Satellite: Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 by EOX (CC BY 4.0). Outline and points © OpenStreetMap contributors / Natural Earth. North up.
In numbers
277km²
Area
132km
Coastline
57m
Highest point
22,163
People
30°C
Warmest sea
January
918km
To the mainland
When to go to Kiriwina
Best for the beach from January to May.
The sea is warmest in January (30 °C) and coolest in August (27 °C). You can swim comfortably all year (21 °C or more).
Averages 1991–2020. Sea: NOAA OISST, the water within 35 km of the coast. Air, rain and sun: NASA POWER. Best months weigh warm afternoons (23–30 °C), sea of 24 °C or more and few wet days.
Island in Papua New Guinea
Kiriwina is an island in Papua New Guinea. It covers 277 km², with 132 km of coastline. Its highest point rises to 57 m. About 22,163 people live on it. The nearest mainland is 918 km away.
Getting there
- Gurney Airport (GUR)nearest airport with scheduled flights · 199 km in a straight line
- 918 km from the mainlanddistance to the nearest continental coast
- From January to Maybest months to go (from 30 years of averages)
Plan the trip
Ferries, stays and things to do
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On the island
What you find on Kiriwina.
- 1lighthouses
- 3hotels, guesthouses and apartments
Counted in OpenStreetMap, the map anyone can edit, inside the island's outline. A low number may only mean nobody has mapped it yet.
The shape of the land.
On average the island stands 11 m above the sea. 100 % of it is below 200 m.
- 100 %0–50 m
- <1 %50–200 m
Share of the island's area in each altitude band, from the Copernicus DEM (30 m, read at 30–240 m on large islands).
Size, for real
Next to islands you may know.
20 km
All outlines drawn to the same scale (Natural Earth and OpenStreetMap).
Month by month
The weather on the island.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Afternoon high (°C) | 29 | 29 | 29 | 29 | 28 | 28 | 27 | 27 | 27 | 28 | 28 | 29 |
| Night low (°C) | 28 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 27 | 26 | 26 | 27 | 27 | 28 | 28 |
| Sea (°C) | 30 | 30 | 29 | 29 | 29 | 28 | 27 | 27 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 |
| Rain (mm) | 290 | 254 | 296 | 257 | 248 | 300 | 214 | 164 | 204 | 187 | 188 | 177 |
| Wet days | 29 | 26 | 29 | 26 | 26 | 26 | 26 | 23 | 22 | 24 | 23 | 26 |
| Sun h/day | 5.3 | 5.2 | 5.4 | 5.7 | 5.5 | 4.5 | 4.9 | 6.0 | 5.7 | 6.6 | 6.9 | 6.9 |
| Wind (km/h) | 15 | 15 | 14 | 16 | 21 | 25 | 29 | 28 | 26 | 22 | 17 | 13 |
Averages 1991–2020 for the ~55 km NASA POWER cell over the island; the sea from NOAA OISST.
Recent years
Warmer and cooler years at sea.
Each month's sea temperature compared with its 1991–2020 average, in degrees.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | ±0.0 | −0.1 | +0.7 | +0.1 | +0.8 | +0.6 | +0.8 | +0.9 | +0.6 | +0.7 | +0.4 | +0.4 |
| 2021 | +0.9 | +0.6 | +0.7 | +0.9 | +0.5 | +0.8 | +1.2 | +1.2 | +1.3 | +1.4 | +1.2 | +0.8 |
| 2022 | +0.1 | +0.1 | +0.8 | +1.0 | +1.5 | +1.9 | +2.1 | +2.0 | +2.2 | +2.0 | +1.7 | +1.2 |
| 2023 | +0.5 | +0.4 | +0.7 | +1.0 | +1.3 | +0.7 | +1.0 | +0.1 | ±0.0 | −0.3 | −0.7 | −0.4 |
| 2024 | +0.4 | +0.1 | +0.5 | +1.0 | +0.4 | +1.0 | +1.1 | +1.0 | +0.9 | +0.6 | +0.8 | +0.7 |
| 2025 | +1.3 | +1.1 | +0.9 | +0.8 | +1.3 | +1.0 | +1.5 | +1.5 | +1.3 | +1.3 | +0.9 | +0.6 |
+1 warmer than usual −1 cooler than usual
Nearby
More islands nearby.
Fergusson Island
Papua New Guinea1,331 km²2,073 m103 km away
Goodenough IslandPapua New Guinea707 km²2,536 m119 km away
Normanby IslandPapua New Guinea1,040 km²1,158 m153 km away
Woodlark IslandPapua New Guinea853 km²240 m190 km away
New BritainPapua New Guinea36,520 km²2,334 m331 km away
Misima IslandPapua New Guinea213 km²1,036 m285 km awayAbout these numbers
| Names, area, population | Wikidata (Q1771758) · CC0 |
|---|---|
| Outline | © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL |
| Sea temperature | NOAA OISST v2.1 · 1991–2020 |
| Climate | NASA POWER · 1991–2020 |
| Relief, 3D model | Copernicus DEM GLO-30 · © DLR e.V., © Airbus Defence and Space GmbH, Copernicus/ESA |
| Beaches, ports, lighthouses, trails | © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL |
| Towns | GeoNames · CC BY 4.0 |
| Images | EOX Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 · CC BY 4.0; Wikimedia Commons |
Every figure is an average, an estimate or a count from a public dataset. Licences and methods: data sources.
The family
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