The Philippines is an archipelago that comprises 7,641 islands, and with a total land area of , it is the world's fifth largest island country. The eleven largest islands contain 95% of the total land area. The largest of these islands is Luzon at about . The next largest island is Mindanao at about . The archipelago is around from the Asian mainland and is located between Taiwan and Borneo.
The Philippine archipelago is divided into three Island groups: Luzon, the Visayas, and Mindanao. The Luzon islands include Luzon itself, Palawan, Mindoro, Marinduque, Masbate, Romblon, Catanduanes, Batanes, and Polillo. The Visayas is a group of islands in the central Philippines, the largest of which are: Panay, Negros, Cebu, Bohol, Leyte, Samar, Siquijor, Biliran, and Guimaras. The Mindanao islands include Mindanao itself, Dinagat, Siargao, Camiguin, Samal, plus the Sulu Archipelago, composed primarily of Basilan, Sulu, and Tawi-Tawi.
The Philippines lies between 4°23' and 21° North (N) latitude and between 116° and 127° East (E) longitude.
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Physical geography.
The Philippine archipelago lies in Southeast Asia, and numbers some 7,641 islands. The Philippines occupies an area that stretches for from about the fifth to the twentieth parallels north latitude. The total land area is , with cadastral survey data suggesting it may be larger. This makes it the fifth largest island country in the world. Only approximately 1,000 of its islands are populated, and fewer than one-half of these are larger than . Eleven islands make up 95 percent of the Philippine landmass, and two of these — Luzon and Mindanao — measure and , respectively. They, together with the cluster of islands in Visayas in between them, represent the three principal regions of the archipelago that are identified by the three stars on the Philippine flag. The Philippines is broken up into many islands by the sea. This gives it the fifth longest coastline of in the world. The Exclusive economic zone of the Philippines covers , from its shores. It is located between 116° 40', and 126° 34' E longitude and 4° 40' and 21° 10' N latitude and is bordered by the Philippine Sea to the east, the South China Sea to the west, and the Celebes Sea to the south. The island of Borneo is located a few hundred kilometers southwest and Taiwan is located directly to the north. The Moluccas and Sulawesi are located to the south-southwest and Palau is located to the east of the islands.
Off the coast of eastern Mindanao is the Philippine Trench, which descends to a depth of . The Philippines is part of a western Pacific arc system characterized by active volcanoes. Among the most notable peaks are Mount Mayon near Legazpi City, Taal Volcano south of Manila, and Mount Apo in Mindanao. All of the Philippine islands are prone to earthquakes. The northern Luzon highlands, or Cordillera Central, rise to between and , and, together with the Sierra Madre in the northeastern portion of Luzon and the mountains of Mindanao, boast rain forests that provide refuge for numerous upland tribal groups. The rain forests also offer prime habitat for more than 500 species of birds, including the Philippine eagle (or monkey-eating eagle), some 1,100 species of orchids, and some 8,500 species of flowering plants.
The longest river is the Cagayan River in northern Luzon, measuring about . Manila Bay, upon the shore of which the capital city of Manila lies, is connected to Laguna de Bay, the largest lake in the Philippines, by the Pasig River. Subic Bay, Davao Gulf, and the Moro Gulf are other important bays. The San Juanico Strait separates the islands of Samar and Leyte but it is traversed by the San Juanico Bridge. The Puerto Princesa Subterranean River, which runs underground through a karst landscape before reaching the ocean, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Other extensive river systems are the Pulangi River, which flows into the Mindanao River (Rio Grande de Mindanao); the Agusan, in Mindanao which flows north into the Mindanao Sea; and the Pampanga, which flows south from east Central Luzon into Manila Bay. Several rivers have been harnessed for hydroelectric power.
A global remote sensing analysis suggested in 2018 that there were of tidal flats in the Philippines and is therefore ranked as the 15th country in terms of how much tidal flat occurs there.
