The origin of the names of the seven continents and four oceans
1. Asia: In ancient times, people called the place east of the Mediterranean Sea Asia (meaning "the place where the sun rises"). This is located in the east of the earth. Asia is the abbreviation of Asia.
2. Europe: Ancient people called the place west of the Mediterranean Sea Europa (meaning "the place of sunset"). It is located in the west of the earth, and Europe is the abbreviation of Europa.
3. Africa: The full name is "Africa", which in Latin means "scorching sun". Because Africa is crossed by the equator in the middle, many parts of Africa are located in tropical and subtropical regions.
4. America: The general name for North America and South America. America is a so-called "New World" discovered by the Italian Amerigo during his voyage. In order to commemorate the discoverer of the "New World", Europeans called it America after Amerigo, or America for short. .
5. Latin America: refers to the area south of North America. In the past, it was a colony of Latin-speaking countries such as Spain and Portugal, so it is called Latin America.
6. Oceania: Europeans discovered it in the 17th century. It got its name because it is surrounded by the world's oceans and is free from other continents. When it was discovered in the 17th century, people mistakenly thought it was the southernmost continent on earth, so it was called Australia (meaning southern continent) for a long time.
7. Antarctica: The continent where Antarctica is located. This is the true southern continent on earth.
The origin of the names of the Four Oceans
1. The Pacific Ocean was originally called the South China Sea. In 1520, the Portuguese navigator Magellan crossed the Atlantic Ocean and entered the new ocean. The weather there was clear and the waves were calm. It was an "Ocean of Peace" ”, so it was renamed the Pacific Ocean.
2. The Atlantic Ocean comes from the story of Hercules in ancient Greek mythology. Atlas, the Hercules, stole fire from heaven and gave it to the human world, and supported the separation of heaven and earth. People miss him, It is believed that the distant Western Ocean is "the place where Hercules lives", hence the name Atlantic Ocean.
3. Indian Ocean Ancient Europeans believed that India was the East. In 1497, the Portuguese navigator arrived
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1. Seven Continents Expo (Figure 3-3)
(1) Asia Super Continent
Asia is the abbreviation of Asia. The Phoenicians 2000 years ago, Lived on the east coast of the Mediterranean (today's Syria) and established the powerful Phoenician Kingdom. In order to determine the direction of frequent maritime activities, they called the land east of the Mediterranean Sea "the place where the sun rises"; and the land west of the Mediterranean Sea. It is called "the place where the sun sets". "Asia" evolved from the Phoenician "Asu", which is transliterated as "Asia" and free translated as "the continent of the rising sun". "Ereb" also evolved into "Europa", which is transliterated as "European Continent" and its free translation is "Sunset Continent".
The largest in Asia, the continent spans 164° of longitude, with a time difference of 10 hours between east and west; it spans 90° of latitude, which is 1/4 of the meridian circle. Both the northern and southern hemispheres have their "territories". In terms of area, Japan has 44 million square kilometers, more than four times that of Europe or five times that of Oceania. Asia accounts for almost 3/10 of the world's land mass, making it a unique "supercontinent". The Asian continent and the European continent are connected and are collectively called "Eurasia". Eurasia is the largest continent in the world, with a total area of ??50.71 million square kilometers, of which Asia accounts for 4/5 of the Eurasian continent.
Asia is not only the largest continent in the world, but also has the most "geographical features". It can be seen from the world map that the most beautiful Huacai Islands in the world are embedded in the eastern sea; the sea surrounds the continent from the north, east and south.
It has the longest coastline (69,900 kilometers) and the widest continental shelf (9.26 million square kilometers) in the world. Asia is also a continent with many peninsulas and straits. The number of peninsulas and straits ranks first in the world. The largest peninsula in the world, the Arabian Peninsula (3.22 million square kilometers), juts out from its southwest. The total area of ??the peninsula in the continent is about 10 million square kilometers, making it the continent with the largest peninsula area. The Strait of Malacca and the English Channel in Asia are tied as the busiest straits for transportation in the world; the Strait of Hormuz is the most important "throat" on the world's oil transportation lines. The oil exported from here accounts for one-third of the world's oil, which is of great strategic significance. Asia is still a continent with many islands. The island has a total area of ??2.7 million square kilometers. Although it has not become the "largest in the world", it embraces the largest archipelago in the world, the Malay Archipelago. The archipelago has more than 20,000 islands and covers an area of ??2.427 million square kilometers. There are so many islands and they are widely distributed. It has the largest number of large islands in the world, ranking first in the world.
