The island is roughly oval, about 4.3 kilometres (2.7 mi) long, 3 kilometres (1.9 mi) wide and 11.48 km² (4.43 sq mi) in area.
 It lies nearly halfway between Yemen 115 km (71 mi) to the east and Eritrea about 150 km (93 mi) south west.
 It is about 82 km (51 mi) from the Yemeni Kamaran Island; the Saudi Arabian Farasan Islands lie to the north east.

The island comprises the basaltic stratovolcano Jabal al-Tair (Tair Mountain; Arabic: جبل الطير‎ Jabal aṭ-Ṭayr, literally, "Bird Mountain") rising from seabed some 1,200 metres (3,940 ft) below the surface of the Red Sea, continuing for 244 m (801 feet) above the surface up to the summit of the crater.
 The volcano was wrongly considered "recently extinct" by 1982.

It was the northernmost known Holocene volcano in the Red Sea, with one central vent, Jebel Duchan.
 It lies in the volcanic and geologically active region of the Red Sea Rift, the divergent boundary between the African Plate and the Arabian Plate.

In 1900 the British Admiralty described the island as having no natural water supply, and having a high conical peak rising above a basalt bluff some 300 feet (90 m) above a gradual littoral.
The prominent profile made it an ideal landmark for Red Sea shipping, and the steep drop-off below sea level meant that it might be safely run for.

The island has no settled population, but some parts of the island have allowed for the seasonal presence of fishermen.
The island is roughly oval, about 4.3 kilometres (2.7 mi) long, 3 kilometres (1.9 mi) wide and 11.48 km² (4.43 sq mi) in area.  It lies nearly halfway between Yemen 115 km (71 mi) to the east and Eritrea about 150 km (93 mi) south west.  It is about 82 km (51 mi) from the Yemeni Kamaran Island; the Saudi Arabian Farasan Islands lie to the north east.
The island comprises the basaltic stratovolcano Jabal al-Tair (Tair Mountain; Arabic: جبل الطير‎ Jabal aṭ-Ṭayr, literally, "Bird Mountain") rising from seabed some 1,200 metres (3,940 ft) below the surface of the Red Sea, continuing for 244 m (801 feet) above the surface up to the summit of the crater.  The volcano was wrongly considered "recently extinct" by 1982.
It was the northernmost known Holocene volcano in the Red Sea, with one central vent, Jebel Duchan.  It lies in the volcanic and geologically active region of the Red Sea Rift, the divergent boundary between the African Plate and the Arabian Plate.
In 1900 the British Admiralty described the island as having no natural water supply, and having a high conical peak rising above a basalt bluff some 300 feet (90 m) above a gradual littoral. The prominent profile made it an ideal landmark for Red Sea shipping, and the steep drop-off below sea level meant that it might be safely run for.
The island has no settled population, but some parts of the island have allowed for the seasonal presence of fishermen.
Jabal al-Tair Island