Sri Lanka Geography

Sri Lanka is an island in the Indian Ocean, located to the south of Indian Subcontinent. Sprawling over the area of 65, 610 square kilometers, Sri Lanka with its tear-dropped shape is dominated by the astonishingly varied features of topography, making it one of the most scenic places in the world. Three zones can be divided by its distinguished elevation: the Central Highland, the plains, and the coastal belt.

At the core of the island is dominated by a high plateau in which several highest mountains of Sri Lanka are situated. Among them, the highest pinnacle is Pidurutalagala Mountain levitating at 2,524 meters of its height; Sri Lankan people consider this mountain as the sacred site of pilgrimage. The Adam's Peak lying to the west, at the southern end of the plateau is better known for its spectacular scenery and sacred pilgrimage site with its elevation of 2224 meters.

Then the land descends from the Central Highlands to a series of flat plains between 30 and 200 meters above sea level, dominating the east and the north of the island. Extensive erosion in this area has worn down and deposited the rich soil good for agriculture.

A coastal belt surrounds the island, consisting of scenic sandy beaches and lagoons. Best beaches line along the southern coast, southwestern coast and eastern coast. In the northeast and the southwest, the coasts cut across the stratification of crystalline rocks, cliffs, bays, and offshore islands, creating one of the world's best natural harbors at Trincomalee on the northeastern coast and a smaller rock harbor at Galle on the southwestern coast. In the northwest, Mannar Island which is joined with the mainland by a bridge is almost connected to the southern India by a long chain of sandbanks and islets called Adam's Bridge.

Rivers in Sri Lanka originates in the Central Highlands, near Adam's Peak and flow through the gorges, broad valley and plains and finally empty in the sea near Trincomalee, creating the different landscapes of escarpments, waterfalls and deep gorges. Most of the rivers are short and frequently interrupted by the discontinuities of terrain.

The longest river of Sri Lanka is the Mahaweli Ganga River with it length of 335 kilometers. The upper reach of the river is wild and non-navigable while the lower reaches are prone to the seasonal flooding. The river is the most important water necessity for the irrigation system in the northeast region in which natural rainfalls are deficient.

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Sri Lanka Climate

Lying in the equatorial and tropical zone, Sri Lanka is influenced by the monsoons, allowing two distinct seasons: wet and dry. The difference of elevation also influences temperature variation; it is always hot in the lowland and it gets cooler when reaching the higher altitudes. The annually average temperature of the country as a whole varies from 26°C-28°C and dips down to 14°C-16°C in the Central Highlands. November to January is the coolest time of the year whereas February through May is the hottest period.

There are two monsoonal seasons in Sri Lanka, making its climate more complex and varied in different regions. In mid-May through October, the Southwest monsoon, called in Lankan language as "Yala season", brings moisture from the Indian Ocean, resulting in the heavy rains in the south and west coasts as well as in the Central Highlands. Some windward slopes receive up to 250 centimeters of rain per month. In this period, the northern and eastern parts of the island are left drier with a little quantity of rainfall as lying in the leeside.

When it comes to the Northeast monsoon ("Maha season" in Lankan) which lasts from December to March, the moisture brought from the Bay of Bengal causes downpours in the Northeast region of the island. The northeastern slopes of the mountains may be inundated with up to 125 centimeters of rains during these months.

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