Final Blog

Monaco consists of two seasons; summer and winter. Summer in Monaco is warm and humid, while winter is mild and rainy. These seasons classify Monaco as a mild mid-latitude climate (Cs). The coastal landscape allows for depositional landforms to occur, such as beautiful beaches. Large jetties on the coast form Monaco’s harbors, Port of Monaco and Port of Fontvielle. The Rock of Monaco juts out from the landscape, created by erosion, leaving an erosional landform. The 450-foot wave cut sea cliffs make this monolith a unique part of the landscape. 

The Harbors of Monaco, from Travel World website

Ten years would not change much of the landscape of Monaco. The convergence of the Eurasian plate and the African plate may cause the mountain in which Monaco is located at the foothills of, Mont Agel, to rise slightly. The faults along the mountainside will continue to crack and expand; creating more joints and fractures. The tafoni along the walls of the cliffs would expand due to salt weathering, and the cliffs of the Rock of Monaco would erode slightly more since it is not protected by anything. Overall, ten years would not yield much change in the coastal landscape. 

100 years of weathering, erosion and plate convergence would take a toll on the landscape of Monaco. The rock of Monaco will definitely have continued to erode more severely. As salt weathering and other elements of weather decay the cliffs of The Rock of Monaco, the entire monolith will gradually become smaller, causing society to move buildings further inland on the rock. Faults and joints on Mont Agel will become much more severe, and faulting of the rocks will cause pressure release shells to literally pop off the side of the mountain. 

An example of pressure release shells.

The landscape would be much different in 1000 years. The most prominent change would be The Rock of Monaco. The monolith is exposed and vulnerable to weathering and elements. The Rock's cliff's plunge into the Mediterranean Sea, and 1000 years of weathering would erode and almost deplete the monolith. Society would be forced off the rock, and the Rock of Monaco could eventually become tombolo. Converging plate tectonics take a toll on Mont Agel, causing it's peak to rise higher than before, or the joints and fractures be so severe that the foothills would be almost unrecognizable. The most obvious way to recognize change in the landscape will be to see how the city and people of Monaco will have been forced to change. 

The photo shows an example of a tombolo. Thanks to Dr. Casey Allen's website.

Humans have packed buildings and city structures into the coastal landscape. When you look past the buildings, roads, and harbors of Monaco, you can recognize the natural beauty of the landscape. The foothills of Mont Agel create a beautiful backdrop between France and Monaco, and the white beaches separate it from the Mediterranean Sea. It's mild climate makes a fairly ideal place to live, if you can afford it. The Rock of Monaco makes for great sight-seeing, as it overlooks the sea and its views are not obstructed by other landforms. If you plan on visiting Monaco, make sure it's within the next 1000 years, so you can appreciate the landscape the way it is today before it changes! 

From In Spirit Magazine

Monaco is known as a beautiful vacation stop because of it's enjoyable, calm climate. Located directly on the Mediterranean sea, Monaco has a mild mid-latitude climate, or a "mediterranean" climate (Cs). The constant breeze from the sea keeps the city-state from reaching scorching temperatures in it's summer months. 

Climate Data of Monaco 

Monaco has just two seasons, a summer and a winter. Summer in Monaco is typically warm and humid with no rain, while the winter is fairly mild and rainy. These seasons are what classifies Monaco as a "Cs" (Mediterranean) climate.

Another idea of year-round temperature and humidity 

If you are planning to vacation in Monaco, the summer months would be the best for lying on the beach and catching some sun. Although humidity can be higher in the summer, the winter months would be too cold for swimming. If you plan just to sight see and don't mind the cold sea breeze, the winter months are for you. 

Monaco may be the second smallest country in the world, but that does not limit it's endless geographic features. Probably the most interesting and largest tourist attraction of Monaco is The Rock of Monaco. Looking closely at the rock, you can recognize many features that have been created by weathering. 

You first notice the massive joints, or fractures, in the side of the Rock of Monaco. These joints create spaces in the rock, ideal for rock climbing, as seen below. These joints were likely created by the faulting or folding of the tectonic plates in which Monaco is located. We know this because the joints are vertical. 

Rock Of Monaco, coronn.com

When you look close at certain parts of the rock walls, you also see some vegetation that grows out of the rock. The joints in the rock allow the small shrubs to grow through. 

dalje.com

Another thing you notice on the large walls of the Rock of Monaco is the round holes sunk into the side. These hole-looking features are called "tafoni". Tafoni is created by cavernous weathering, or salt weathering. You can see small examples of tafoni in the picture below. 

coronn.com

There are many interesting geographic formations about Monaco. The most prominent feature of this unique city-state is the fact that it is located at the base of the mountains, along the Mediterranean Sea. If one were to look at a photograph of Monaco, it appears as if the city is crammed just between the mountains and the sea.

The large mountain that Monaco is located at is named Mont Agel. This mountain is 1,148 meters tall, but its peak actually lies in France. The tallest point of Monaco is on it’s slope, at 161 meters. The interesting thing about this landform is that it appears to have been created by converging plate tectonics. Monaco lies just on the boundary of the Eurasian plate and the African plate. The force of these two plates pushing together is likely what caused Mont Agel to rise.

Map of Plate boundaries 

If you look at the mountain, you will also notice the layers and patterns of sedimentary rock, or strata. The mountain also features many faults, also caused by the pressure of the moving plate tectonics. 

Rock of Monaco

Possibly the most interesting geographic feature of Monaco is called “The Rock Of Monaco”. This rock can be described as a “monolith”, or an area where erosion exposes metamorphic or igneous rock. The creation of The Rock of Monaco was caused by mechanical erosion, as you can see through the rough appearance of the rock. 

All of these mountainous features are a part of what makes Monaco so beautiful. 

Hello and welcome to my blog! My name is Lyndsey Roberts and I am from Denver, Colorado. I attend school at the University of Colorado in Denver. I have recently started attending a geography class and am so excited to begin learning about what shapes our Earth!

I have chosen to write a blog about the beautiful city-state of Monaco. Monaco is located on the French Riviera, and is completely surrounded on three sides by France. I originally noted Monaco’s geographic beauty when watching one of the most prestigious Formula One races on TV, The Monaco Grand Prix. Upon watching the auto race, I noticed the small streets, the constant change of elevation throughout the city, and the beautiful harbor of Monaco. Since then, I have always dreamed of visiting Monaco, perhaps to watch the Grand Prix in the real. I think Monaco is extremely unique because of its location on the water, and the fact that it is not a part of France. On the coast of the Mediterranean Sea, Monaco experiences fair weather conditions all year round, and is a very desirable tourist town. Perhaps, someday in the distant future, I will retire in Monaco. Until then, I shall study it’s geographic wonders!