Geography of Aruba

Aruba is an island in the south of the Caribbean in the Caribbean Sea. It is westernmost island of the ABC Islands and of the Leeward Antilles. It is located 25 km north of the coast of Venezuela and 68 km northwest of Curaçao. The island has a total area of 193 km2 (75 sq mi) and a coast line of 68.5 km (42.6 mi). Mount Jamanota of 188 m (617 ft) is the highest point.

Aruba
Satellite image of Aruba
Aruba
Aruba
Aruba
Geography
LocationCaribbean
Coordinates12°30′N 69°58′W
ArchipelagoLeeward Islands, Lesser Antilles
Administration
Additional information
Time zone
Arikok National Park
Area34 km2 (13 sq mi)
Established2000
WebsiteArikok National Park in Aruba

Bubali Pond Bird Sanctuary in Aruba
Area0.2 km2 (0.077 sq mi)
WebsiteBubali Pond Bird Sanctuary in Aruba

Het Spaans Lagoen
Ramsar Site, Wetland of International Importance
Area0.7 km2 (0.27 sq mi)
Established1980
WebsiteHet Spaans Lagoen in Aruba

Politically, Aruba is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. Oranjestad is the largest settlement with a population of 32,748.

Geography

Aruba's terrain is mostly flat with a few hills. There are some little ways of vegetation or outstanding physical features and no inland water. Aruba's best-known geographical feature is its white-sand beaches, which are the basis of an active tourism industry that is the mainstay of the island's economy.

Geology
Main article: Geology of Aruba

Aruba is situated on the Caribbean Tectonic Plate. Aruba, as well as the rest of the ABC islands and also Trinidad and Tobago, lies on the continental shelf of South America, and is thus geologically considered to lie entirely in South America.

The core of the island is made up of Turonian submarine and subaerial basalts which were formed in the Caribbean large igneous province. These basalts were intruded by a pluton shortly after their eruption. The shore areas are mainly limestone that capped hills and ridges, with cliffs on the northern and northeastern coasts and coral reefs on the southern coast.

Mountains and hills
See also: Hooiberg and Mount Jamanota

Aruba's terrain is almost entirely flat. Rock formations characterize the interior of the island. The two most known rock formations are Ayo Rock Formations and Casibari, both are tourist attractions.

Along the northern coast it is more hilly, especially in the Arikok National Park. The highest elevation, known as Mount Jamanota, is only 188 m (617 ft) above sea level and the Arikok itself is 186 m (610 ft). The Hooiberg is 165 m (541 ft). While the Hooiberg is not the highest point on the island, it does look so, because of the flat surroundings it lies in. The Hooiberg can be seen from nearly every point of the island and is so known it has its on place on the Coat of arms of Aruba.

Coast and beaches

Aruba has three deepwater harbors located at Oranjestad, Aruba-Oranjestad, Barcadera, and San Nicolaas. The southern coastal area is known for its white-sand beaches and the calm waters surrounding Aruba are clear, making it a popular tourist destination. While its northern coast is rocky and mostly formed by corral plateaus with many small sandy bay like openings called 'Bocas', Papiamento for mouths. The sea is rough and dark blue compared with the southern coastal areas and swimming here is discouraged.

Climate

Aruba’s hot semi-arid climate (Köppen BSh) varies little seasonally, with an average annual temperature of 28.1 °C (82.6 °F), varying from about 26.7 °C (80.1 °F) in January to 40 °C (104.0 °F) in September.

The rainy season occurs between October and December, but exhibits very high variability due to the powerful influence of the Southern Oscillation.[1] During strong El Niño years like 1911/1912, 1930/1931, 1982/1983 and 1997/1998 annual (fiscal year) rainfall can be as little as 150 millimetres or 6 inches, while in contrast, as much as 1,000 millimetres or 39 inches may fall during a strong La Niña year like 1933/1934, 1970/1971, 1988/1989, 1999/2000 or 2010/2011. The highest monthly totals during these La Niña events are between 350 and 400 millimetres (14 and 16 in).

Most rain brought by the prevailing easterly winds of the region falls on the Windward Islands of the Lesser Antilles, leaving Aruba in a rain shadow. Rainfall averages 472 mm (18.6 in) or less annually, and the island’s residents rely on one of the world’s largest desalination plants for most of their drinking water.

Climate data for Oranjestad, Aruba (1981–2010, extremes 1951–2010)
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 32.5
(90.5)		 33.0
(91.4)		 33.9
(93.0)		 34.4
(93.9)		 34.9
(94.8)		 35.2
(95.4)		 35.3
(95.5)		 36.1
(97.0)		 36.5
(97.7)		 35.4
(95.7)		 35.0
(95.0)		 34.8
(94.6)		 36.5
(97.7)
Average high °C (°F) 30.0
(86.0)		 30.4
(86.7)		 30.9
(87.6)		 31.5
(88.7)		 32.0
(89.6)		 32.2
(90.0)		 32.0
(89.6)		 32.6
(90.7)		 32.7
(90.9)		 32.1
(89.8)		 31.3
(88.3)		 30.4
(86.7)		 31.5
(88.7)
Daily mean °C (°F) 26.7
(80.1)		 26.8
(80.2)		 27.2
(81.0)		 27.9
(82.2)		 28.5
(83.3)		 28.7
(83.7)		 28.6
(83.5)		 29.1
(84.4)		 29.2
(84.6)		 28.7
(83.7)		 28.1
(82.6)		 27.2
(81.0)		 28.1
(82.6)
Average low °C (°F) 24.5
(76.1)		 24.7
(76.5)		 25.0
(77.0)		 25.8
(78.4)		 26.5
(79.7)		 26.7
(80.1)		 26.4
(79.5)		 26.8
(80.2)		 26.9
(80.4)		 26.4
(79.5)		 25.8
(78.4)		 25.0
(77.0)		 25.9
(78.6)
Record low °C (°F) 21.3
(70.3)		 20.6
(69.1)		 21.4
(70.5)		 21.5
(70.7)		 21.8
(71.2)		 22.7
(72.9)		 21.2
(70.2)		 21.3
(70.3)		 22.1
(71.8)		 21.9
(71.4)		 22.0
(71.6)		 20.5
(68.9)		 20.5
(68.9)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 39.3
(1.55)		 20.6
(0.81)		 8.7
(0.34)		 11.6
(0.46)		 16.3
(0.64)		 18.7
(0.74)		 31.7
(1.25)		 25.8
(1.02)		 45.5
(1.79)		 77.8
(3.06)		 94.0
(3.70)		 81.8
(3.22)		 471.8
(18.58)
Average precipitation days (≥ 1.0 mm) 8.4 5.0 1.8 1.9 2.2 2.8 4.9 4.3 3.9 7.4 10.6 11.4 64.6
Average relative humidity (%) 77.5 76.1 75.7 77.1 77.9 77.4 77.8 76.2 76.8 78.6 79.1 78.4 77.4
Source: Departmento Meteorologico Aruba,[2] (extremes)[3]

Human geography

The island is divided into eight regions:

References
  1. Dewar, Robert E. and Wallis, James R; ‘Geographical patterning of interannual rainfall variability in the tropics and near tropics: An L-moments approach’; in Journal of Climate, 12; pp. 3457-3466
  2. "Summary Climatological Normals 1981–2010" (PDF). Departamento Meteorologico Aruba. Retrieved 15 October 2012.
  3. "Climate Data Aruba". Departamento Meteorologico Aruba. Retrieved 15 October 2012.
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