Countries

The State of Qatar occupies a peninsula jutting into the Persian Gulf from the eastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula. Saudi Arabia borders it on its landward side. It has an area of about 11 000 km².

Much of the land is stony, barren desert. Barren salt flats cover southern Qatar.

The climate is extremely arid and hot. Summer temperatures sometimes rise above 49° C, but the winter is cooler. Humidity is high during the summer (May to October), but the average annual rainfall is less than 127 mm.