Asia is also a continent with the most complex natural features. In the landform "genealogy", conventional landforms and special landform types include almost everything. Among them, the number of plains, plateaus, basins and mountains is unmatched by other continents. The world's flattest plain - the West Siberian Plain, the world's highest plateau - the Tibetan Plateau, the world's highest mountain range - the Himalayas, the world's highest mountain - Mount Everest, the world's lowest basin - the Turpan Basin . The lowest part of the world's landmass - the Dead Sea, etc., these "extreme" terrains are all available in Asia. Asia is also the continent with the most active volcanoes (volcanoes that have erupted in human history) in the world, with about 200, accounting for more than half of the total number of active volcanoes in the world. Indonesia is a famous "volcanic country". Asia is also one of the most seismically active continents in the world. Japan, the "country of earthquakes", has an average of four earthquakes every day. In addition, earthquakes in China, Indonesia, the Philippines, and Central Asian countries are also more frequent. The terrain of Asia has a general distribution trend of medium high and low weekly. Due to the relatively late collision between the Indian plate and the Asian plate, the Himalayas and Tibetan Plateau, which were uplifted due to compression, are particularly tall and majestic. The continent is dominated by mountains and plateaus (accounting for 3/4 of the continent's total area), with an average altitude of 950 meters. Apart from Antarctica, Asia is the highest continent in the world.
Asia spans hot, temperate and cold zones and is the continent with the most climate types in the world. Except for the temperate maritime climate, Asia has all the climate types in the world. In particular, the monsoon climate is the largest and most typical in the world in terms of its intensity and wide range of influence. East Asia, Southeast Asia, and South Asia are all famous monsoon areas. Asia is the largest continent in the world with a large land area, which itself has a huge impact on the climate, forming a strong continental climate.
Affected by monsoon rains, Asia has relatively abundant rainfall. Due to the terrain's distribution characteristics of medium-high and low-periphery, the large rivers formed show the characteristics of radiating from the central highlands of the continent to the surrounding lowlands and flowing into the sea. According to statistics, Asia is the continent with the most rivers in the world. There are 60 rivers with a length of more than 1,000 kilometers. Among them, there are seven large rivers with a length of more than 4,000 kilometers. They are the Yangtze River, the Yellow River, the Lancang River (the lower reaches are called the Mekong River), the Heilongjiang River, the Lena River, the Yenisey River and the Ob River. The Yangtze River and the Yellow River are the third and fifth longest rivers in the world respectively. Although there are not many lakes in Asia, there are many "wonder lakes": the Caspian Sea (370,000 square kilometers), a lake with "sea style", is the largest lake in the world; the Dead Sea, a lake with a weird "personality", is It is the lowest lake in the world (-392 meters, also known as -400 meters) and the lake with the highest salinity; there is also the lake of "unknown origin" - Lake Baikal (1620 meters deep), which is the deepest lake in the world and has the most water storage.
Asia is a vast country with abundant resources. The reserves of petroleum, iron, tin, tungsten, magnesium, antimony, rare earth and other minerals rank first in the world, and the reserves of rice, tea, coconut (Figure 3-4), natural rubber (Figure 3-5), cinchona (Figure 3-6) ), abaca (Figure 3-7), teak, pepper, jute, etc., account for more than 80% to 90% of the world's output respectively, and crude oil, fish products, soybeans, and cotton all account for 30% to 40% of the world's total output. Asia's coastal fisheries cover a vast area, accounting for 40% of the world's coastal fisheries area.
