Located on the north-eastern part of the Persian Gulf in the Arabian Peninsula (geographical coordinates:24° 28' 0" North, 54° 22' 0" East), the emirate of Abu Dhabi shares its borders with the Kingdom of Oman to the east, Dubai to the north-eastern part and Saudi Arabia to the south.

Terrain

The landscape in Abu Dhabi is mainly insular, even though it occupies a part of the area's mainland as well. Abu Dhabi city is built on an island but its numerous suburbs extend to the surrounding mainland.

Despite that, the coast line of Abu Dhabi extends at approximately 600km and covers a great portion of the overall landmass which extends up to 67, 340km². Endless kilometres of desert, including the Empty Quarter or Rub Al Khali and salt flats or sabkha, complete the picture of Abu Dhabi's terrain.

Apart from the main island there are around 200 islands that are included into the emirate's territory. Saadiyat, Al Futaisi, and Sir Bani Yas Island are only but a few. The island of Abu Dhabi is only 250km from the mainland coast, however both parts are connected with motorway bridges namely Maqta, Mussafah, Al-Mafraq and Sheikh Zayed Bridge.

Cities and Population Disribution

Only some of the major suburbs of the Abu Dhabi city are Khalifa City A,B and C, Al Raha Beach, Al Bahia City A,B and C, Al Rahba, Al Shahama, Between Two Bridges, Baniyas and Mussafah Residential. Further in the mainland, located near the dominant Hajar Mountains and bordering with the Sultanate of Oman, Al Ain is one of the major cities in the emirate being the capital of the eastern region. Its counterpart Zayed City lays in the western region surrounded by more than 50 villages. In this area is located the majority of the oil fields of the emirate that are onshore. The population of the country is currently rising at 1.45 million but according to specialists' estimates it is highly expected to reach 3.4 millions by 2015.

Climate

Due to the geographical position and the landscape of the region, Abu Dhabi experiences an extremely hot and arid climate. As a result blue skies with abundance in sunlight are common throughout the year.

The season between April and September are expected to be intensively hot and humid. Temperatures mark an average which exceeds 40 °C (104 °F). Sandstorms are most likely to occur and it is not rare that the visibility may be reduced to a few meters. The oasis city of Al-Ain, close to the border with Oman, records the highest summer temperatures in the emirate territory. At the same time the dry desert air and cooler evenings make it an ideal retreat from the intense summer heat and the high levels of humidity of the capital city.

The period lasting from October to March is cooler with January and February marking the lowest temperatures at 12°C (54 °F). Rainfall is almost nonexistent in the area with an average of 107mm (4.21 inches) per year while on some days dense fog is lying over the city.

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