To protect the country's biological resources, the government has taken a first step of preparing a Biodiversity Action Plan to address conservation of threatened species.
Most of the islands used to be covered by tropical rainforests. However, illegal logging has reduced forest cover to less than 10% of the total land area.
Geology.
The Philippine Archipelago is geologically part of the Philippine Mobile Belt located between the Philippine Sea Plate, the South China Sea Basin of the Eurasian Plate, and the Sunda Plate. The Philippine Trench (also called the Mindanao Trench) is a submarine trench in length found directly east of the Philippine Mobile Belt and is the result of a collision of tectonic plates. The Philippine Sea Plate is subducting under the Philippine Mobile Belt at the rate of about per year. The Philippine Fault System consists of a series of seismic faults that produce several earthquakes per year, most of which are not felt. The Galathea Depth in the Philippine Trench is the deepest point in the country and the third deepest in the world. The trench is located in the Philippine Sea.
The islands are composed of volcanic, coral, principal rock formations. Eight major types of forests are distributed throughout the Philippines; dipterocarp, beach forest, pine forest, molave forest, lower montane forest, upper montane or mossy forest, mangroves, and ultrabasic forest. The highest mountain is Mount Apo. It measures up to above sea level and is located on the island of Mindanao. The second highest point can be found on Mindanao as well, at Mount Dulang-dulang, a peak above sea level.
Situated on the western fringes of the Pacific Ring of Fire, the Philippines experiences frequent seismic and volcanic activity. The Benham Plateau to the east in the Philippine Sea is an undersea region active in tectonic subduction. Around 20 earthquakes are registered daily, though most are too weak to be felt. The last major earthquake was the 1990 Luzon earthquake. There are many active volcanoes such as the Mayon Volcano, Mount Pinatubo, and Taal Volcano. The eruption of Mount Pinatubo in June 1991 produced the second largest terrestrial eruption of the 20th century. The Philippines is the world's second-biggest geothermal energy producer behind the United States, with 18% of the country's electricity needs being met by geothermal power.
Mount Pinatubo is notorious for its destructive VEI-6 eruption on June 15, 1991. Taal Volcano, one of the Decade Volcanoes, had a VEI-3.7 eruption on January 12, 2020. Mount Mayon is renowned for having an almost perfect cone, but has a violent history of 47 eruptions since 1616 and its VEI-4 eruption on June 23, 1897, rained fire for seven days.
Significant mineral deposits exist as a result of the country's complex geologic structure and high level of seismic activity. These deposites are considered highly valuable. The country is thought to have the second-largest gold deposits after South Africa, along with a large amount of copper deposits. Palladium, originally discovered in South America, was found to have the world's largest deposits in the Philippines too. Romblon island is a source of high-quality marble. Other minerals include chromite, nickel, and zinc. Despite this, a lack of law enforcement, poor management, opposition due to the presence of indigenous communities, and past instances of environmental damages and disasters, have resulted in these mineral resources remaining largely untapped.
Luzon.
The Batanes and Babuyan islands.
The Batanes and Babuyan Islands are situated on the northernmost extremity of the Philippines at Luzon Strait facing Taiwan. It contains the northernmost point of land, the islet of Y'Ami in the Batanes Islands, separated from Taiwan by the Bashi Channel (c. wide).
Western Luzon.
This region stretches from Mairaira Point in Pagudpud, Ilocos Norte in the north to Cochinos Point in Mariveles, Bataan in the south. The terrain ranges from coastal plains to rugged mountains bordered by the South China Sea in the west and the Cordillera Central and Zambales mountain ranges in the east. Western Luzon is known for its beaches, surf spots and historic towns.
Cagayan Valley.
Nestled between the Cordilleras in the west and the Sierra Madre mountain ranges in the east is the Cagayan Valley, also the name of the administrative region which it covers. Through its center runs the country's longest river, the Cagayan, flowing in a northward direction before emptying its waters in the Luzon Strait at the town of Aparri.
