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Geography
The Continents
Scientists have reason to believe that early in earth history, there was only one huge continent on the face of the earth, and the rest of the planet was covered by ocean.
The Continent Pangeo began to break apart and the parts drifted on the ocean until they formed the seven continents we know today. It took millions of years for the continents to get where they are. The continents continue to move across the face of the earth, but they move very, very slowly. The continents are surrounded by five oceans.
The earth now has seven land masses called continents. In addition to the large continents, there are also many islands around the world. Some islands are so large they are almost the size of a continent. Other islands are so small they disappear when the tide comes in.
Each continent is supported on it's own plate in the crust of the earth. These plates float on the molten center of the earth. The edges of the plates move over and under each other, causing some land to rise above the ocean level. The land on the opposite side of the plate may disappear under the ocean.
The seven continents on the earth are: North America which is connected by a narrow piece of land to South America. Antarctica covers the south pole and is connected to no other continents. Africa sits across the Atlantic Ocean from South America. It is connected to Asia across a narrow piece of land, and is separated from Europe by the Mediterranean Sea. Europe is connected to Asia where the surface plates come together and pushed up the Ural Mountains between the continents instead of water. Australia, the smallest continent lies to the south of eastern Asia across waters strewn with many islands both large and small.
North America is the continent that Americans live on. There are three large countries on North America: Canada, the United States and Mexico. Some geologists consider the Caribbean Islands which lie between North and South America as part of the continent of North America. Some maps consider Central America, the narrow strip of land between North and South America part of North America. North America also contains many islands in the north scattered in the Artic Sea. North America extends from within the north polar region to within the equitorial region. But it does not cross the equator around the center of the earth.
South America, as its name suggests, lies to the South of North America. It lies between the Atlantia and Pacific Oceans. The Equator crosses South America, and much of the continent is tropical. South America has a length of very tall mountains along it's western shore with lower plains areas to the east. South America does not reach into the south polar region. The Atlantic, Pacific and Southern Oceans meet below it's southern tip.
Antarctica is the frozen continent that covers the South Pole. Antarctica is not connected to any other continents and is complete surrounded by the Southern Ocean which flows around the continent and meets the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans.
Africa
is a large continent that lies between the Atlantic and Indian Oceans. It is
believed that human life began on the African continent and that early human
beings migrated to the other continents from Africa. Africa is separated from
Europe by the Mediterranean Sea and the Straits of Gibralter between Africa
and Europe. On the east, Africa is joined to Asia at the top of the Arabian
Peninsula.
Europe is a rather small continent. It stretches from withing the Arctic Circle to the north, to the Mediterranean Sea to the south. It includes the islands of Britain, Ireland, and Iceland. Europe is a heavily populated continent. It shares its long eastern edge with the western edge of Asia. The two plate came together and pushed up the Ural mountains which separate the two continents. Some geographers combine the two continents of Europe and Asia as one continent called Eurasia.
Asia is the largest continent on the earth. It extends from within the polar region on the north, almost to the Equator on the south. It is edged by the Artic Ocean on the north, the Pacific Ocean on the east, and the Indian Ocean to the south. It is joined to Europe at the Ural Mountains. Asia includes the area often referred to as the Middle East, which is located at the southwestern part of Asia where it joins with Europe and connects to Africa. Asia contains the Tibetan Mountains, which are the highest in the world.
Australia is the smalest continent and lies to the south of eastern Asia. Australia is surrounded by water from the Indian Ocean and the Pacific Ocean. Between Asia and Australia are a great number of island, many of which have banded together into independent countries. To the southeast of Australia lies the large islands of New Zealand which extend almost to the southern polar region.
Can you label the continents on this map of the world?
The continents are the great land masses of the world. The total area of land on Earth is 57,308,738 Sq. Miles
Land Area in Square Miles |
Countries |
Population |
|
| Africa | 11,608,000 | 53 | 778,000,000 |
| Antarctica | 5,200,000 | 0 | 0 |
| Asia | 71,212,000 | 47 | 3,674,000,000 |
| Australia | 2,968,000 | 14 | 31,000,000 |
| Europe | 3,837,000 | 43 | 342,000,000 |
| North America | 9,365,000 | 23 | 483,000,000 |
| South America | 6,880,000 | 12 | 342,000,000 |
Fill in the above data on the map below:
Continental Highs and Lows
The highest point on each continent is a mountain. The Lowest point on each continent is a lake, sea or valley. The highest and lowest points on each continent are:
Highest Point |
Lowest Point |
|
| Africa | Mt. Kilimanjaro, Tanzania, 19,340 ft | Lake Assal, Africa , 512 ft below sea level |
| Antarctica | Vinson Massif, Ellsworth Mts., 16,066 ft | 8,327 ft below sea level |
| Asia | Mt. Everest, Tibet/Nepal, 29,028 ft | Dead Sea, 1,341 ft below sea level |
| Australia | Kosciusko, Australia, 7,316 ft | Lake Eyre, 52 ft below sea level |
| Europe | Elbrus, Russia/Georgia, 18,510 ft | Caspian Sea, 92 ft below sea level |
| North America | Mt. McKinley, Alaska, 20,320 ft | Death Valley, 282 ft below sea level |
| South America | Mt. Aconcagua, Argentina, 22,834 ft | Valdes Peninsula, 131 ft below sea level |
Find the highest and lowest point of each continent in an atlas.
Mark each with an X on the map below.
Comparing The Continents
Look at the first table in this lesson and fill in the table below. Fill in the area and population for each continent. Divide the population by the area to find out how many people live in a square mile on that continent. Use a calculator to do the division. Enter the number of People per square mile in the last column.
Area |
Population |
People per Square Mile |
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Africa |
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Antarctica |
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Asia |
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Australia |
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Europe |
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North America |
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South America |
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The People per Square Mile indicates how densely populated a continent is. According to your calculations, which continent has the most density or people, or the most people per square mile.
Marking the earth
The Equator is an imaginary line around the middle of the earth that divides the Earth into North and South Hemispheres.
The North Pole is the point that is farthest north on Earth. The North Pole is at the center of the Northern Hemisphere.
The South Pole is the point that is the farthest south on Earth. The South Pole is at the center of the Southern Hemisphere.
Label the Equator, North Pole and South Pole on the map below: