Geography of Samudera

Samudera is a nation which comprises of an archipelago lying between the continent of Gael and the greater Southern Sea. It is a nation of 122 islands, with 31 of them being inhabited. It is located in the northern periphery of Southern Sea, being the historical trade link between the Eterna Sea, the Southern Sea, Gael and the eastern Isles. Samudera’s various regional cultures have been shaped by centuries of complex interactions with its physical environment and other trading groups

Geology

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All of the Samuderan islands lie on the Eterael Plate, which is tectonically and volcanically active due to the subduction of Argent Plate under Gael and Eterael Plate in the Sanggar Trench. Most of the Samuderan islands are volcanic in origin, except for northern Sanggar and Kraton which is continental in origin.

The Samuderan archipelago could be divided into three groups of islands, namely the Bharatan islands, the Indradipa islands, and Hutama islands.

Bharatan islands are entirely volcanic in origin. Located along the margin of Sanggar Trench, it is one of the most volcanically active regions in Samudera, with approximately ten active volcanoes scattered among tens of islands in the area. Major earthquakes haven’t happened in this section of Sanggar Trench since the start of Tsunami recording in the 17th century. Many cautioned for a major earthquake that is due to happen, and its intensity may reach the Great Sanggar Earthquake in 1999.

Indradipa islands, on the other hand, is a mix of island volcanic in origin and continental fragment in origin. Its biggest island, Galuh, is volcanic in origin and it has one of the most active volcanoes in Samudera, Mount Rijiki. It is infamous for its eruption back in 1835, regarded as one of most violent eruption in the entirety Isles history. It devastated most of the settlement in Galuh and its explosion could be heard over 1,000 km away in Arborai, Ainslie. Since then Mount Rijiki erupts periodically every 10 years, although none of the recent eruptions could match the 1835 eruptions.

The eastern Indradipa islands, namely Rembulan and Seni and its surrounding isles, are regarded as a continental fragment detached from Gael approximately ten million years ago along with northern Kraton and Sanggar. It is the most tectonically stable part of Samudera, being the most further islands from the subduction zone. Though, remnants of volcanism are still apparent. The most recent being the Bukitara mountains complex, erupted last time at 2 million years ago.

Hutama islands, literally the Main Islands, is composed of both lands volcanic and tectonic in origin. The northern part of Kraton and Sanggar, as described earlier, is tectonic in origin while the rest of the islands is volcanic in origin. The subduction zone in this area is particularly active, triggering about 4 earthquakes with intensity above 8 Mw in the past century. The volcanoes in this area are also one of the most active, notably being Mount Canting, whose eruption in 1961 is the most destructive in Samudera in the whole 20th century. The Sanggaric Highland is also formed from the dormant volcanic chain, the highest being mount Lamun which is also the highest point on Samudera.

Sanggar is also one of the most volcanically active islands in Samudera. Lake Tong was the site of the past violent volcanic activity in the immediate area. Having an area of approximately 686 km², it was the caldera of a historic supervolcano Tong that erupted 120,000 years ago. Regarded as one of the most violent eruptions in the entire history of the Isles, the supervolcano collapsed due to its sheer amount of material ejected. It is speculated to have triggered a small ice age due to the huge amount of sulphur deposited in the atmosphere immediately after the eruption. Mount Polah, and Barong Island where it is located in the middle of the lake is a resurgent dome of the Tong Supervolcano, though it hasn’t seen activity since its last eruption in 1273.

Earthquakes and tsunami
Major earthquakes and tsunami had occurred many times in Samudera, due to the existence of major megathrust in the Sanggar Trench. As a result, it has in many ways shaped Samuderan history and its awareness in regards to earthquake and tsunami hazards. Destructive earthquakes have hit the nations many times in the history, most of them recorded in the Tsunami Records of Samudera, made by the Kingdom of Sanggar and Samudera throughout its lifetime. The biggest earthquakes that occurred in the Sanggar Megathrust is acknowledged to be the 1999 Southern Sanggar earthquake, also dubbed the Great Sanggar Earthquake due to its sheer magnitude of destruction across Samudera. The 9.0 Mw earthquake devastated most of the South Sanggar that was in a period of reconstruction following the 25-years long insurgency. This stalled the reconstruction and development of the Southern Sanggar that still plaguing the region until the present day. The earthquake also caused tsunamis that reached as high as 20 metres in Sailendra, and devastated some of Negarakita, Townside, and Ainslie coast.

The Great Gael Fault in the west of Samudera also posed a threat of earthquake, though none have occurred in the recorded history.

Administrative geography

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Samudera is divided into a nested hierarchy of state subdivisions with 6 states and 1 special capital region (SCR) as the primary unit. States are further subdivided into component cities and shires, both of which consist of kapangonan, the smallest local government unit.

Smaller subdivisions exist in all states (with the SCR as an exception), though its name differed between regions. In cities and urban areas alike, it is usually called kansala and further down there is kamadan. Most rural areas are usually only grouped into several districts, with name differed from one state to another. In North Sanggar for example, it is called kasimatan.

Climate

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Samudera has a predominant humid subtropical climate (Cfa), with a subtropical highland climate in the highland and mountains (Cfb highland) and a dry summer climate on some patches in northern Samudera. (Csa) Rainfall is almost constant throughout the year, with little variation apparent.

