HONG
KONG GEOGRAPHY |
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The name "Hong Kong" is derived from Hong Kong Island in the South China
Sea, at the mouth of the Xi Jiang or Pearl River of southern China. Other
territories that were later added include the Kowloon Peninsula and the New
Territories, which include over 200 surrounding islands. The landscape is
fairly hilly to mountainous with steep slopes, with the highest point being
the Tai Mo Shan (literally means "Big Fog Mountain") at 958 m, though
lowlands exist in the north.
Of the total of 1102 km˛ of Hong Kong, only 25% are developed. The remaining
75% are set aside as country parks and nature reserves. |
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| The local climate is that of a tropical monsoon clime. It is cool and humid
in winter (Jan-Mar), hot and rainy from spring through summer (Apr-Sep), and
warm,sunny and dry in the autumn (Oct - Dec). Hong Kong is visited by
occasional typhoons. On September 18, 1906 a typhoon with tsunami killed an
estimated 10,000 persons. |
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