Asia has always had the largest population in the world. The global population currently exceeds 5.8 billion, of which Asia alone accounts for 3.4 billion, more than half of the world's population. The country with the largest population is China (more than 1.2 billion). India ranks second with 900 million. Countries with more than 100 million people include Indonesia (194 million), Japan (124 million), Pakistan (137 million), and Bangladesh (122 million) in Asia. Except for Japan, which is a developed country, all other countries in Asia are developing countries.
(2) The peninsula-like continent of Europe
Europe is the abbreviation of "European continent". The European continent and the Asian continent are the same "continent". At the beginning of the 4th century AD, people used the Ural Mountains as their boundary. Artificially dividing them, the area to the east of the Ural Mountains is called Asia, and the area to the west is called Europa.
Looking at the entire Eurasian continent, the European continent is smaller than the Asian continent. The European continent is like a "big peninsula" of the Eurasian continent, stretching to the west. Its area only accounts for 1/5 of the Eurasian continent. Europe covers an area of ??10.16 million square kilometers, ranking sixth among the seven continents in the world. Although Europe is not a large area, it has many geographical features that leave a deep impression on people.
The first is its jagged continental outline. The north, west and south are all surrounded by the sea. The "peninsular continent" extends out to many "sub-level" peninsulas, and there are also many inland seas that extend the water surface deeply into the inland. The coastline of the entire continent is 37,900 kilometers long, making it the continent with the most tortuous coastline in the world. The main peninsulas are Scandinavia in the north and Iberia, the Apennines and the Balkans in the south. The inland seas that extend into the continent include the Mediterranean Sea, the Baltic Sea, and the Black Sea. There are many islands inlaid outside the mainland, making the entire continent graceful and graceful.
Europe also has many unique features in terms of terrain. First of all, the continental plain area accounts for 60% of the continent, which is the highest proportion among all continents in the world. Due to the vast plains, the average altitude of the entire continent is only 300 meters, making it the continent with the lowest average altitude in the world. Plains are mostly distributed in the central part of the continent, arranged in a "one" shape from west to east, including the Western European Plains, the Central European Plains and the Eastern European Plains. Since the Quaternary glaciers once covered the Nordic land, there are many ice trace lakes left on the ground in Northern Europe. Finland alone has 60,000 large and small lakes, making it the world-famous "Land of Thousand Lakes". Southern Europe is a gathering place of high mountains, and the famous Alps are a "masterpiece" created after the collision of the African plate and the European plate. Its main peak, Mont Blanc, is 4,810 meters above sea level and is known as the "Roof of Europe". The peak is covered with glaciers and the scenery is stunning. It is the largest tourist attraction in the Alps. The Mediterranean Sea and coastal areas are the contact area between two major plates, forming the distribution belt of volcanoes and earthquakes in southern Europe. The famous Mount Vesuvius and Mount Etna are located in this area of ??Italy. In 1755, a major earthquake in Lisbon, Portugal, destroyed the old city of Lisbon in 6 minutes.
Although Europe is small in area, it has a large number of countries, 40 in size. Therefore, rivers that are not too long often flow through many countries and become "international rivers", such as the Danube River, the Rhine River, the Oder River, etc.
Europe’s climate is greatly influenced by the North Atlantic warm current and westerly winds. Coupled with the high geographical latitude of the continent (30° to 70° north latitude), Europe has the widest distribution area of ??temperate maritime climate in the world. One continent. The winters here are not too cold, and the summers are not too hot. This climate feature is rare in other continents. In the midsummer of July 1996, when athletes from various countries in the Atlanta Olympics were braving the scorching heat of over 38°C to compete in the sports fields, in the same month in Europe, the maximum temperature forecast in capitals of various countries was only 20 to 25°C. This "low" phenomenon in temperature makes the European climate cooler in summer. According to ethnographer research, the white skin of Europeans is also closely related to the long-term "influence" of the continent's warm and cool climate.
Compared with other continents, Europe is a continent with a high population density, with a population of 769.06 million (second only to Asia). The population density reaches 76 people per square kilometer, ranking first among all continents. 70% of the continent's population lives in cities, making it the most urbanized continent in the world.