Temperature remains constant throughout the year in most area, with an average temperature of 21°C in the coastal area and further inland and higher elevated areas having 16°C averages. Samudera’s temperature is higher than its surrounding due to the existence of warm water current from the Southern Sea, and the semi-arid central west of Ainslie to an extent. Winter is usually mild in most area, with snow being a rare occurrence when the cold air mass from northern Ainslie came through the Islands, although snow could be seen in the coldest month of winter in Sanggarian Highland and some of the highest mountain peak in Samudera.

Samudera’s relative humidity ranges from 60% to 90%, though it is generally drier the more northern the land is as they are much closer to the semi-arid central west in Ainslie, especially in the dry summer climate patch (Csa) in Rembulan island, near Enerah.

Typhoon occasionally strikes Samudera throughout June-September period, though it is rarely destructive as Samudera sits at a relatively high latitude. Typhoon Nate that struck Samudera last September was a rare case, as it ravaged Samudera as a Category 3 typhoon. It was the worst typhoon in the last century that has struck Samudera.

Environmental issues

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Samudera’s high population density and rapid industrialisation present serious environmental issues, which are often given a lower priority due to over-bureaucratisation and weak and corrupt governance. Issues include large-scale deforestation (much of it illegal) and related wildfires causing heavy smog over parts of eastern Samudera and southern Ainslie; over-exploitation of marine resources; and environmental problems associated with rapid urbanisation and economic development, including air pollution, traffic congestion, waste management, and reliable water and wastewater services.
Deforestation makes Samudera one the Isles largest emitters of greenhouse gases per capita, though efforts has been implemented to cull this problem. Habitat destruction threatens the survival of indigenous and endemic species, including 32 species of mammals identified as threatened, and 9 identified as critically endangered, including the Sanggaric Tiger.

In 1970, 20% of Samuderans lived in cities compared to over 60% today, and this increases pressure on the urban environment. Industrial pollution is increasing, particularly in Enerah, and the increasing affluence of the growing middle class drives a rapid increase in the number of motor vehicles and associated emissions. Garbage and wastewater services are being placed under increasing pressure. Reliance on septic systems or effluent disposal in open canals and river systems remains the norm and is a major polluter of water resources. Few Samuderans have access to safe drinking water and must boil water before use.

The geographical resources of the Samuderan archipelago have been exploited in ways that fall into consistent social and historical patterns. One cultural pattern consists of the formerly Buddhist, rice-growing peasants in the valleys and plains of Sanggar and Kraton another cultural complex is composed of the largely Christian coastal commercial sector, a third, more marginal sector consists of the upland forest farming communities which exist by means of subsistence swidden agriculture. To some degree, these patterns can be linked to the geographical resources themselves, with abundant shorelines, generally calm seas, and steady winds favouring the use of sailing vessels, and fertile valleys and plains—at least in the Hutama islands—permitting irrigated rice farming. The heavily forested, mountainous interior hinders overland communication by road or river but fosters slash-and-burn agriculture.

Global warming and sea level rise also impact Samudera greatly. Almost all big cities of Samudera is located on the coast, with some city’s elevation barely above sea level. The sea level rise threatened the home to almost five million peoples in Samudera. Kotapura, the most populated city on Samudera and having the lowest elevation among all Samuderan cities, has experienced seawater flooding and contaminated groundwater in some places. Plans are being drafted to build a giant sea wall to protect the city from sea level rise. Sea level rise also eroded some of Samuderan frail coast, resulting in the destruction of coastal settlement and habitation.

Natural disasters

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Samudera’s location on the subduction zone between plates put them under the threat of earthquake and volcanic eruption, along with its position between Southern Sea and the peninsula where Verdon and Ainslie lie.

Natural resources

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Minerals and petroleum
Samudera produces petroleum and is a net exporter, though current trends showed that the rate of production couldn’t meet the nation’s demand in the next ten years. Samudera also produces liquefied natural gas as well as various other related products, most of which are found off the coasts of South Sanggar and eastern coast of Burata.

Samudera also has a huge amount of coal deposits, mainly found in the Bharatan (Western) islands. Approximately 60 million tonnes of coals were exported every year, with further 5 million used domestically.

Iron deposits are found also in the Bharatan islands, and to a certain extent in Galuh island. Gold and silver are occasionally found in the iron deposits. Regulations ratified in 2012 concerning illegal mines have a profound effect on the metal extraction industry in Bharatan islands, especially Banggai island where most of the rivers there were contaminated by mercury in the gold extraction process.

Uranium was rumoured to be mined in Galuh island during the height of Cold War, though it was never confirmed or denied by the government. It is suspected that uranium was exported to Thuzbekistan for a discrete nuclear program.

Forestry
Timber can be found in the vast forests in Samudera, especially in western Samuderan islands and Highlands. Samudera total exports for timber and other timber products contributed to around 5% of the total Samuderan exports.

Geographical facts

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Area:
total land area: 51,154 km² (land: 50,070 km2 , inland water: 1,084 km2)

Coastline: 6,324 km

Maritime claims: measured from claimed archipelagic baselines
territorial sea: 12 nmi (13.8 mi; 22.2 km)
exclusive economic zone: 200 nmi (230.2 mi; 370.4 km)

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Sea level at 0 m (sea surface level); deepest depth of Sanggar Trench at -8,345 m
highest point: Mount Lamun, 1254 m

Land use:
arable land: 9.43%
permanent crops: 16.98%
other: 73.59% (2013)

Natural resources: coal, petroleum, natural gas, tin, nickel, timber, bauxite, copper, fertile soils, gold, silver