Geography & environment — North Korea
Location, land area, terrain, climate, and natural resources.
Profile updated 2026-06-02
⚡ Geography & environment at a glance
Location, land area, terrain, climate, and natural resources. Key figure for North Korea: Asia
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Location & size
- Geographic Location
Asia
- Geographic Coordinates
40 00 N, 127 00 E
- Total Area
46,540 Square Miles 120,538 Square Kilometers
- Land Area
46,490 Square Miles 120,408 Square Kilometers
- Water Area
50 Square Miles 130 Square Kilometers
- Land Boundaries
1,039 Miles 1,672 Kilometers
- Border Countries
China 1,416 km, South Korea 238 km, Russia 19 km
- Coastline
1,550 Miles 2,495 Kilometers
Physical geography
- Terrain
mostly hills and mountains separated by deep, narrow valleys; coastal plains wide in west, discontinuous in east
- Highest Point
2,744 Meters
- Highest Point Location
Paektu-san 2,744 m
- Lowest Point Location
Sea of Japan 0 m
- Natural Resources
coal, lead, tungsten, zinc, graphite, magnesite, iron ore, copper, gold, pyrites, salt, fluorspar, hydropower
- Irrigated Land
5,637 Square Miles 14,600 Square Kilometers
Climate & time
- Time Zone
UTC+9 (14 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time) time zone note: on 5 May 2018, North Korea reverted to UTC+9, the same time zone as South Korea
Climate
- Climate
temperate with rainfall concentrated in summer
- Terrain
mostly hills and mountains separated by deep, narrow valleys; coastal plains wide in west, discontinuous in east
- Location
Eastern Asia, northern half of the Korean Peninsula bordering the Korea Bay and the Sea of Japan, between China and South Korea
- Total Area
46,540 Square Miles 120,538 Square Kilometers
- Border Countries
China 1,416 km, South Korea 238 km, Russia 19 km
Environment
- Environment - Current Issues
- water pollution
- inadequate supplies of potable water
- water-borne disease
- deforestation
- soil erosion and degradation
- Environment - International Agreements
- party to: Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution signed,
- but not ratified: Law of the Sea