Editing Taiwan (section)

==Geography==
{{Main|Geography of Taiwan}}

[[File:Taiwan NASA Terra MODIS 2022-07-21.jpg|thumb|upright=1.2|A satellite image of Taiwan, showing it is mostly mountainous in the east, with gently sloping plains in the west. The [[Penghu|Penghu Islands]] are west of the main island.]]

The land controlled by the ROC consists of [[list of islands of Taiwan|168 islands]]{{efn|name = Taiwan Islands}} with a combined area of {{convert|36193|km2}}.<ref name="taiwansnapshot"/><ref name="NDC2021"/>{{efn|name = ROC territory}} The main island, known historically as ''Formosa'', makes up 99 percent of this area, measuring {{convert|35,808|km2|sqmi|0}} and lying some {{convert|180|km|mi|0}} across the [[Taiwan Strait]] from the southeastern coast of [[mainland China]]. The [[East China Sea]] lies to its north, the [[Philippine Sea]] to its east, the [[Luzon Strait]] directly to its south and the [[South China Sea]] to its southwest. Smaller islands include the [[Penghu|Penghu Islands]] in the Taiwan Strait, the [[Kinmen]], [[Matsu Islands|Matsu]] and [[Wuqiu, Kinmen|Wuqiu]] islands near the Chinese coast, and some of the [[South China Sea]] islands.

The main island is a tilted [[fault block]], characterized by the contrast between the eastern two-thirds, consisting mostly of five rugged mountain ranges parallel to the east coast, and the flat to gently rolling plains of the western third, where the majority of Taiwan's population reside. There are several peaks over 3,500 metres, the highest being [[Yu Shan]] at {{cvt|3,952|m|ft}}, making Taiwan the world's [[list of islands by highest point|fourth-highest island]]. The tectonic boundary that formed these ranges is still active, and the island experiences many earthquakes. There are also many active [[submarine volcano]]es in the Taiwan Strait.