99% of the residents are Europeans (Caucasians), and the ethnic composition is relatively homogeneous among all continents.
There are many countries in Europe that were the first countries in the world to enter the ranks of capitalist society. Most countries have now become developed countries, and there are only a few developing countries. In today's world economic field, Europe's economic development level is relatively high, and its total economic output ranks first among all continents. The industrial output value accounts for about 45% of the world, and the agricultural and transportation output value accounts for about 40% of the world (excluding the Asian part of Russia). Europe also has certain advantages in commerce, finance and tourism.
(3) Africa's "Plateau Continent"
In the southwest of the Eastern Hemisphere, there is a slightly triangular continent. This continent plus the "small continent" Madagascar to the east Islands, etc., form a continent with a very monotonous appearance. It is Africa, whose full name is Africa. The continent covers an area of ??30.2 million square kilometers and is the second largest continent in the world. Since the terrain of the main continent is mainly composed of relatively flat plateaus with an average altitude of 750 meters, it is also called the "plateau continent". From the mouth of the Congo River to the northern edge of the Ethiopian Plateau, Africa can be "divided into two": the southeast is "High Africa" ??with an altitude of 1,000 meters, and the northwest is "Low Africa" ??with an altitude of less than 500 meters. Although the African continent has a simple outline - straight coast and very few islands - there are still many charming geographical curiosities that have attracted people's attention.
First of all, in the northern part of this continent, there is the world's largest desert - the Sahara Desert, with an area of ??7.77 million square kilometers. In addition, there is an East African Great Rift Valley belt that runs from north to south in eastern Africa, starting from the mouth of the Shire River in the south to the northern Dead Sea in West Asia, with a total length of 6,400 kilometers, making it the longest Great Rift Valley in the world. Explained by the plate theory, starting from this rift zone, a new "ocean" will be generated here through further rupture and expansion of the lithosphere in a few years. At present, in this rift zone, there are already some reports of volcanic and seismic activity in the earth's crust; and lakes such as Lake Victoria (the largest freshwater lake in Africa and the second largest in the world), Lake Tanganyika (the world's second largest) have been formed. The second deepest lake, with a water depth of 1,435 meters), Lake Malawi (the third largest freshwater lake in Africa) and other fault lakes. The two large volcanoes in East Africa, Mount Kilimanjaro (5895 meters, the highest peak in Africa) and Mount Kenya (5109 meters), are also "masterpieces" of crustal movement in the East African Rift Zone.
Since the equator traverses the central part of the African continent, it has formed many climatic characteristics: most of the continent is between the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of Cancer, and the area with high temperatures throughout the year is vast, so this continent is also a "tropical continent" called.
Restricted by climate and terrain, Africa’s rivers are also quite charming. The Congo River (Zaire River), located in the Congo Basin in the tropical rainforest area, is the second largest river in the world after the Amazon River. The river with the largest amount of water. The river originates from the East African Plateau and finally flows into the Nile River in the Mediterranean Sea. It is the longest river in the world (6671 kilometers long). Mosi Otunya Falls (also known as Victoria Falls) on the Zambezi River in southern Africa is one of the most famous waterfalls in the world.
Africa is one of the earliest continents in the world where ancient culture originated. Egypt has a history of 6,000 years. The East African Plateau is one of the birthplaces of ancient humans. At present, the population of Africa has reached 723 million (1994).
The number of independent countries reaches 55. In the past 80 years, the population has tripled, making it the fastest growing continent in the world during the same period. The main residents are black people (accounting for 2/3 of the continent), and the rest are European and Mongoloid.
Africa is a continent rich in resources. Currently, the known mineral reserves are 7.8 billion tons of oil. There are 80 billion tons of hard coal, more than 30 billion tons of iron ore, and 3 billion tons of chromium ore. 9 billion tons of bauxite and 27 billion tons of phosphate - both of which are higher than those of other continents. In addition, diamond reserves account for about 95% of the world, with reserves of 900 million carats. Gold reserves are estimated to account for approximately 2/3 of the world. The reserves of uranium, cobalt, lithium, niobium and other minerals are also considerable. 28% of the world's grassland area is distributed in Africa, ranking first among all continents.
