The 1992 CIA World Factbook

by United States. Central Intelligence Agency

:Pacific Islands, Trust Territory of the Defense Forces

Note:
defense is the responsibility of the US and that will not change when the UN
trusteeship terminates if the Compact of Free Association with the US goes
into effect

:Pacific Ocean Geography

Total area:
165,384,000 km2
Land area:
165,384,000 km2; includes Arafura Sea, Banda Sea, Bellingshausen Sea, Bering
Sea, Bering Strait, Coral Sea, East China Sea, Gulf of Alaska, Makassar
Strait, Philippine Sea, Ross Sea, Sea of Japan, Sea of Okhotsk, South China
Sea, Tasman Sea, and other tributary water bodies
Comparative area:
slightly less than 18 times the size of the US; the largest ocean (followed
by the Atlantic Ocean, the Indian Ocean, and the Arctic Ocean); covers about
one-third of the global surface; larger than the total land area of the
world
Coastline:
135,663 km
Disputes:
some maritime disputes (see littoral states)
Climate:
the western Pacific is monsoonal - a rainy season occurs during the summer
months, when moisture-laden winds blow from the ocean over the land, and a
dry season during the winter months, when dry winds blow from the Asian land
mass back to the ocean
Terrain:
surface in the northern Pacific dominated by a clockwise, warm-water gyre
(broad, circular system of currents) and in the southern Pacific by a
counterclockwise, cool-water gyre; sea ice occurs in the Bering Sea and Sea
of Okhotsk during winter and reaches maximum northern extent from Antarctica
in October; the ocean floor in the eastern Pacific is dominated by the East
Pacific Rise, while the western Pacific is dissected by deep trenches; the
world's greatest depth is 10,924 meters in the Marianas Trench
Natural resources:
oil and gas fields, polymetallic nodules, sand and gravel aggregates, placer
deposits, fish
Environment:
endangered marine species include the dugong, sea lion, sea otter, seals,
turtles, and whales; oil pollution in Philippine Sea and South China Sea;
dotted with low coral islands and rugged volcanic islands in the
southwestern Pacific Ocean; subject to tropical cyclones (typhoons) in
southeast and east Asia from May to December (most frequent from July to
October); tropical cyclones (hurricanes) may form south of Mexico and strike
Central America and Mexico from June to October (most common in August and
September); southern shipping lanes subject to icebergs from Antarctica;
occasional El Nino phenomenon occurs off the coast of Peru when the trade
winds slacken and the warm Equatorial Countercurrent moves south, killing
the plankton that is the primary food source for anchovies; consequently,
the anchovies move to better feeding grounds, causing resident marine birds
to starve by the thousands because of their lost food source
Note:
the major choke points are the Bering Strait, Panama Canal, Luzon Strait,
and the Singapore Strait; the Equator divides the Pacific Ocean into the
North Pacific Ocean and the South Pacific Ocean; ships subject to
superstructure icing in extreme north from October to May and in extreme
south from May to October; persistent fog in the northern Pacific from June
to December is a hazard to shipping; surrounded by a zone of violent
volcanic and earthquake activity sometimes referred to as the Pacific Ring
of Fire

:Pacific Ocean Economy

Overview:
The Pacific Ocean is a major contributor to the world economy and
particularly to those nations its waters directly touch. It provides cheap
sea transportation between East and West, extensive fishing grounds,
offshore oil and gas fields, minerals, and sand and gravel for the
construction industry. In 1985 over half (54%) of the world's total fish
catch came from the Pacific Ocean, which is the only ocean where the fish
catch has increased every year since 1978. Exploitation of offshore oil and
gas reserves is playing an ever-increasing role in the energy supplies of
Australia, New Zealand, China, US, and Peru. The high cost of recovering
offshore oil and gas, combined with the wide swings in world prices for oil
since 1985, has slowed but not stopped new drillings.
Industries:
fishing, oil and gas production

:Pacific Ocean Communications

Ports:
Bangkok (Thailand), Hong Kong, Los Angeles (US), Manila (Philippines), Pusan
(South Korea), San Francisco (US), Seattle (US), Shanghai (China),
Singapore, Sydney (Australia), Vladivostok (Russia), Wellington (NZ),
Yokohama (Japan)
Telecommunications:
several submarine cables with network focused on Guam and Hawaii

:Pakistan Geography

Total area:
803,940 km2
Land area:
778,720 km2
Comparative area:
slightly less than twice the size of California
Land boundaries:
6,774 km total; Afghanistan 2,430 km, China 523 km, India 2,912 km, Iran 909
km
Coastline:
1,046 km
Maritime claims:
Contiguous zone:
24 nm
Continental shelf:
edge of continental margin or 200 nm
Exclusive economic zone:
200 nm
Territorial sea:
12 nm
Disputes:
boundary with India; border question (Durand line); water sharing problems
with upstream riparian India over the Indus
Climate:
mostly hot, dry desert; temperate in northwest; arctic in north
Terrain:
flat Indus plain in east; mountains in north and northwest; Balochistan
plateau in west
Natural resources:
land, extensive natural gas reserves, limited crude oil, poor quality coal,
iron ore, copper, salt, limestone
Land use:
arable land 26%; permanent crops NEGL%; meadows and pastures 6%; forest and
woodland 4%; other 64%; includes irrigated 19%
Environment:
frequent earthquakes, occasionally severe especially in north and west;
flooding along the Indus after heavy rains (July and August); deforestation;
soil erosion; desertification; water logging
Note:
controls Khyber Pass and Malakand Pass, traditional invasion routes between
Central Asia and the Indian Subcontinent