Taiwan contains four terrestrial ecoregions: [[Jian Nan subtropical evergreen forests]], South China Sea Islands, [[South Taiwan monsoon rain forests]], and [[Taiwan subtropical evergreen forests]].<ref name="DinersteinOlson2017">{{cite journal|last1=Dinerstein|first1=Eric|last2=Olson|first2=David|last3=Joshi|first3=Anup|last4=Vynne|first4=Carly|last5=Burgess|first5=Neil D.|last6=Wikramanayake|first6=Eric|last7=Hahn|first7=Nathan|last8=Palminteri|first8=Suzanne|last9=Hedao|first9=Prashant|last10=Noss|first10=Reed|last11=Hansen|first11=Matt|last12=Locke|first12=Harvey|last13=Ellis|first13=Erle C|last14=Jones|first14=Benjamin|last15=Barber|first15=Charles Victor|last16=Hayes|first16=Randy|last17=Kormos|first17=Cyril|last18=Martin|first18=Vance|last19=Crist|first19=Eileen|last20=Sechrest|first20=Wes|last21=Price|first21=Lori|last22=Baillie|first22=Jonathan E. M.|last23=Weeden|first23=Don|last24=Suckling|first24=Kierán|last25=Davis|first25=Crystal|last26=Sizer|first26=Nigel|last27=Moore|first27=Rebecca|last28=Thau|first28=David|last29=Birch|first29=Tanya|last30=Potapov|first30=Peter|last31=Turubanova|first31=Svetlana|last32=Tyukavina|first32=Alexandra|last33=de Souza|first33=Nadia|last34=Pintea|first34=Lilian|last35=Brito|first35=José C.|last36=Llewellyn|first36=Othman A.|last37=Miller|first37=Anthony G.|last38=Patzelt|first38=Annette|last39=Ghazanfar|first39=Shahina A.|last40=Timberlake|first40=Jonathan|last41=Klöser|first41=Heinz|last42=Shennan-Farpón|first42=Yara|last43=Kindt|first43=Roeland|last44=Lillesø|first44=Jens-Peter Barnekow|last45=van Breugel|first45=Paulo|last46=Graudal|first46=Lars|last47=Voge|first47=Maianna|last48=Al-Shammari|first48=Khalaf F.|last49=Saleem|first49=Muhammad|display-authors=1|title=An Ecoregion-Based Approach to Protecting Half the Terrestrial Realm|journal=BioScience|volume=67|issue=6|year=2017|pages=534–545|doi=10.1093/biosci/bix014|pmid=28608869|pmc=5451287|doi-access=free}}</ref> The eastern mountains are heavily forested and home to a diverse range of wildlife, while land use in the western and northern lowlands is intensive. The country had a 2019 [[Forest Landscape Integrity Index]] mean score of 6.38/10, ranking it 76th globally out of 172 countries.<ref name="FLII-Supplementary">{{cite journal|last1=Grantham|first1=H. S.|last2=Duncan|first2=A.|last3=Evans|first3=T. D.|last4=Jones|first4=K. R.|last5=Beyer|first5=H. L.|last6=Schuster|first6=R.|last7=Walston|first7=J.|last8=Ray|first8=J. C.|last9=Robinson|first9=J. G.|last10=Callow|first10=M.|last11=Clements|first11=T.|last12=Costa|first12=H. M.|last13=DeGemmis|first13=A.|last14=Elsen|first14=P. R.|last15=Ervin|first15=J.|last16=Franco|first16=P.|last17=Goldman|first17=E.|last18=Goetz|first18=S.|last19=Hansen|first19=A.|last20=Hofsvang|first20=E.|last21=Jantz|first21=P.|last22=Jupiter|first22=S.|last23=Kang|first23=A.|last24=Langhammer|first24=P.|last25=Laurance|first25=W. F.|last26=Lieberman|first26=S.|last27=Linkie|first27=M.|last28=Malhi|first28=Y.|last29=Maxwell|first29=S.|last30=Mendez|first30=M.|last31=Mittermeier|first31=R.|last32=Murray|first32=N. J.|last33=Possingham|first33=H.|last34=Radachowsky|first34=J.|last35=Saatchi|first35=S.|last36=Samper|first36=C.|last37=Silverman|first37=J.|last38=Shapiro|first38=A.|last39=Strassburg|first39=B.|last40=Stevens|first40=T.|last41=Stokes|first41=E.|last42=Taylor|first42=R.|last43=Tear|first43=T.|last44=Tizard|first44=R.|last45=Venter|first45=O.|last46=Visconti|first46=P.|last47=Wang|first47=S.|last48=Watson|first48=J. E. M.|display-authors=1|title=Anthropogenic modification of forests means only 40% of remaining forests have high ecosystem integrity – Supplementary Material|journal=Nature Communications|volume=11|issue=1|year=2020|page=5978|doi=10.1038/s41467-020-19493-3|pmid=33293507|pmc=7723057|bibcode=2020NatCo..11.5978G |doi-access=free}}</ref>

===Climate===
{{See also| Climate change in Taiwan}}

[[File:Koppen-Geiger Map TWN present.svg|thumb|upright=1.3|Köppen climate classification of Taiwan]]

Taiwan lies on the [[Tropic of Cancer]], and its general [[climate]] is marine [[tropical climate|tropical]].<ref name="cia-factbook">{{cite web |title=Taiwan |url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/taiwan/ |work=The World Factbook |publisher=United States Central Intelligence Agency |access-date=6 May 2019 |archive-date=9 January 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210109223447/https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/taiwan/ |url-status=live }}</ref> The northern and central regions are subtropical, whereas the south is tropical and the mountainous regions are temperate.{{sfnp|Exec. Yuan|2014|p=44}} The average rainfall is {{convert|2600|mm|abbr=off}} per year for the island proper; the [[East Asian rainy season|rainy season]] is concurrent with the onset of the summer [[East Asian Monsoon]] in May and June.{{sfnp|Exec. Yuan|2014|p=45}} The entire island experiences hot, humid weather from June through September. [[Typhoons in Taiwan|Typhoons]] are most common in July, August and September.{{sfnp|Exec. Yuan|2014|p=45}} During the winter (November to March), the northeast experiences steady rain, while the central and southern parts of the island are mostly sunny.