Among the grassland animals, zebras, giraffes, African elephants (Figure 3-8), lions, ostriches (Figure 3-9), anteaters, etc. have long been famous around the world. In addition, Africa is also the homeland of coffee, date palm, oil palm (Figure 3-10), banana and other cash crops. Africa’s cocoa, clove, pyrethrum, sisal, and palm oil production all rank first in the world.
Due to long-term colonial rule, Africa has become the continent with the lowest level of economic development in the world. At present, all countries are developing countries. Countries with a relatively high level of economic development are generally located along the coast; most of the least developed countries are located within the mainland. The continent's GDP accounts for 2.8% of the world's, and its economic structure is deformed. It develops agricultural and mineral products for export in a one-sided manner, and generally cannot be self-sufficient in food.
(4) Oceania "the land in the ocean"
The term "Oceania" refers to the continent in the southwest Pacific and the many islands north and south of the equator. The name means "land in the ocean". Named in 1812 by Danish geographer Malte Bronn, it is the smallest continent in the world. Because its land area is only 8.97 million square kilometers, it is smaller than Europe, the sixth largest continent in the world. In fact, in terms of its geographical span, its scope is very large. The widest distance from east to west is up to 12,000 kilometers (from Mysore Island to Easter Island), and the widest distance from north to south is 7,500 kilometers (Hawaii to New Zealand). . The land area plus water area can be called "the largest in the world".
The continent in Oceania refers to the "Australian continent", which accounts for 82.9% of the continent's land area. Some people also call it "Australia". There are more than 10,000 "islands" in the continent, including Tasmania, New Zealand's South Island, North Island, Irian Island (the second largest island in the world), and the island named by Frenchman Dourwell. Named Melanesian Islands (meaning "Black Islands"), Micronesian Islands (meaning "Island Islands"), Polynesian Islands (meaning "Island Islands"), etc.
Although Oceania has many islands, its population is not large. The continent's population is 28 million (1994). There are only about 3 people per square kilometer. Apart from Antarctica, it is the most sparsely populated continent. And residents mainly live in cities. The urban population accounts for 60% of the continent's population, and it is the continent with the largest proportion of urban population among all continents.
The Australian continent is a continent with a very ancient geological age. As far back as the earliest Archean period in Earth's history, continental cores have been generated, and many valuable metal deposits have been formed due to magma differentiation. In later times, other different types of mineral deposits were formed. Among them, iron, bauxite, nickel, uranium, gold, lead and zinc, coal, oil, natural gas, etc. are all buried on the continent. In addition, the reserves of nickel and chromium in New Caledonia and phosphate in Nauru are also considerable.
Because the Tropic of Capricorn crosses central Australia, the continental climate is dry and hot. Tropical, subtropical deserts and semi-deserts account for 35% of the continent. Ground rivers and lakes are also scarce. However, Oceania is rich in groundwater resources. The Great Artesian Basin in the eastern and central part has a large water storage capacity. It is the largest artesian basin in the world, covering an area of ??1.75 million square kilometers. It provides an important water source for the development of Australia's agriculture and animal husbandry.
Australia is very far away from other continents, so there are many unique "native" species of plants and animals. There are 150 species of marsupials alone, such as kangaroos (Figure 3-11), quolls, bandicoots, wombats, gliders, thylacines, marsupial moles, etc. In addition, platypuses, koalas, etc. are also quite rare. In the northeastern waters of Australia, corals are very developed. The Great Barrier Reef, a coral reef group here, is 2,000 kilometers long and is the largest coral reef in the world.
There is a large tree called "Almond Eucalyptus" in the Australian continent. Its trunk can grow up to 100 meters away, making it the tallest tree in the world. There was once a tree that was 156 meters high and was called the "King of Trees"!
