Comparison of 3 Island as of 2010

                         Area(km2)         Population       Tourist(/Yr)
Jeju Island             1,845                 570,000           7,570,000
HongKong              1,095               6,870,000         13,000,000    
Singapore                 648               4,020,000          7,690,000  


Jeju-Nature’s paradise in the north pacific
Jeju has a mild oceanic climate throughout the year with the smallest annual temperature range in the country. The temperature for the hottest summer months averages no more than 34.7℃and no less than -1.5℃ for winter.
The island is 73km wide and 41km long with a total area of 1,848 Jeju the largest island in South Korea, came into existence 700 to 1,200 thousand years ago when lava spewed from a sub-sea volcano and surfaced above the waters. Then 100 to 300 thousand years ago, another volcanic eruption formed Mt. Halla. The final volcanic eruption that took place approximately 25 thousand years ago created the crater lake, Baekrok-dam, at the summit of the mountain.
Mt. Halla rises in the center of Jeju to 1950m above sea level. The rest of the island slopes down from its summit and is covered with dark gray volcanic rocks and volcanic ash soil. Relatively isolated from the rest of the world, the island’s nature has been well preserved in its prehistoric state. That is why traveling to Jeju is to travel back in time.
Jeju’s natural environment has been preserved as best as possible. The fantastically shaped rocks decorating the seashores, the hundreds of Oreums(secondary volcanos) and the rarest species of flora around the Baekrok-dam lake are all treasures waiting to be discovered by visitors. One cannot see Jeju unless one looks. It is like seeing only trees before entering a forest.

Location
Jeju Special Self-Governing Province is an isolated island south-east of the mainland of South Korea. It is located 154km from Mokpo, 304km from Busan, and 255.1km from Tsushima of Japan. To the east it is facing Tsushima and Janggi prefecture of Japan with the south sea and East China Sea in between. To the west, Jeju faces Shanghai, China with the East China Sea in between. To the south with the South China sea and to the north is the mainland of South Korea with the South Sea in between.
Jeju Special Self-Governing Province’s location is southeast of South Korea. Being placed in the center of Northeast Asia has given it a very important geopolitical location in the past. In 1275 (Empire of Goryeo), the Tamna general headquarters of Won was established here. For more than one century it was the headquarters of the conquering Japanese. In the last Pacific war, many military facilities were established here. During the Korean War, the first army training camp was set up here. This is the historical evidence of Jeju Special Self-Governing Province’s importance in location.

Location in water
Jeju is situated from 126˚08´43"E-126˚58´20" in longitude. The center meridian is 126˚33´. It is about 54´ west of the mainland’s center meridian, 127˚27´30". Mokpo, Gunsan, Incheon, Manpo etc are located on the same center meridian as Jeju Special Self-Governing Province. Excluding subsidiary islands, it ranges from 33˚11´27"N-33˚33´50"N in latitude. Its center latitude line is 33˚22´29"N.
Location in relations
Before modern times, Jeju was mainly used as a penal settlement. Jeju Special Self-Governing Province’s important location hasn’t been greatly used. Even though Korea was very important in geopolitics, its importance was ignored. This is related to Koreas being deeply absorbed into the Chinese culture band, which slowed Korea’s modernization. The perception of an "undeveloped island" was widespread especially when transportation was developed. However, Jeju has developed rapidly since the 1960’s and still rapidly developing.
Area
Jeju Special Self-Governing Province’s total area is 1,848㎢ It is the smallest province of Korea. 1/10 of Gyeongsangbuk-do (the largest province of Korea) and 1/4 of Chungcheongbuk-do (the second smallest province of Korea). The land is generally flat and oval-shaped. Mt. Halla, in the center of the island, provides contour lines which form concentric circles, letting the cultivated lands spread on the sea coast. Hilly areas of 200-300m above sea level are gently sloped but most of them are idle land or meadows.
The sea coast area (less than 200m above sea level) is 1,013.5㎢ It occupies 54.9% of the whole area and is mainly used for farm land or residential areas. The mid mountainous area (200-500m above sea level) is 496.98㎢ It occupies 26.9% of the whole area and is mainly meadow or idle land. The low mountainous area of 500-1000m above sea level is 253.34㎢ It occupies 13.7% of the whole area and is mainly woods, mushroom-raising land and tourist sites. An alpine region of 1000m above sea level is 81.77㎢ It occupies 4.5% of the whole Island area which is being protected by the designation as a national park.
The area of Jeju-si is 977.9㎢, Seogwipo-si is 870.4㎢ the areas of Jeju-si and Seogwipo-si are high in relation to their populations. This is because each city includes farmland, meadow, idle land and even the top of the mountain.