Cordilleras and Caraballos.
The Cordilleras and Caraballos, together with the Sierra Madre Range, form the main mountain system in Northern Luzon.
The Cordilleras consists of two, sometimes three, mountain ranges that are found in northwestern central Luzon. The first, called "Caraballo del Sur", forms the nucleus of the system and has its highest peaks in the border between the provinces of Abra, Ilocos Norte and Cagayan. "Caraballo Occidentalles", is further divided into two ranges, the Cordillera Norte and Cordillera Central. They line the central portions of the Cordillera Administrative Region.
The Caraballos ("Caraballo de Baler") start where the Sierra Madre and the Cordilleras meet. They are found south of Cagayan Valley, northeast of the Central Luzon Plains.
Sierra Madre Mountains.
Lying in the eastern portion of Luzon is the longest mountain range in the Philippines, the Sierra Madre, stretching from Quezon province in the south to Cagayan in the north. 80 percent of the mountain range is tropical rainforest, which is diminishing from rampant illegal logging activity. The range serves as the eastern wall of Luzon Island that protects inhabitants from tropical cyclones usually coming from the Pacific Ocean.
Central Luzon Plains.
The largest plain of the nation is situated in the Central Luzon region and produces most of the national rice supply, earning itself the nickname "Rice Bowl of the Philippines". The plains encompass the provinces of Bulacan, Nueva Ecija, Pampanga, Tarlac and Pangasinan.
Manila-Katagalugan plains.
South of the Central Luzon plains lies the largest inland freshwater lake in Southeast Asia, Laguna de Bay. To the east of the lake is a plain that stretches westward to Manila Bay. Large rivers from bays and mountain springs traverse the plain. In the northern part of the region, that is, Manila and Rizal, most of the plain had been converted into cities and towns, and are thus industrialized. Lying east of the lake is the southern terminus of the Sierra Madre mountain range at northern Quezon province.
To the southwest of Laguna de Bay is the nation's third largest lake, the Taal, bordered to the north by the Tagaytay Ridge, a ridge stretching from southern Cavite to northern Batangas provinces.
Bondoc Peninsula.
The Bondoc Peninsula is located in the southeastern part of Quezon Province.
Bicol Peninsula.
Southeast of Laguna de Bay lies the Bicol Peninsula, connected to mainland Luzon by the isthmus of Tayabas. The predominantly flat landscape features several solitary peaks, usually active volcanoes, which include Iriga, Mayon and Bulusan.
The peninsula has an irregular coastline that features large bays and gulfs, which include Lamon Bay, San Miguel Bay, Lagonoy Gulf, and Albay Gulf to the north, and the Tayabas Bay, Ragay Gulf and Sorsogon Bay to the south.
Mindoro Island.
Mindoro coastal plains.
Mindoro's coastal plains are characterized by rice and corn fields, rivers, beaches, and extensive open space areas. Most of the population is concentrated on the northern and eastern coast of this island where the city of Calapan and Puerto Galera are located.
Mindoro highlands.
The Mindoro mountain range begins with Mount Halcon and is further divided into three. The northwest ends at Calavite Point and is a landmark for ships. The east originates from Lake Naujan and the west follows the Mindoro Strait.
Palawan.
Kalayaan islands (Spratly Islands).
The Kalayaan Islands are located to the west of Palawan. "Kalayaan" is a Filipino word meaning "freedom".
Panay-Negros-Cebu Area.
Panay is the third largest island in the Philippines, behind Mindanao and Luzon. Negros is home to the Canlaon Volcano, one of the active volcanoes in the Philippines. Cebu is a long and narrow island and is the 126th largest island in the world. Other islands nearby include: Guimaras to the south, Negros to the southeast, Bantayan Island and the Romblon island group to the north and Boracay nearby to the northeast.
Mindanao.
Eastern Pacific Cordillera.
The eastern coast of Mindanao features a long mountain range,