Although Oceania has the smallest land area among all continents in the world, Australia and New Zealand, among them, have very developed economies and are among the developed countries. Australia, in particular, is a big country in the Southern Hemisphere in terms of size, politics, and economy.
(5) Continents in the Western Hemisphere of the Americas
If the Eastern Hemisphere where we are located is regarded as the "front" of the Earth, the "reverse" is the Western Hemisphere, and there are two triangle-shaped The continents of North America and South America have corresponding time zones that are exactly 12 hours different from ours in the Eastern Hemisphere.
North America and South America are collectively called "America", or "America" ??for short. Since the two continents of South America and North America are on the same side and each has its own characteristics, people use the Panama Canal as the boundary, calling the northern America "North America" ??and the southern America "South America". The Republic of Panama is a country that spans two continents.
As for the origin of "America", one theory is that it was named after the Italian explorer Amerigo who had explored South America in 1502; another theory is that Columbus's fourth expedition in 1502 During the voyage, they explored the gold-producing locations in Nicaragua (in North America) and discovered that the Indians at that time had called the place "America" ??or "Amerigo Mountains" and had the "Amerigo Tribe". The news spread throughout Western Europe, and the name "America" ??became the name of the continent.
North America: The Americas, located between the Atlantic, Pacific and Arctic Oceans, is the jurisdiction of North America. Its northernmost point is Greenland and its southernmost point is Cape Mariato. The continent covers an area of ??24.228 million square kilometers, making it the third largest continent in the world. Among them, islands account for 4.1 million square kilometers, and the ratio of island area to continent is the highest among all continents in the world. The North American continent is similar to the Eurasian continent in many aspects such as latitude position, sea and land situation, climate characteristics, vegetation distribution, etc., especially the climate distribution, which is basically a "microcosm" of the climate of the Eurasian continent. Still, North America has many characteristics. Looking at the outline of the continent, the mainland coastline is very tortuous, and there are groups of offshore islands. Among them, Greenland (2.17 million square kilometers) is the world's largest island, and Barao Island (500,000 square kilometers) is the world's fifth largest island. The famous Hudson Bay and the Gulf of Mexico extend deeply into the interior of the continent and become the "Mediterranean Sea."
The land masses in North America are also very old, with many land masses being more than 2.5 billion years old. According to the plate theory, this continent was based on the four oldest original land masses, and gradually formed its current scale through continuous collision and combination with other plates, which caused the original ancient continent to "accretion". Among them, the metamorphic rock bodies of the Canadian Shield (ancient continent) are still exposed on the surface and have become rare "specimens" for modern research on ancient continents. The mountain systems in western North America (Nevada Mountains, Coast Mountains, etc.) are large mountain ranges formed when the American Plate and the Pacific Plate meet and squeeze each other. From a macro perspective, the terrain of North America is high in the east and west and low in the middle, arranged in three major columns. The eastern belt is the long-eroded Appalachian highlands, and the western belt is the Cordillera (northern section) including the Sierra Nevada, Coast Mountains, and Rocky Mountains. The middle zone is the Great Plains of North America. The Colorado Grand Canyon in the Cordillera Mountains is more than 400 kilometers long and has a maximum depth of 1,830 meters. It is the largest canyon in the Americas. The ancient strata on both sides of the canyon are distributed in layers, which is a living "textbook" for geoscientists to study the history of the earth. It has now been turned into a U.S. national park. The central Great Plains is the concentrated distribution area of ??the world's largest freshwater lakes, with 22 lakes covering an area of ??more than 1,000 square kilometers. Among them, the "Great Five Lakes" are the largest freshwater lakes in the world. Lake Superior (82,400 square meters) is known as "the largest freshwater lake in the world". The Mississippi River (6,262 kilometers long) in the Great Plains is the fourth longest river in the world. This river already existed before Europeans came to the Americas, so it is also known as the "Old Man's River". Greenland in the northeastern part of North America is an ice sheet covered with ice and snow. 84% of the island is covered with ice. The average thickness of the ice body is 2,300 meters. The total ice volume is about 2.6 million cubic kilometers. It is the second largest ice sheet after Antarctica. A continental ice mass, it is the island with the largest continental glacier area in the world. As many as 13,000 to 15,000 icebergs are generated every year on the island.
