'Coastlines' are tricky to pin down. Do you measure them around every tiny inlet? Every jutting rock? At the high- or low- tide line?
The answer to this is key to finding out which country has the longest coastline in the world.
- What’s the hottest place on Earth? And where's the biggest desert?
- How many rainforests are there in the world - and just what's so special about them? Uncover the hidden secrets of these special habitats
- Why are pink lakes pink? The science behind nature's most vibrant waters
Estimates for any given country vary wildly. The coast of Norway, for example, is listed as the second longest (83,281km) by the CIA’s World Factbook, but only the seventh longest (53,199km) by the World Resources Institute (WRI).
Which country has the longest coastline?
The longest coastline of all – measuring 202,080km (according to the CIA) or 265,523km (as stated by the WRI) – belongs to Canada, a big country with very crinkly edges and many offshore islands. It's surrounded by three oceans: the Arctic ocean, Atlantic ocean and Pacific ocean.
Discover Canadian wildlife: