The European part of France

is called Metropolitan
France and it is located in one
of the occidental ends of
Europe. It is bordered by
theNorth Sea in the north,
the English Channel in the
north-west, the Atlantic
Ocean in the west and the
Mediterranean sea in the
south-east. It

borders Belgium and Luxemb

ourg in the north east. It also
borders Germany and Switzer
land in the
east, Italy and Monaco in the
south-east, Spain and Andorr
a in the south west. The
borders in the south and in
the east of the country are
mountain ranges: the
Pyrenees, the Alps and the

Jura, the border in the east is

from the Rhine river, while the
border in the north and the
north east melts in no natural
elements. Due to its shape, it
is often referred to in French
as l'Hexagone ("The Hexagon
"). Metropolitan France
includes various
islands:Corsica and coastal
islands. Metropolitan France

is situated mostly between

latitudes 41 and 51 N, and
longitudes 6 W and 10 E, on
the western edge of Europe,
and thus lies within the
northern temperate zone. Its
continental part covers about
1000 km from north to south
and from east to west.
France has Overseas
regions across the world.

These territories have varying

statuses in the territorial
administration of France and
are located:
In South America: French
Guiana.
In the Atlantic Ocean: Saint
Pierre and Miquelon and, in
the
Antilles: Guadeloupe, Martini

que, Saint Martin and Saint

Barthlemy.
In the Pacific
Ocean: French Polynesia,
the special collectivity
of New Caledonia, Wallis
and Futuna and Clipperton
Island.
In the Indian
Ocean: Runion
island, Scattered Islands in

the Indian Ocean, Crozet

Islands, St.
Paul and Amsterdam islands
.
In the Indian
Ocean: Kerguelen Islands.
In the Antarctic: Adlie
Land.
France has land borders
with Brazil and Suriname in Fr
ench Guiana and also with

the Kingdom of the

Netherlands through the
French part of Saint Martin.
The European territory of
France covers 551,500
square kilometres
(212,935 sq mi),[78] the largest
among European
Union members.[18]France's
total land area, with its
overseas departments and

territories (excluding Adlie

Land), is
643,801 km2 (248,573 sq mi),
0.45% of the total land area
on Earth. France possesses a
wide variety of landscapes,
from coastal plains in the
north and west to mountain
ranges of the Alps in the
southeast, the Massif
Central in the south central

and Pyrenees in the

southwest.
Due to its numerous overseas
departments and
territories scattered on all
oceans of the planet, France
possesses the secondlargest Exclusive economic
zone (EEZ) in the world,
covering
11,035,000 km2 (4,260,000 mi

), just behind the EEZ of the

United States
(11,351,000 km2 /
4,383,000 mi2), but ahead of
the EEZ of Australia
(8,148,250 km2 /
4,111,312 mi2). Its EEZ covers
approximately 8% of the total
surface of all the EEZs of the
world.

At 4,810.45 metres (15,782 ft)

[79]

above sea level, the

highest point in Western

Europe, Mont Blanc, is
situated in the Alps on the
border between France and
Italy. France also has
extensive river systems such
as the Seine, the Loire,
the Garonne, and the Rhone,
which divides the Massif

Central from the Alps and

flows into the Mediterranean
Sea at the Camargue.
Corsica lies off the
Mediterranean coast.
Climate

Most of the plains of

metropolitan France
excluding Corse, are located
in the oceanic area, Cfb, Cwb
et Cfc in the classification of
Kppen, a little part of the

territory built by plains or hills

bordering the mediterranean
basin that has a climate
designed by Csa and Csb in
the Kppen classification. The
French metropolitan territory
is relatively extended, the
climate is not uniform, it is
possible to detail at a finer
level and to distinguish the
following climate nuances.

 The strict oceanic climate is

located in the west of
France it extends from
Flandre in The Basque
Country on a coastal strip of
several tens of kilometres
(the limit is difficult to
define), closer to the north
and south, wider in Britain
that is concerned almost
entirely by this climate.

The south climate is also

oceanic but warmer,
because nearer to the
south, it is affected by the
aquitaine aquitaine climate.

The climate of the northwest facade is oceanic but

cooler than the aquitaine
one and the wind intensity
is much stronger.

 Away from the coast, the

climate is always oceanic
but it characteristics change
a little. In the Paris
sedimentary basin and more
in the intra mountain basins
the seasonal amplitude
becomes a little stronger, the
autumn rains and winter
especially are less marked;
therefore, most of the

territory has qualified climate

gradient semi-oceanic
climate. This is a transition
zone between the strict
oceanic climate
and continental climate:

The oceanic degraded

climate of plain in the
centre.north, sometimes
called "parisien" due tot eh
fact that corresponds

approximately to the Paris

basin where the oceanic
climate is slightly altered;

and the semi-continental

climate in the north and in
the centre-west (Alsace,
plains of Sane or of
middle-Rhne, plains
"dauphinoises",
"auvergnates" ou
"savoyardes" which

features further modified by

the neighbouring mountain
ranges.
Due to the provision of air
masses, especially in
summer, and mountain
borders that isolate some of
the rest of the country, the
Mediterranean and the lower
Rhone valley, swept by the
Mistral and Tramontana

experiencing Mediterranean
climate.
The mountain (or alpine)
climate is presented mainly
in the Alps, the Pyrenees,
the Massif Central,
the Jura and the Vosges.
In the overseas regions,
there are three broad types
of climate:

 A tropical climate in most

overseas regions: high
constant temperature
throughout the year with a
dry and a wet season
An equatorial
climate in French Guiana:
high constant temperature
throughout the year with
even precipitation
throughout the year

 A subpolar climate in Saint

Pierre and Miquelon and in
most of the French Southern
and Antarctic Lands: short
mild summers and long very
cold winters