Geography of Saudi Arabia

Overview

Saudi Arabia occupies about 80 per cent of the Arabian Peninsula, with a land area of approximately 2,149,690 square kilometres. It is the largest country in the Middle East and the fifth-largest in Asia.

Deserts

The interior is dominated by desert. The Rub' al Khali, or Empty Quarter, in the south is the largest continuous sand desert in the world, covering about 650,000 square kilometres. The An-Nafud desert lies in the north.

Mountains

The Sarawat Mountains run along the western side of the peninsula, parallel to the Red Sea coast. In the south-west they rise to over 3,000 metres at Jabal Sawda, the highest point in the country, in the Asir region.

Coasts

Saudi Arabia has a long coastline on the Red Sea to the west and a shorter one on the Persian Gulf to the east. It is the only country with coastlines on both bodies of water.

Climate

The climate is predominantly hot and arid, with very high summer temperatures and little rainfall. The south-western highlands are cooler and wetter, and winter frosts occur in the northern deserts.