Lesson 2:
A bit of geography
Location: Situated in the Northeast of Brazil, Maranhão shares borders with the Atlantic Ocean, and the Brazilian States of Piauí, Tocantins and Pará.
Area: 331,983 square kilometres. It’s the second largest State in the Northeast region and the eighth largest in Brazil.
Coast: 640 kilometres of coastline, divided between beaches and the Lençóis Maranhenses desert.
Population: 7.1 million inhabitants, of whom more than one million are residents in the capital.
Local time: GMT (-3:0)
Temperature: Mild, with an annual average temperature of 26.1 °C (max. 33 °C and min. 20 °C).
Rainfall: Mainly from January to June.
Diversity of ecosystems:
- Amazon Rainforest
- Savannahs
- Mangroves
- Open Sea Delta
- A desert with crystalline water lagoons (Lençóis Maranhenses)
- And much more