Geography & environment — Turkey
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 Turkey: Middle East
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Location & size
- Geographic Location
Middle East
- Geographic Coordinates
39 00 N, 35 00 E
- Total Area
302,533 Square Miles 783,562 Square Kilometers
- Land Area
297,155 Square Miles 769,632 Square Kilometers
- Water Area
5,378 Square Miles 13,930 Square Kilometers
- Land Boundaries
1,645 Miles 2,648 Kilometers
- Border Countries
Armenia 268 km, Azerbaijan 9 km, Bulgaria 240 km, Georgia 252 km, Greece 206 km, Iran 499 km, Iraq 352 km, Syria 822 km
- Coastline
4,474 Miles 7,200 Kilometers
Physical geography
- Terrain
- high central plateau (Anatolia)
- narrow coastal plain
- several mountain ranges
- Highest Point
5,166 Meters
- Highest Point Location
Mount Ararat 5,166 m
- Lowest Point Location
Mediterranean Sea 0 m
- Natural Resources
coal, iron ore, copper, chromium, antimony, mercury, gold, barite, borate, celestite (strontium), emery, feldspar, limestone, magnesite, marble, perlite, pumice, pyrites (sulfur), clay, arable land, hydropower
- Irrigated Land
20,618 Square Miles 53,400 Square Kilometers
Climate & time
- Time Zone
UTC+3 (8 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)
- Daylight saving time
+1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October
Climate
- Climate
The climate varies a great deal across Turkey. Precipitation is highest on the Black Sea, where, in Rize, an average of 98 inches of rain falls each year. Ankara averages only 14 inches (chiefly accumulating from November to May), and Antalya on the south coast gets about 28 inches. Istanbul has an average of 25 inches of annual precipitation. The plateau region has hot with very dry summers and temperatures in July that range from the mid-70s to the low 90s. The skies are almost always clear and cloudless during the day and nights are cool. Winters in this region are generally windy and cold (the mean temperature for January is 30°F). Around the Sea of Marmara and Istanbul, the average temperature is 83°F in July and 35°F in January. The south coast has long summers that are often hot and humid both night and day in the midsummer months (the average temperature in mid-August is 94°F), but it is very pleasant in spring and autumn. Winters in the south are usually fairly mild. The north coast Black Sea region tends to have cooler summers and warmer winters than the other coastal areas.
- Terrain
- high central plateau (Anatolia)
- narrow coastal plain
- several mountain ranges
- Location
Southeastern Europe and Southwestern Asia (that portion of Turkey west of the Bosporus is geographically part of Europe), bordering the Black Sea, between Bulgaria and Georgia, and bordering the Aegean Sea and the Mediterranean Sea, between Greece and Syria
- Total Area
302,533 Square Miles 783,562 Square Kilometers
- Border Countries
Armenia 268 km, Azerbaijan 9 km, Bulgaria 240 km, Georgia 252 km, Greece 206 km, Iran 499 km, Iraq 352 km, Syria 822 km
Environment
- Environment - Current Issues
- water pollution from dumping of chemicals and detergents
- air pollution, particularly in urban areas
- deforestation
- concern for oil spills from increasing Bosporus ship traffic
- Environment - International Agreements
- party to: Air Pollution, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed,
- but not ratified: Environmental Modification