Temperature
Jeju surrounded by sea on all sides, is categorized as a volcanic island in subtropical zone. Jeju displays a temperate oceanic climate because the Kuroshio Current and the Tshushima current have a direct effect on the island.



The annual average temperature reaches 11.7 degreesC, with Seogwipo boasting the highest and the peak of mount the Halla the lowest. The annual average temperature of Jeju is relatively low, compared with those of other places at the same latitude of the earth. This is due to the cold winter seasons, which is influence of continental climate, and also by summers that do not become too hot due to the cool oceanic currents. The annual temperatures of Jeju City and Seogwipo City for the last 30 years are reported to be 15.2 degreesC and 15.9 degreesC respectively.

Winters in Jeju are rather short and warm, compared with those of the mainland. One cannot experience a monthly average temperature of Jeju slipping down below 0 degreesC. From a climateological perspective, there is no winter in the lsland, if winter is measured as a time period when the lowest monthly temperature is below 0 degreesC. The time period of temperatures below 0 degreesC are over 100 days at the middle and northern areas of the mainland and about 50-100 at the southern areas and only 17 at Jeju.  


Rainfall
The annual precipitation of Jeju for the last 30 years is reported to be 2,044mm for the island as a whole, and 1,560mm for the coastal areas.  

The annual precipitation of Jeju for the last 30 years is reported to be 2,044mm for the island as a whole, and 1,560mm for the coastal areas. The annual average amount of rainfall on Jeju is relatively high, compared with those of other places on the same latitude of the earth. The reason is that mount Hallasan, at the center of the island, serves to block the effect of air masses of high humidity that move from the coastal areas. The amounts of rainfalls are the highest at the southeast areas of mount Halla. In addition, the precipitation on mid-slopes and ridges of the mountain reaches 1,780mm and 2,766mm respectively.

About 43% of the annual rainfalls are reported in June, July, August on Jeju compared with 60% for Seoul and 51% for Daegu. The evenly distributed rainfalls on Jeju are attributable to high amounts of precipitation in the Spring and Fall seasons. The island is unique in that the so-called _Bracken Rainy Spell,_ prior to the monsoon season, sweeps through the island in the Spring. In the Spring rainy season, a series of drizzles serves to make Spring the second highest rainy season, providing 23% of the annual precipitation. The "Bracken Rainy Spell" is equivalent to the "zzu you" in Japan.  

Wind
Jeju is called "The Island of 3 multitudes," which are stones, winds, and women. Wind is one of the three major factors affecting climate, that includes temperature and rainfall, and plays a decisive role in the shaping of it.  

The average wind velocity across coastal areas of the island reaches 3.5�� Western areas of the island, centering on Moseulpo, are categorized as areas with strong winds, reaching 4.1��Generally, areas with strong winds are densely located in the northeast coastal areas of the lsland, which are heavily affected by the winter seasonal winds, whereas areas with mild winds lie in the southeast coastal areas. Effective temperature, triggered by wind, would have a cooling effect to the nominal temperature by 1.3�� in summer and 2.6�� in winter. Jeju has the second most frequent rainstorms, over 10m per second with 117 days a year, following Ulreung Island, which records 179 days. Annual average wind velocity is 4.7 m per second on Jeju, compare with 2.5m in Seoul and 1.3 m in Junggangjin.

Rainstorm days throughout the 4 seasons reveal that winter is the season with the windiest days of 36.7%, followed by spring with 27.3%, and summer and fall with 17.9% respectively. The reason that winter has the most windy days lies in the fact that barometric pressure in winter, a gap between air pressure of land and that of sea, is much greater than that in the summer. A report, tracing typhoons of the North Pacific for 43 years (1940~1982), indicates that a total of 110 typhoons had passed Jeju, which would mark Jeju as the area with the most typhoons in Korea. Thus, it is safe to say that the winter on Jeju is the season of rainstorms whereas the summer is the season of typhoons.