The largest island of the group is Malta, from which the archipelago takes its name. Its capital city is Valletta, named after the historic grand master of the Order of the Knights of St John, La Vallette.
The other inhabited island is Gozo, which can be reached from Malta either by the ferry service from Cirkewwa and Pieta', or by the helicopter operating from Luqa. Comino, Cominetto, Filfla and St Paul's Islands are the other major features of the archipelago. Of these only Comino, straddled between Malta and Gozo, sustains a very tiny population.
The distance between Malta and the nearest point in Sicily is about 93 km., while that from the nearest point on the African mainland is 288km.(see map below)
The total area of the Maltese Islands is 246 sq km. The longest distance in Malta from the south-east to the north-west is just 27 km, and the widest distance is 14 km in an east-westerly direction.
The length of the shoreline around Malta is 136 km and 43km round Gozo.
Winter in Malta is short and mild, while Summers are warm but not too hot,except for a day or two. The total annual rainfall is about 50cm (20 ins) and the average winter temperature is 12 degress C (54 degrees F).
