Land area: 24,996 sq mi (64,740 sq km); total area: 25,332 sq mi (65,610 sq km)
Population (2010 est.): 21,513,990 (growth rate: 0.9%); birth rate: 15.8/1000; infant mortality rate: 18.1/1000; life expectancy: 75.3; density per sq mi: 809
Capital and largest city (2003 est.): Colombo, 2,436,000 (metro. Legislative and judicial capital: Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte, 118,300
Monetary unit: Sri Lanka
rupee
Sri
Lanka has a tropical climate dominated by two monsoon seasons. The
summer monsoon lasts from mid-May to October, when winds from the
southwest bring rain from the Indian Ocean to the southern and western
parts of the island. During the winter monsoon, from December through
March, winds from the northeast bring rain from the Bay of Bengal to
northern and eastern regions. Monsoon rains are constant and heavy,
with up to 100 inches of rain per month falling during the summer
monsoon in the southwest. October-November and mid-March to mid-May are
intermonsoon seasons, with less rainfall. The climate is hot and humid
for much of the year, but is cooler in the highlands.
