Ambon Island

Ambon

Ambon (left) and the Lease Islands
Ambon Location in Indonesia
Geography
Location	South East Asia
Coordinates	3°38′17″S 128°07′02″E / 3.63806°S 128.11722°E / -3.63806; 128.11722Coordinates: 3°38′17″S 128°07′02″E / 3.63806°S 128.11722°E / -3.63806; 128.11722
Archipelago	Maluku Islands
Area	775 km2 (299 sq mi)
Highest elevation	1,225 m (4,019 ft)
Highest point	Salahutu
Administration
Indonesia
Province	Maluku
Demographics
Population	441,000 (2010)
Pop. density	569 /km2 (1,474 /sq mi)
Ethnic groups	Ambonese

Ambon Island is part of the Maluku Islands of Indonesia. The island has an area of 775 km² (299 sq mi) and is mountainous, well watered, and fertile. Ambon Island consists of two territories. The main city and seaport is Ambon (with a 2009 population of 284,809), which is also the capital of Maluku province and Maluku Tengah (with a 2009 population of 370,931). Ambon has an airport and is home to the Pattimura University and Open University (Universitas Terbuka), state universities, and a few private universities, which include Darussalam University (Universitas Darussalam, UNDAR) and Universitas Kristen Indonesia Maluku (UKIM).

Ambon Island lies off the southwest coast of the much larger Seram island. It is on the north side of the Banda Sea, part of a chain of volcanic islands that encircle the sea. It is 51 kilometres (32 miles) long and is of very irregular shape, being almost divided in two. The southeastern and smaller portion, a peninsula (called Leitimor) is united to the northern (Hitoe) by a narrow neck of land. Ambon city is on the northwest of Leitimor, facing Hitoe, and has a safe harbor on Amboina Bay.

The highest mountains, Wawani at 1,100 metres (3,600 feet) and Salahutu at 1,225 metres (4,019 feet), have hot springs and solfataras. They are volcanoes, and the mountains of the neighboring Lease Islands are extinct volcanoes. Granite and serpentine rocks predominate, but the shores of Amboina Bay are of chalk and contain stalactite caves.