
- ^ http://madmonaco.blogspot.com/p/history.html
- ^ http://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/economies/Europe/Monaco.html
- ^ http://www.websters-online-dictionary.org/definitions/Larvotto
- ^ Tourist Board official website.
- ^ http://statoids.com/umc.html
- ^ http://www.cityoutmonaco.com/monaco-property/articles/monacoprince
- ^ http://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=fr&u=http://www.gouv.mc/&ei=R1BlT4efCoPY0QHvxMyyCA&sa=X&oi=translate&ct=result&resnum=4&sqi=2&ved=0CEIQ7gEwAw&prev=/search%3Fq%3Dmonaco%2Bgovernment%26hl%3Den%26safe%3Doff%26biw%3D1366%26bih%3D704%26prmd%3Dimvns
- ^ http://cloud.gouv.mc/devwww/wwwnew.nsf/e89a6190e96cbd1fc1256f7f005dbe6e/64a1643c86f9f661c12575ae004cc473/$FILE/ATTW9ZI8/Recensement2008_p8-9.pdf
- ^ http://www.worldtravelguide.net/monaco/weather-climate-geography
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