Due to [[Climate change in Taiwan|climate change]], the average temperature in Taiwan has risen {{Convert|1.4|C-change|abbr=}} in the last 100 years, twice the worldwide temperature rise.<ref>{{cite web|title=Climate of Taiwan|url=https://traveltips.usatoday.com/climate-taiwan-62832.html|access-date=18 September 2020|website=USA Today|language=en|archive-date=29 July 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210729183619/https://traveltips.usatoday.com/climate-taiwan-62832.html|url-status=dead}}</ref> The goal of the Taiwanese government is to cut [[carbon emissions]] by 20 percent in 2030 and by 50 percent in 2050, compared to 2005 levels. Carbon emissions increased by 0.92 percent between 2005 and 2016.<ref>{{cite web|title=Is Taiwan Doing Enough to Address Climate Change in The Hottest Summer Ever?|date=2020-08-19|author1=Yi Ling Roy Ngerng|url=https://english.cw.com.tw/article/article.action?id=2780|access-date=18 September 2020|website=CommonWealth Magazine|archive-date=6 July 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210706131448/https://english.cw.com.tw/article/article.action?id=2780|url-status=live}}</ref>

===Geology===
{{Main|Geology of Taiwan}}

[[File:大霸尖山.jpg|thumb|left|[[Mount Dabajian]] was selected as one of the [[100 Peaks of Taiwan]].]]

The island of Taiwan lies in a complex [[tectonics|tectonic]] area between the [[Yangtze Plate]] to the west and north, the [[Okinawa Plate]] on the north-east, and the [[Philippine Mobile Belt]] on the east and south. The upper part of the crust on the island is primarily made up of a series of [[terrane]]s, mostly old [[island arc]]s which have been forced together by the collision of the forerunners of the [[Eurasian Plate]] and the [[Philippine Sea Plate]]. These have been further uplifted as a result of the detachment of a portion of the Eurasian Plate as it was [[subduction|subducted]] beneath remnants of the Philippine Sea Plate, a process which left the crust under Taiwan more buoyant.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.geo.arizona.edu/~anderson/taiwan/tai_index.html |title= Taiwan |first1=Megan |last1=Anderson |date=2001 |publisher=University of Arizona |access-date=1 August 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101205022356/http://www.geo.arizona.edu/~anderson/taiwan/tai_index.html |archive-date= Dec 5, 2010 }}</ref>

The east and south of Taiwan are a complex system of belts formed by, and part of the zone of, active collision between the North Luzon Trough portion of the [[Luzon Volcanic Arc]] and South China, where accreted portions of the Luzon Arc and Luzon forearc form the [[Haian Range|eastern Coastal Range]] and parallel inland [[Huatung Valley|Longitudinal Valley]] of Taiwan, respectively.<ref>Clift, Schouten and Draut (2003) in ''Intra-Oceanic Subduction Systems: Tectonic and Magmatic Processes'', {{ISBN|1-86239-147-5}} p84–86</ref>

The major seismic faults in Taiwan correspond to the various suture zones between the various terranes. These have produced major quakes. On 21 September 1999, a 7.3 quake known as the "[[1999 Jiji (Chichi) earthquake|921 earthquake]]" killed more than 2,400 people. The [[seismic hazard map]] for Taiwan by the [[United States Geological Survey|USGS]] shows 9/10 of the island at the most hazardous rating.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.seismo.ethz.ch/GSHAP/eastasia/asiafin.gif |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20000303055258/http://seismo.ethz.ch/gshap/eastasia/asiafin.gif |archive-date=3 March 2000 |title=USGS seismic hazard map of Eastern Asia |publisher=Seismo.ethz.ch |access-date=30 May 2011 }}</ref>