Geography & Climate

Khon Kaen province is located in the heart of northeastern Thailand in the area often referred to as Isaan.

The provincial capital, Khon Kaen city, is approximately 450 km north east of the nation’s capital, Bangkok. Khon Kaen covers an area of 13,404 sq km of the so-called Khorat or northeastern plateau, making it the fifteenth largest province in Thailand.

Khon Kaen province is surrounded by nine other Thai provinces. To the North are Loei, Nong Bua Lam Phu and Udon Thani. To the east are Kalasin and Maha Sarakham. Buri Ram and Nakhon Ratchasima are to the south with Chaiyaphum and Phetchabun to the west.

As with the rest of Isaan, the overall topography of this province is mostly flat and semi-arid. There are a few mountain ranges in the west and some other parts have areas of sloping and undulating land drained by the Chi river basin.

In addition to the Chi river which rises in Chaiyaphum, the Nam Pong river flows from Loei and also passes through Khon Kaen province. Both rivers merge further downstream in Maha Sarakham province and ultimately flow into the Mekong and Mun rivers. Despite being mainly flat and semi-arid, Khon Kaen province is also home to a number of national parks, including Phu Kao-Phu Phan Kham National Park.

In 1995, the total land area of Khon Kaen province was classified as follows:

Forest land – 7.5%

Farm land – 61.9%

Unclassified land – 30.6%

Although they are yet to be economically developed, natural resources in Khon Kaen are considered plentiful. Such resources include natural gas, petroleum, copper, phosphates, rock salt and uranium.

The small forest areas that still remain are mostly situated in the northwest corner of the province. Fortunately, many forest preservation projects are now already in progress to try and counter the ecological problems and the effects of both man-made and natural deforestation in these areas.

Situated in the heart of the most semi-arid region of northeastern Thailand or Isaan, the climate in this province is generally considered to be much dryer and hotter when compared to the rest of the country, especially the north. The mean temperature in 1997 was 27.2º Celsius.

There are, however, still three distinct seasons; the hot or dry season, the rainy season and the cool season. During the winter months, temperatures at night can drop considerably. At most other times during the year, day and night temperatures do not vary significantly and are generally just hot!

The limited rainy season is mainly dictated by the rainfall pattern of the southwest monsoons and tropical cyclones originating in the South China Sea. Normally these run from May until October. Lighter rains may also occur from February to April, however, these are brought by the Bengal cyclones from across the Andaman Sea.

Annual rainfall (1997) - 898 mm

Number of days of rain - 101

The cold dry northeast monsoon brings a distinct cool and dry season from November to mid-February.

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