Where are the Great Sunda Islands? They belong to the Malay archipelago. The islands are located in the region of Southeast Asia, between two oceans - the Pacific and the Indian. In the north, they border the Malacca Peninsula.
a brief description of
The area of the islands is just over 1.5 million square meters. km They consist of 4 large islands, as well as a large number of small ones, such as Java, Sumatra, Sulawesi and others. The Big Sunda Islands are the largest island group on the planet. About 180 million people live on the islands.
Let's take a closer look at some of the islands in this group.
Kalimantan
The largest of the Great Sunda Islands is Kalimantan (another name is Borneo). Its area is 743 thousand square meters. km It is one of the three largest islands on the planet. Another feature of the island is that its territory is divided immediately between several countries: Brunei, Malaysia and Indonesia. Kalimantan is washed immediately by 4 seas and 2 straits. If we compare all the Great Sunda Islands, then only on Kalimantan the flat terrain prevails. However, a mountainous terrain is also present in this land area. The highest peak of the island is Kinabalu (more than 4 thousand m). Also on the territory of Borneo is the active volcano Bombalay. The river system is also relatively densely represented. The largest river is the Capuas. It has a length of more than one thousand kilometers. Other major rivers are Barito, Mahakam, Rajang.
Sumatra
To the west of Kalimantan is the island of Sumatra. In a system such as the Great Sunda Islands, it is the second largest in size, and sixth in the world ranking. Its area is more than 470 thousand square meters. km Geographically owned by the state of Indonesia. The equatorial border runs along the central part of the island, dividing this land area into two identical parts located in different hemispheres. Sumatra has an elongated shape. In the southwestern part of the island, mountainous terrain prevails, where there are a large number of active volcanoes. Sumatra is a seismically active region of the planet. Earthquakes are not uncommon. The highest point is Kerinci Volcano (3,800 m). The rest of the island is a plain. Sumatra has many rivers.
Sulawesi
The third largest island - Sulawesi, has an area of 174 thousand square meters. km Located east of Kalimantan. It is washed by two seas - the Banda and Sulawesi, as well as the Makassar Strait. The shape of this island is unique and interesting. It consists of four pronounced, oblong peninsulas connecting in the western part. These so-called branches are mostly flat type. The population lives in these territories. The central part is mountainous, and therefore the connection between the peninsulas is quite complicated.
Java
Describing the Great Sunda Islands, one can not help but talk about Java. This is the smallest of all that are included in this system. Java has an area of about 130 thousand square meters. km The island is very elongated from east to west. Its length is more than one thousand kilometers. This land area belongs to the state of Indonesia, the capital is located on this island. Mountains occupy its central territory, the rest of it is the jungle. The population lives mainly on the coast of the island, since in the distance from it there are simply no conditions for a normal life of people.
Conclusion
The large Sunda Islands belong to the equatorial climatic zone, and also have rich flora and fauna. This territory is not deprived of minerals. There are large reserves of tin and oil. The population is engaged in tropical agriculture, actively exporting spices, rubber, rice, tea and coconut products.