Geography of Israel

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Israel is located at the eastern end of the Mediterranean Sea. It is bounded on the north by Lebanon, on the northeast by Syria, on the east and southeast by Jordan, on the southwest by Egypt, and on the west by the Mediterranean Sea. Before June 1967, the area composing Israel (resulting from the armistice lines of 1949 and 1950) was about 20,700 km² (8,000 mi²), which included 445 km² (172 mi²) of inland waters. Thus Israel was roughly the size of the state of New Jersey, stretching 424 km (263 mi) from north to south. Its width ranged from 114 km (71 mi) to, at its narrowest point, 15 km (9.0 mi). In the June 1967 War, Israel captured territories totaling an additional 7,099 km² (2,743 mi²). These territories include the West Bank, 5,879 km² (2,270 mi²); East Jerusalem (annexed, according Israeli law), 70 km² (27 mi²); and the Golan Heights (de facto annexation), 1,150 km² (444 mi²).

Israel on the world map

Geographic coordinates: 31°30′N 34°45′E / 31.500°N 34.750°E / 31.500; 34.750

Physical geography

Geology

Israel is divided east-west by a mountain range running north to south along the coast. Jerusalem sits on the top of this ridge, east of which lies the Dead Sea graben (an elongated, relatively depressed crustal unit bounded by faults on both sides).

The numerous limestone and sandstone layers of the Israeli mountains allow the water to pour from the west flank to the east. Several springs have formed along the Dead Sea, each an oasis, most notably the oasis' at Ein Gedi and Ein Bokek where settlements have now developed.

Israel also has a number of large limestone karsts. These caves are around comfortable 20°C warm, although only one is open to the public.

Very common all around the country are small natural caves and abris. These have been used for thousands of years historically as shelter, housing, storage rooms, barns and churches.

Mountains and hills

Panoramic view of the Golan Heights

Rivers and lakes

Israel has the Jordan River running along its border with Jordan. The Jordan River Eventually empties into the Dead Sea which is the lowest point in the earth and most saltiest body of water in the world that you can even float in it. Israel also has the Sea of Galilee which is really a lake. On the western side of the lake there is a city called Tiberas, a resort town, where it is a good place to check out.

Panoramia of Sea of Galilee

Artificial waterways

There are no artificial water ways in Israel. The idea of channel that will connect the Mediterranean and the Dead Seas or the Red and Dead Seas was discussed and dismissed.

Coastline

Israel's coastline runs north to south from the border of Lebanon to the Gaza Strip very smoothly with spetacular beaches along the way. The smooth coastline is only interrupted in Haifa where it has a curve.

Topography

Annotated satellite image of Israel and the south-eastern Mediterranean region

Israel is divided into four main geographical regions: the Mediterranean coastal plain, the central hills, the Jordan Rift Valley, and the Negev Desert.

Mediterranean Coastal Plain

Main article: Israeli Coastal Plain

The Coastal Plain stretches from the Lebanese border in the north to Gaza in the south, interrupted only by Cape Carmel at Haifa Bay. It is about forty kilometers wide at Gaza and narrows toward the north to about five kilometers at the Lebanese border. The region is fertile and humid (historically malarial) and is known for its citrus and viniculture. The plain is traversed by several short streams, of which only two, the Yarqon and Qishon, have permanent water flows.

The Central Hills

East of the coastal plain lies the central highland region. In the north of this region lie the mountains and hills of Upper Galilee and Lower Galilee; farther to the south are the Samarian Hills with numerous small, fertile valleys; and south of Jerusalem are the mainly barren hills of Judea. The central highlands average 610 meters (2,000 ft) in height and reach their highest elevation at Har Meron, at 1,208 meters (3,963 ft), in Galilee near Zefat (Safad). Several valleys cut across the highlands roughly from east to west; the largest is the Yizreel or Jezreel Valley (also known as the Plain of Esdraelon), which stretches forty-eight kilometers (30 mi) from Haifa southeast to the valley of the Jordan River, and is nineteen kilometers across at its widest point.

Jordan Rift Valley

Main article: Jordan Rift Valley

East of the central highlands lies the Jordan Rift Valley, which is a small part of the 6,500-kilometer-long (4,040 mi) Syrian-East African Rift. In Israel the Rift Valley is dominated by the Jordan River, the Sea of Galilee (an important freshwater source also known as Lake Tiberias and to Israelis as Lake Kinneret), and the Dead Sea. The Jordan, Israel's largest river (322 km / 200 mi), originates in the Dan, Baniyas, and Hasbani rivers near Mount Hermon in the Anti-Lebanon Mountains and flows south through the drained Hula Basin into the freshwater Lake Tiberias. Lake Tiberias is 165 square kilometers (63.7 mi²) in size and, depending on the season and rainfall, is at about 213 meters (700 ft) below sea level. With a water capacity estimated at 3 cubic kilometers (106 billion cubic feet), it serves as the principal reservoir of the National Water Carrier (also known as the Kinneret-Negev Conduit). The Jordan River continues its course from the southern end of Lake Tiberias (forming the boundary between the West Bank and Jordan) to its terminus in the highly saline Dead Sea. The Dead Sea is 1,020 square kilometers (393 mi²) in size and, at 399 meters (1,309 ft) below sea level, is the lowest point in the world. South of the Dead Sea, the Rift Valley continues in the Nahal HaArava (Wadi al Arabah in Arabic), which has no permanent water flow, for 170 kilometers (106 mi) to the Gulf of Aqaba.