The climate distribution pattern of North America is quite similar to that of the Eurasian continent, but the monsoon climate is not as typical as that of East Asia. Because the continent is generally located more northerly, the temperate continental climate is more dominant. In addition, its tornadoes and hurricanes often wreak havoc on the continent, often causing huge losses to various countries in North America.
North America is also rich in mineral resources, including iron, nickel, copper, zinc, gold, silver, platinum, uranium, bauxite, asbestos, potash, coal, petroleum and other minerals, which are also found in the world. a certain status. In addition, the waters near Newfoundland are one of the four largest fishing grounds in the world.
There are 23 countries in the continent with a total population of 448 million (1994). Among them, the United States and Canada are two developed capitalist countries. Other countries are developing countries. The proportion of the continent's industrial products in the world's total output: pig iron, steel, copper, and zinc all account for about 20%, aluminum accounts for more than 40%, lead accounts for about 26%, and automobiles account for about 37%. The central plains of North America are one of the world's famous agricultural areas. The output of corn, wheat, rice, cotton, soybeans, tobacco, etc. occupies an important position in world agriculture. The countries in Central America and the West Indies mainly produce sugar cane, bananas, coffee, cocoa and other tropical crops. Most countries have a single economy and mainly develop a single plantation economy.
South America: The Americas between the Panama Canal and the Drake Strait are called "South America". The whole continent is surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean and the Pacific Ocean. The outline of the continent is wide in the north and narrow in the south, slightly like a "right triangle". It is a continent with straight coast and lack of peninsulas and islands. The continent covers an area of ??17.91 million square kilometers and has a population of approximately 315 million (1994), making it one of the least densely populated regions in the world.
From the perspective of topography, South America and North America have quite similar characteristics. They are also high in the east and west and low in the middle. Three vertical zones control the terrain of the entire continent. The Andes Mountains in the western belt are 9,000 kilometers long and are the longest mountain range in the world. Their formation is directly related to the collision and extrusion of the American Plate and the Pacific Plate. The plate contact zone has widespread volcanoes and frequent earthquakes. It is the eastern part of the Pacific Volcano and Seismic Zone. The world's largest magnitude 8.9 earthquake in recorded history, the Chile Earthquake (May 22, 1960), occurred in this volcanic seismic zone. The Ujeaco volcano here (6,723 meters above sea level) is the highest active volcano in the world. Central South America is composed of three major plains from north to south, the Orinoco Plain, the Amazon Plain, and the La Plata Plain. Among them, the Amazon Plain covers an area of ??5.6 million square kilometers and is the largest plain in the world. The plain is low and flat, with an altitude of only 150 meters. The dense tropical rainforest on the plain is the largest tropical rainforest in the world. There are 4 to 12 layers of trees, shrubs, and herbs in the forest. There are more than 4,000 species of plants alone. The total wood reserves reach 800 million cubic meters, accounting for more than 1/5 of the world's forest resources. Among them, there are hundreds of precious woods, such as mahogany, ebony, banyan, yellow pine, Brazil nut, hevea, shea, coconut and so on. Strange animals can be seen everywhere in the forest, such as ground animals such as jaguars and tapirs; arboreal animals such as sloths, howler monkeys, raccoons, etc.; reptiles such as pythons, snakes, lizards, crocodiles, etc.; birds such as hummingbirds. The eastern part of South America is a plateau area. Among them, the Brazilian Plateau is an ancient plateau composed of a variety of metamorphic rocks. Due to long-term weathering and erosion, the altitude is no longer very high, only about 300 to 1500 meters, but its area is still 5 million. square kilometers, it is the largest plateau in the world.
Most of South America is located between 10° north latitude and the Tropic of Capricorn. The equator passes through the northern part of the continent. The tropical climate has an absolute advantage. In addition, the eastern part is affected by rainfall brought by the offshore trade winds from north to south. , making South America a "hot and humid continent" in the world. This climate feature is not only beneficial to the creation of South American tropical rainforests, but also makes the Amazon River the largest river in the world. It also plays a "helping" role.
