Satellite: Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 by EOX (CC BY 4.0). Outline and points © OpenStreetMap contributors / Natural Earth. North up.
In numbers
213km²
Area
115km
Coastline
186m
Highest point
2,000
People
30°C
Warmest sea
December
1,446km
To the mainland
When to go to Shortland Island
Best for the beach from January to May.
The sea is warmest in December (30 °C) and coolest in August (28 °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 Solomon Islands, near Bougainville
Shortland Island is an volcanic island in Solomon Islands. It covers 213 km², with 115 km of coastline. Its highest point rises to 186 m. About 2,000 people live on it. The nearest mainland is 1,446 km away.
Getting there
- Buka Airport (BUA)nearest airport with scheduled flights · 216 km in a straight line
- 1,446 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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Cross-checked with our atlases
Shortland Island in our other atlases
Everything Coastya, Peakyas, Lakeyas and Cascadyas know about what lies inside Shortland Island, each with its own numbers.
8beaches and covesCoastya
3mountainsPeakyas
Beach with the warmest sea
29.9°C
Potai Bay
sea in the warmest month · according to Coastya
8 beaches
on Coastya, the beach atlas
- Tuiai Baycove29.9°C
- Tuha Baycove29.9°C
- Potai Baycove29.9°C
- Pia Baycove29.9°C
- Maliusai Baycove29.9°C
- Hoseai Baycove29.9°C
- Haleta Baycove29.9°C
- Kupala Baycove29.8°C
The shape of the land.
On average the island stands 58 m above the sea. 100 % of it is below 200 m.
- 50 %0–50 m
- 50 %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) | 28 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 27 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 28 |
| Night low (°C) | 27 | 27 | 27 | 27 | 27 | 27 | 26 | 26 | 26 | 26 | 27 | 27 |
| Sea (°C) | 30 | 30 | 30 | 30 | 30 | 29 | 29 | 28 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 30 |
| Rain (mm) | 267 | 295 | 293 | 264 | 403 | 379 | 363 | 360 | 282 | 291 | 239 | 240 |
| Wet days | 26 | 27 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 29 | 27 | 26 | 27 | 25 | 26 |
| Sun h/day | 5.4 | 4.9 | 5.4 | 5.6 | 5.8 | 5.3 | 4.7 | 4.9 | 5.6 | 5.8 | 6.0 | 6.0 |
| Wind (km/h) | 10 | 10 | 10 | 9 | 10 | 12 | 15 | 15 | 13 | 12 | 10 | 9 |
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 | −0.3 | +0.8 | +0.1 | +0.6 | +1.1 | +1.2 | +1.1 | +1.1 | +1.1 | +0.7 | +0.4 |
| 2021 | +0.7 | +0.5 | +0.4 | +0.4 | ±0.0 | +0.4 | +0.6 | +1.0 | +1.1 | +1.0 | +0.6 | +0.2 |
| 2022 | ±0.0 | +0.2 | +0.7 | +0.6 | +0.7 | +1.0 | +0.9 | +1.4 | +1.3 | +1.0 | +0.8 | +0.6 |
| 2023 | +0.4 | +0.4 | +0.2 | +0.4 | +0.6 | +0.5 | +0.6 | +0.1 | +0.1 | −0.2 | −0.3 | −0.3 |
| 2024 | +0.5 | −0.1 | +0.5 | +0.8 | +0.8 | +1.1 | +1.2 | +1.1 | +0.6 | +0.8 | +0.9 | +0.6 |
| 2025 | +1.3 | +1.1 | +0.8 | +0.5 | +0.8 | +0.7 | +1.1 | +1.5 | +1.5 | +1.1 | +0.8 | +0.4 |
+1 warmer than usual −1 cooler than usual
Nearby
More islands nearby.
Bougainville Island
Papua New Guinea9,318 km²2,715 m97 km away
Choiseul Island
Solomon Islands3,119 km²891 m132 km away
Vella LavellaSolomon Islands651 km²808 m123 km away
KolombangaraSolomon Islands690 km²1,768 m177 km away
Buka IslandPapua New Guinea616 km²458 m235 km away
New GeorgiaSolomon Islands2,064 km²860 m234 km away
VangunuSolomon Islands515 km²1,056 m304 km away
Santa Isabel IslandSolomon Islands3,665 km²1,115 m374 km awayAbout these numbers
| Names, area, population | Wikidata (Q447272) · 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 |
| Beaches, mountains, lakes and waterfalls | Coastya, Peakyas — Wikidata · CC0; © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL; GeoNames · CC BY 4.0; NOAA OISST |
Every figure is an average, an estimate or a count from a public dataset. Licences and methods: data sources.
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