Location:
Eastern South America, bordering the Atlantic Ocean

Geographic coordinates:
10 00 S, 55 00 W

Map references:
South America

Area:
total: 8,515,770 sq km
[see also: Area - total country ranks ]
land: 8,358,140 sq km
[see also: Area - land country ranks ]
water: 157,630 sq km
[see also: Area - water country ranks ]
note: includes Arquipelago de Fernando de Noronha, Atol das Rocas, Ilha da Trindade, Ilhas Martin Vaz, and Penedos de Sao Pedro e Sao Paulo
country comparison to the world: 6

Area - comparative:
slightly smaller than the US
Area comparison map: slightly smaller than the US

Land boundaries:
total: 16,145 km
[see also: Land boundaries - total country ranks ]
border countries (10): Argentina 1,263 km, Bolivia 3,403 km, Colombia 1,790 km, French Guiana 649 km, Guyana 1,308 km, Paraguay 1,371 km, Peru 2,659 km, Suriname 515 km, Uruguay 1,050 km, Venezuela 2,137 km

Coastline:
7,491 km
[see also: Coastline country ranks ]

Maritime claims:
territorial sea: 12 nm
[see also: Maritime claims - territorial sea country ranks ]
contiguous zone: 24 nm
[see also: Maritime claims - contiguous zone country ranks ]
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
[see also: Maritime claims - exclusive economic zone country ranks ]
continental shelf: 200 nm or to edge of the continental margin
[see also: Maritime claims - continental shelf country ranks ]

Climate:
mostly tropical, but temperate in south
More Climate Details

Terrain:
mostly flat to rolling lowlands in north; some plains, hills, mountains, and narrow coastal belt

Elevation:
mean elevation: 320 m
[see also: Elevation - mean elevation country ranks ]
elevation extremes: lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Pico da Neblina 2,994 m

Natural resources:
bauxite, gold, iron ore, manganese, nickel, phosphates, platinum, tin, rare earth elements, uranium, petroleum, hydropower, timber

Land use:
agricultural land: 32.9% arable land 8.6%; permanent crops 0.8%; permanent pasture 23.5%
[see also: Land use - agricultural land country ranks ]
forest: 61.9%
[see also: Land use - forest country ranks ]
other: 5.2% (2011 est.)
[see also: Land use - other country ranks ]

Irrigated land:
54,000 sq km (2012)
[see also: Irrigated land country ranks ]

Population - distribution:
the vast majority of people live along, or relatively near, the Atlantic coast in the east; the population core is in the southeast, anchored by the cities of Sao Paolo, Brasilia, and Rio de Janeiro

Natural hazards:
recurring droughts in northeast; floods and occasional frost in south

Environment - current issues:
deforestation in Amazon Basin destroys the habitat and endangers a multitude of plant and animal species indigenous to the area; there is a lucrative illegal wildlife trade; air and water pollution in Rio de Janeiro, Sao Paulo, and several other large cities; land degradation and water pollution caused by improper mining activities; wetland degradation; severe oil spills

Environment - international agreements:
party to: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Geography - note:
largest country in South America and in the Southern Hemisphere; shares common boundaries with every South American country except Chile and Ecuador; most of the Pantanal, the world's largest tropical wetland, extends through the west central part of the country; shares Iguazu Falls, the world's largest waterfalls system, with Argentina