South America not only has advantages in biological resources and water resources in the world, but is also rich in underground mineral resources. Among them, oil, natural gas, iron, manganese, bauxite, tin, silver, saltpeter, sulfur, bismuth, platinum, etc. rank among the best in the world. The Maracaibo Lake Basin in Venezuela has always been known as the "Oil Lake". The Itabira iron ore in Brazil not only has large reserves, but also has a high iron content (up to 70%). It is a truly rich iron ore. Chile is rich in copper and saltpeter, and is known as the “Kingdom of Copper Mines” and “Kingdom of Saltpeter”. Peru’s bismuth mines have the largest reserves in the world.
There are now 12 independent countries in South America, all of which are developing countries.
In the economic structure, the industry is dominated by mining and manufacturing, and agricultural planting also has certain advantages. Among developing countries in the world, South American countries generally have a higher level of economic development. Brazil, in particular, ranks first in South America in terms of economic strength and has become the world's "eighth economic power".
(6) Antarctica Ice and Snow "Basecamp"
At the southern end of the earth, there is an inaccessible continent, which is Antarctica surrounded by the Pacific, Atlantic and Indian Oceans. Due to the harsh natural conditions here, not many people have arrived so far, so it still gives people a sense of mystery. Some geographical readers call it "mysterious Antarctica".
Among the seven continents in the world, Antarctica is the last continent discovered by humans. From 1772 to 1776, British Captain Cook took the lead in sailing around Antarctica, which can be said to be the earliest attempt to find the continent. In 1820, the Russian explorer Bellingshausen was considered one of the first three people to see Antarctica (the other two were American Palmer and British Bransfield). Bellingshausen was the first to see Antarctica. Discovered islands within the Antarctic Circle and named the discovered islands Peter I Island and Alexander I Island (now known as Alexander Island). On December 4, 1911, the Norwegian Amundsen expedition finally reached the South Pole for the first time. On January 18, 1912, the British Scott expedition also reached the South Pole. However, on the way back, all members (5 people) died due to fatigue, hunger, frostbite, and snowstorms.
Antarctica has a total area of ??14.1 million square kilometers, accounting for approximately 9.4% of the world’s land, and is the fifth largest continent in the world (Figure 3-12). The continental coastline is 24,700 kilometers long, of which 7,500 kilometers are continental ice shelves. The ocean around the continent is blocked by sea ice for 9 months every year (March to November). These have become huge barriers for humans to approach the Antarctic continent. Antarctica is a continent with many "geographical features".
First of all, its geographical latitude is the "most" in the world. Except for a few islands and some peninsulas, most of Antarctica is within the Antarctic Circle, making it the continent with the highest geographical latitude and the least light and heat.
Antarctica is the highest continent. Higher than Africa, known as the "Plateau Continent". 98% of the entire continent was buried under thick ice and snow, making the continent, which originally had an average altitude of only 410 meters, suddenly thicken by 5.7 times, becoming the world's highest continent with an average altitude of 2,350 meters. The ice thickness is generally 1,880 meters, with the thickest point reaching 4,800 meters, and the ice volume reaching 24.5 million cubic kilometers. It is a veritable "ice and snow continent". Some people also call it the "white continent" and the "world's ice bank." The amount of ice accounts for 90% of the world's total, making it the "base camp" of world ice and snow.
If all the ice in Antarctica melted, it could raise the world's ocean levels by 60 meters! Antarctic continental ice is a freshwater resource, accounting for 70% of global freshwater resources. Therefore, Antarctica is the world's largest "treasure house" of freshwater resources. Under the influence of gravity, the ice mass of the Antarctic continent slowly moves from high altitudes to the surrounding lower ice edges every year, extending out into more than 300 continental edge ice or glaciers. Among them, the Lambert Glacier in the McRobertson Fracture Valley is the longest, with a length of