Negev Desert

Main article: Negev

The Negev Desert comprises approximately 12,000 square kilometers (4,600 mi²), more than half of Israel's total land area. Geographically it is an extension of the Sinai Desert, forming a rough triangle with its base in the north near Beersheba (aka Beersheva), the Dead Sea, and the southern Judean Hills, and it has its apex in the southern tip of the country at Eilat. Topographically, it parallels the other regions of the country, with lowlands in the west, hills in the central portion, and the Nahal HaArava as its eastern border.

Elevation extremes

  • Lowest point is at the Dead Sea -408 m ( -1,339 ft). This is also the lowest point on land on the Earth.
  • Highest point is at Mount Meron at 3,963' (3,963 ft) in the Upper Galilee region near Safed.

Climate

Topographic map of Israel and the south-eastern Mediterranean

Israel has a Mediterranean climate characterized by long, hot, rainless summers and relatively short, cool, rainy winters. The climate is determined by Israel's location between the subtropical aridity of the Sahara and the Arabian deserts, and the subtropical humidity of the Levant or eastern Mediterranean. The climate conditions are highly variable within the state and modified locally by altitude, latitude, and the proximity to the Mediterranean sea.

January is the coldest month with average temperatures ranging from 6°C to 15°C (43°F to 59°F), and July and August are the hottest months at 22°C to 33°C (72°F to 91°F) on average across the state. Summers are very humid along the Mediterranean coast but dry in the central highlands, the Rift Valley, and the Negev Desert. In Eilat, the desert city, summer daytime-temperatures are often the highest in the state, at times reaching 44°C to 46°C (111°F to 115°F). More than 70 percent of the average rainfall in Israel falls between November and March; June through September are usually rainless. Rainfall is unevenly distributed, decreasing sharply as one moves southward. In the extreme south, rainfall averages near 30 millimeters (1.2 in) annually; in the north, average annual rainfall exceeds 900 millimeters (35.5 in). Rainfall varies from season to season and from year to year, particularly in the Negev Desert. Precipitation is often concentrated in violent storms, causing erosion and flooding. In winter, it may take the form of snow at the higher elevations of the central highlands, including Jerusalem. Mount Hermon has seasonal snow which covers all three of its peaks for most of the year in winter and spring. The areas of the country most cultivated are those that receive more than 300 millimeters (12 in) of rainfall annually; about one-third of the country is cultivable.

Thunderstorms and hail are common throughout the rainy season and waterspouts occasionally hit the Mediterranean coast, capable of causing only minor damage. However, supercell thunderstorms and a true F2 tornado hit the Western Galilee April 4 2006, causing significant damage and 75 injuries.

Environmental concerns

Human geography

In 2006 the total population of the Israeli inhabited places is estimated at 7.1 million. Depending on the definitions applied, there were three to five metropolises, which included some of Israel's 71 cities and hundreds of towns.

Among Israel's villages, the kibbutzim and moshavim are unique types of settlement to Israel. There are 242 Israeli settlements and civilian land use sites in the West Bank, 42 in the Golan Heights, and 29 in East Jerusalem (February 2002 est.);

Panorama of Kibbutz Barkai in the Wadi Ara region

Demographics

Further information: Demographics of Israel

Israel is an incredibly diverse society made up predominantly of Jews and Arab ethnic groups.

Urban geography

Israeli metropolises are Tel Aviv, Haifa and Beer Sheva and possibly also Jerusalem [1] and Nazareth [2].

In 2005 there are 71 Israeli cities, including 3 Israeli cities in the West Bank (see list of cities in Israel). The status of city is awarded by the Israeli minister of internal affairs to settlements that apply for this status and usually pass a threshold of 20,000, although the minister can give and in some cases does give out the status beforehand.

Israeli towns of 5.000 residents and more are incorporated as local councils. Most towns between 2,000 and 5,000 residents are local committees within regional councils, although exceptions exist.

Panorama showing north Tel Aviv (right) and Ramat Gan (left) taken from Tel Aviv University
See also: List of regional councils in Israel

Rural geography

Israel's rural space includes several unique kinds of settlements, notably the moshav and the kibbutz. Originally these were collective and cooperative settlements respectively. Over time, the degree of cooperation in these settlements has reduced and in several of them the cooperative structure was dismantled altogether. All rural settlements and many small towns (some of which are dubbed "rurban settlements") are incorporated in regional councils.

Political geography

Further information: Politics of Israel
  • Area:
    • Total: 20,770 km² (8,019 mi²)
    • Land: 20,330 km² (7,849 mi²)
    • Water: 440 km² (170 mi²)
  • Land boundaries:
  • Maritime claims:
    • Continental shelf: to depth of exploitation
    • Territorial sea: 12 nm (22.2 km)
  • Northernmost point - the tripoint with Syria and Lebanon, Golan Heights 1
  • Easternmost point - an unnamed location on the border with Syria 2
  • Southernmost point - the point at which the Israel-Egypt border enters the Gulf of Aqaba, east of Taba, Egypt
  • Westernmost point - the Egypt-Israel-Gaza tripoint, is Israel's westernmost point.
Beaches along the shores of Israel

Economic geography

Further information: Economy of Israel
Natural resources
Copper, phosphates, bromide, potash, clay, sand, sulfur, asphalt, manganese, small amounts of natural gas and crude oil
Land use
  • Arable land: 17.02%
  • Permanent crops: 4.17%
  • Other: 78.81% (1998 est.)
Irrigated land
1,990 km² or 768 mi² (1998 est.)

Sources

1 If the Golan Heights region is not considered part of Israel, then an unnamed location on the Lebanese border (the Blue Line), immediately to the north of Metulla, is Israel's northernmost point.

2 If the Golan Heights region is not considered part of Israel, then an unnamed location on the border with Syria west of Qela is Israel's easternmost point

Other geographic features

References

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