The Hsinchu administrative district includes Xiangshan and covers an area of about 104 square kilometers. It has gained considerable prosperity and an international reputation since the creation of the Hsinchu Science-based industrial Park Hsinchu City is in the northwestern part of Hsinchu County, its point rising 120 meters above sea. The Hsinchu plain slopes upward to the east, and merges into Eighteen Peaks Mountain and Niupu Mountains. Most of the eastern part of the county is covered with foothills and small mountains.