Editing Geography of Bangladesh (section)

==Physical geography==
[[File:Land cover bangladesh.jpg|thumb|Land cover map of Bangladesh<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Uddin|first1=Kabir|last2=Matin|first2=Mir A.|last3=Meyer|first3=Franz J.|date=January 2019|title=Operational Flood Mapping Using Multi-Temporal Sentinel-1 SAR Images: A Case Study from Bangladesh|journal=Remote Sensing|language=en|volume=11|issue=13|pages=1581|doi=10.3390/rs11131581|bibcode=2019RemS...11.1581U|doi-access=free}}</ref>]]
[[File:him.ogg|thumb|''Satellite photographs (from Terra-MODIS) and computer-generated models help visualise Bangladesh's place in the world. Located in South Asia, it is virtually surrounded by India and the Bay of Bengal to the south. But in many ways, the country's fate is dominated by the world's highest mountain range looming to the north-the Himalayas.''<ref name="NASA">{{cite web |last=[[NASA]]/Goddard Space Flight Center |first=Scientific Visualization Studio |date=18 April 2002 |url=http://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/vis/a000000/a002400/a002431/index.html |title=Himalayas Exaggerated (version 2.2) |format=MPEG |access-date=30 April 2007 |archive-date=13 November 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071113190024/http://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/vis/a000000/a002400/a002431/index.html |url-status=live}}</ref>]]

The [[physical geography]] of Bangladesh is varied and has an area characterised by two distinctive features: a broad [[river delta|deltaic]] [[plain]] subject to frequent flooding, and a small hilly region crossed by swiftly flowing rivers. The country has an area of {{convert|147570|sqkm}} (according to BBS 2020)<ref name="bbs">{{cite book |script-title=bn:বাংলাদেশ পরিসংখ্যান বর্ষগ্রন্থ ২০২০ – Bangladesh Statistics annual book 2020 |url=http://bbs.portal.gov.bd/sites/default/files/files/bbs.portal.gov.bd/page/b2db8758_8497_412c_a9ec_6bb299f8b3ab/2021-08-11-04-54-154c14988ce53f65700592b03e05a0f8.pdf |publisher=Bangladesh Statistics Bureau |page=21 |isbn=978-984-475-047-0 |access-date=12 November 2021 |archive-date=29 October 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211029112227/http://bbs.portal.gov.bd/sites/default/files/files/bbs.portal.gov.bd/page/b2db8758_8497_412c_a9ec_6bb299f8b3ab/2021-08-11-04-54-154c14988ce53f65700592b03e05a0f8.pdf |url-status=live}}</ref> or {{convert|148460|sqkm}} (according to CIA World Factbook 2021)<ref name="bdarea">{{cite web |url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/bangladesh |title=South Asia :: Bangladesh — The World Factbook |publisher=[[Central Intelligence Agency]] |accessdate=13 November 2020 |archive-date=12 November 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211112184540/https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/bangladesh/ |url-status=live}}</ref> and extends {{convert|820|km}} north to south and {{convert|600|km}} east to west. Bangladesh is bordered on the west, north, and east by a {{convert|4095|km}} land frontier with India and, in the southeast, by a short land and water frontier of {{convert|193|km}} with [[Myanmar]]. On the south is a highly irregular deltaic coastline of about {{convert|580|km}}, fissured by many rivers and streams flowing into the [[Bay of Bengal]]. The [[territorial waters]] of Bangladesh extend {{convert|12|nmi|km}}, and the exclusive economic zone of the country is {{convert|200|nmi|km}}.

Roughly 80% of the landmass is made up of fertile alluvial lowland called the Bangladesh Plain. The plain is part of the larger Plain of Bengal, which is sometimes called the Lower Gangetic Plain. Although, altitudes up to {{convert|105|m}} above sea level occur in the northern part of the plain, most elevations are less than {{convert|10|m}} above sea level; elevations decrease in the coastal south, where the terrain is generally at sea level. With such low elevations and numerous rivers, water—and concomitant flooding—is a predominant physical feature. About {{convert|10000|sqkm}} of the total area of Bangladesh is covered with water, and larger areas are routinely flooded during the monsoon season.

The only exceptions to Bangladesh's low elevations are the [[Chittagong Hills]] in the southeast, the Low Hills of Sylhet in the northeast, and highlands in the north and northwest. The Chittagong Hills constitute the only significant hill system in the country and, in effect, are the western fringe of the north–south mountain ranges of Myanmar and eastern India. The Chittagong Hills rise steeply to narrow ridgelines, generally no wider than {{convert|36|m}}, with altitudes from {{convert|600|to|900|m}} above sea level. [[Saka Haphong|Saka Haphong Mountain]] is the highest peak in Bangladesh with an elevation of {{convert|1052|m}}, located in the south-eastern part of the hills. Fertile valleys lie between the hill lines, which generally run north–south. West of the Chittagong Hills is a broad plain, cut by rivers draining into the Bay of Bengal, that rises to a final chain of low coastal hills, mostly below {{convert|200|m}}, that attain a maximum elevation.

In Bangladesh [[forest cover]] is around 14% of the total land area, equivalent to 1,883,400 hectares (ha) of forest in 2020, down from 1,920,330 hectares (ha) in 1990. In 2020, naturally regenerating forest covered 1,725,330 hectares (ha) and planted forest covered 158,070 hectares (ha). Of the naturally regenerating forest 0% was reported to be [[primary forest]] (consisting of native tree species with no clearly visible indications of human activity) and around 33% of the forest area was found within protected areas. For the year 2015, 100% of the forest area was reported to be under [[State ownership|public ownership]].<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://openknowledge.fao.org/server/api/core/bitstreams/a6e225da-4a31-4e06-818d-ca3aeadfd635/content |title=Terms and Definitions FRA 2025 Forest Resources Assessment, Working Paper 194 |publisher=Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations |year=2023}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Global Forest Resources Assessment 2020, Bangladesh |url=https://fra-data.fao.org/assessments/fra/2020/BGD/home/overview |website=Food Agriculture Organization of the United Nations}}</ref>

The country produces large quantities of quality timber, bamboo, and sugarcane. Bamboo grows in almost all areas, but high-quality timber grows mostly in the highland valleys. Rubber planting in the hilly regions of the country was undertaken in the 1980s, and rubber extraction had started by the end of the decade. A variety of wild animals are found in the forest areas, such as in [[Sundarbans|the Sundarbans]] on the southwest coast, which is the home of the [[Bengal tiger|Royal Bengal tiger]]. The alluvial soils in the Bangladesh Plain are generally fertile and are enriched with heavy silt deposits carried downstream during the rainy season.