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The U.S. Virgin Islands are a group of several dozen islands and cays located in the Caribbean, about southeast of Florida, north of Venezuela, east of Puerto Rico, and immediately west and south of the British Virgin Islands. The U.S. Virgin Islands lie near the boundary of the North American Plate and the Caribbean Plate, roughly south of the Puerto Rico Trench and near the Anegada Passage, a key shipping lane. Together with the British Virgin Islands, Vieques, and Culebra, they make up the Virgin Islands archipelago. The hilly, volcanic islands of Saint Thomas (〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=VInow: Virgin Islands Geography )〕) and Saint John (〔) border the North Atlantic Ocean to the north and the Caribbean Sea to the south. The larger island of Saint Croix (〔) lies to the south across the Virgin Islands Trough and is entirely in the Caribbean Sea. Charlotte Amalie, Saint Thomas is one of the best natural, deepwater harbors in the Caribbean. The U.S. Virgin Islands have many well-known beaches, including Magens Bay (Saint Thomas) and Trunk Bay (Saint John), and coral reefs, including the Virgin Islands Coral Reef National Monument and the Buck Island Reef National Monument. More than half of Saint John and nearly all of Hassel Island are owned by the U.S. National Park Service. Crown Mountain, on Saint Thomas, is the highest point in the U.S. Virgin Islands. Sea level is the lowest. == Statistics == Geographic coordinates (capital Charlotte Amalie): Map references: Central America and the Caribbean Islands: Saint Croix, Saint Thomas, Saint John, Water Island, many other islands Area: :''total:'' 738 sq mi (1,910 km²) :''land:'' 134 sq mi (346 km²) :''water:'' 604 sq mi (1,564 km²) :''Comparative area'': twice the size of Washington, D.C. Land boundaries: 0 mi (0 km) Coastline: Maritime claims: :''exclusive economic zone:'' :''territorial sea:'' Terrain: :mostly hilly to rugged and mountainous with little level land Elevation extremes: :''lowest point:'' Caribbean Sea 0 ft (0 m) :''highest point:'' Crown Mountain (Saint Thomas) 1555 ft (474 m) Natural resources: sun, sand, sea, surf Land use: :''arable land:'' 5.71% :''permanent crops:'' 2.86% :''other:'' 91.43% (2005) Irrigated land: 1 km² Natural hazards: several hurricanes in recent years; frequent and severe droughts and floods; occasional earthquakes; rare tsunamis Environment—current issues: lack of natural freshwater resources 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア(Wikipedia)』 ■ウィキペディアで「Geography of the United States Virgin Islands」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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