Madrid economic, cultural, industrial, educational, and technological centre on the European continent. Madrid lies on the southern Meseta Central, 60 km south of the Guadarrama mountain range and straddling the Jarama and Manzanares river sub-drainage basins, in the wider Tagus River catchment area. There is a considerable difference in altitude within city limits ranging from in the Manzanares riverbanks in the southeast of the municipality to above sea level in the highest part of the Fuencarral-El Pardo district. Over a quarter of the Madrid municipal area is covered by the largely forested protected area of El Pardo. Madrid has an inland
Community of Madrid fluvial river basins. Province of Madrid occupies a surface area of approximately 8,028 km (1.6% of all Spanish territory). More specifically, the exact position of Madrid is 3° 40´ of longitude west of Greenwich, England, and 40° 23´ north of the equator. Practically all of the Province is located between 600 and 1,000 m above sea level, with the highest point being Peñalara at 2,430 m and the lowest Alberche river in Villa del Prado at 430 m. Other considerable heights, as well as being famous, are the Ball of the World mountain (la Bola del Mundo) in Navacerrada, at