Where are the Paracel Islands in the South China Sea?

The Paracel Islands are located in the northwest of the South China Sea and southeast of Hainan Island, at 15°40'-17°10' north latitude and 111°-113° east longitude, with Yongxing Island as the center and about 10 kilometers away from Yulingang, Sanya City. It is 330 kilometers away from Qinglan Port in Wenchang City.

The Xisha Islands have the most islands among the islands in the South China Sea, with the largest island area (Yongxing Island) and the highest altitude (Shidao). It is the only cemented rock island (Shidao is a late Pleistocene sand dune Rock) and the only abiotic island (High Pointed Rock), and has the largest total land area (more than 8 square kilometers). The Xisha Islands are located 310km southeast of Hainan Island. The submarine topography is the Xisha Step on the northern continental slope of the South China Sea. It is a submarine plateau with a water depth of 1,500 to 2,000 meters higher than the central abyssal plain of the South China Sea. There are many coral reefs in the Xisha Islands, including 8 atolls, 1 platform reef, and 1 reef beach. The dry reef area is 1836.4 km2, of which the reef flat area is 221.6 km2 and the lagoon area is 1614.8 km2. There are a total of 28 gray sand islands developed on atolls and platform reefs. In addition, there is an Early Pleistocene volcanic breccia island called Gaojianshi on Dongdao Atoll.