Water Resources

Dotted with many rivers and lakes, the Shanghai area is known for its rich water resources, with the water area totaling 697 square kilometers and accounting for 11% of the city's total territory. Most of the rivers, including the Suzhou Creek, Chuanyang River and Diangpu River, are tributaries of the Huangpu River. Originated from the Taihu Lake, the 113-kilometer-long Huangpu River winds through the downtown area of the city. The river is about 300 to 770 meters wide with an average width standing at 360 meters. The ice-free Huangpu River is the main waterway in the Shanghai area. The Shanghai section of the Suzhou Creek runs 54 kilometers, with an average width of 45 meters. The city's lakes assemble mainly in the western area bordering Zhejiang and Jiangsu provinces, with the 62-square-kilometer Dianshan lake being the largest.

                        Land Area

The city covered an area of only 636.18 square kilometers in 1949. By the year 1958, after Shanghai took over 10 counties from Jiangsu Province -- including Jiading, Baoshan, Shanghai, Songjiang, Jinshan, Chuansha, Nanhui, Fengxian, Qingpu and Chongming, the area under the city's jurisdiction expanded to 5,910 square kilometers. The city had a total area of 6,340.5 square kilometers at the end of 2002, 0.06% of China's total territory. Shanghai extends about 120 kilometers in north and south and nearly 100 kilometers in east and west. The city's 19 districts cover a total area of 5,299.29 square kilometers and its only county has an area of 1,041.21 square kilometers. The city has three islands -- Chongming, Changxing and Hengsha -- under its jurisdiction and Chongming Island is the third largest island in China, covering an area of 1,041.21 square kilometers.

Climate

With a pleasant northern subtropical maritime monsoon climate, Shanghai enjoys four distinct seasons, generous sunshine and abundant rainfall every year. Its spring and autumn are relatively short comparing with the summer and winter. In 2002, the average annual temperature was 17.8 degrees Celsius. The city had a total sunshine time of 1,686.5 hours in 2002 and received an annual rainfall of 1,427.9 millimeters. However, about 60% of the precipitation came during the May-September flood season, which is divided into three rainy periods, namely, the Spring Rain, the Plum Rain and the Autumn Rain.