The main geographic features of El Salvador are relevant data about the way in which is located the national territory, which is basically characterized by located in Central America, bordering the North Pacific Ocean, between Guatemala and Honduras.
El Salvador is a land of plains, mountain ranges, volcanoes, valleys, lakes and hills that give rise to the central plateau, whose elevation is 400 to 800 meters above the sea level. The highest place of El Salvador is 2,730 meters above sea level, at Cerro El Pital, in the municipality of San Ignacio, Chalatenango.
The Salvadoran relief is product of the movements of the Earth’s crust along the history, which have given rise to a volcanic country, which also has mountainous areas to the North and fertile valleys in the coastal zone. The country is also very likely to suffer earthquakes since it is located in the belt of fire of the Pacific. Other natural phenomena such as hurricanes are also common.
Although El Salvador is a small country, with a land area of just 21,040 km2 (land: 20,720 km2 water: 320 km2), also has several volcanoes, which include mainly the following: Ilamatepec, in Santa Ana; Izalco in Sonsonate; Quezaltepeque, San Salvador; Chaparrastique, in San Miguel; Chichontepec, San Vicente, and Conchagua, in La Union, among others. A few of them are currently active; that increased activity presents is the Chaparrastique whose last eruption happened in December 2013.
El Salvador climate is tropical, warm and humid, and are two seasons annually: the dry season which occurs from November to April and wet season from May to October. The temperature varies between 18° C and 32° C in the capital. In the rest of the country, temperatures change according to the height has on the level of the sea, the proximity with the sea, the amount of sunlight and latitude in that you are.
Most of the rivers in El Salvador are short and have low flow, due to the proximity of the mountains spanning; It is for this reason that they are unsuitable for sailing, but are very useful for the irrigation of crops and the production of electricity using hydroelectric power stations that are located in the path of the Lempa River, the largest river in El Salvador, which crosses from Chalatenango to the Pacific coast. Other rivers that are important are the Peace River, between Guatemala and El Salvador; grande Rio Grande of Sonsonate, in Sonsonate; Jiboa River, in San Vicente.
