And also along the straits connecting the Black and. The name Europa comes from the legend that the Phoenician king Agenor had a daughter, Europa. The almighty Zeus fell in love with her, turned into a bull and kidnapped her. He took her to the island of Crete. There Europe first set foot on the land of that part of the world, which since then bears her name. Asia - the designation of one of the provinces to the east of, the so-called Scythian tribes to the Caspian Sea (Asians, Asians).
The coastline is very indented and forms a large number of peninsulas and bays. The largest are and. The mainland is washed by the waters of the Atlantic, Arctic and. The seas they form are deepest in the east and south of the mainland. Scientists and navigators from many countries took part in the study of the mainland. The studies of P.P. Semenov-Tyan-Shansky and N.M. .
Eurasia is the most populated continent. More than 3/4 of all residents live here the globe. The eastern and southern regions of the mainland are especially densely populated. In terms of the diversity of peoples living on the mainland, Eurasia differs from other continents. Slavic peoples live in the north: Russians, Czechs, and others. South Asia inhabited by numerous Indian peoples and Chinese.
Eurasia is the cradle of ancient civilizations.
Geographical position: Northern Hemisphere between 0° E. d. and 180 ° in. some of the islands lie in the southern hemisphere.
Eurasia Square: about 53.4 million km2
Extreme points of Eurasia:
- the extreme northern island point is Cape Fligeli, 81°51` N. sh.;
- the extreme northern continental point is Cape Chelyuskin, 77°43` N. sh.;
- the extreme eastern island point is Ratmanov Island, 169°0` W. d.;
- the extreme eastern mainland point is Cape Dezhnev, 169°40` W. d.;
- the extreme southern island point is the South Island, 12°4`S. sh.;
- extreme southern mainland point – Cape Piai, 1°16` N. sh.;
- the extreme western island point is the rock of Monchique, 31°16` W. d.;
- the extreme western mainland point is Cape Roca, 9°30`W. d.
Climatic zones of Eurasia.
A continent is a large landmass surrounded by seas and oceans. In tectonics, continents are characterized as sections of the lithosphere with a continental structure.
Mainland, continent or part of the world? What is the difference?
In geography, another term is often used, denoting the mainland - the continent. But the concepts of "mainland" and "continent" are not synonymous. Different countries have adopted different points of view on the number of continents, called continental models.
There are several such models:
- In China, India, and English speaking countries Europe is considered to be that the continents 7 - they consider Europe and Asia separately;
- In Spanish-speaking European countries, as well as in the countries of South America, they mean the division into 6 parts of the world - with a united America;
- in Greece and some countries of Eastern Europe a model with 5 continents was adopted - only those where people live, i.e. except for Antarctica;
- in Russia and the countries of Eurasia adjacent to it, they traditionally designate 4 - continents united into large groups.
(The figure clearly shows different representations of continental models on Earth, from 7 to 4)
Continents
There are 6 continents in total on Earth. We list them in descending order by area size:
- - the largest continent on our planet (54.6 million sq. km)
- (30.3 million sq. km)
- (24.4 million sq. km)
- (17.8 million sq. km)
- (14.1 million sq. km)
- (7.7 million sq. km)
All of them are separated by the waters of the seas and oceans. Four continents have a land border: Eurasia and Africa are separated by the Isthmus of Suez, North and South America - the Isthmus of Panama.
Continents
The difference is that the continents do not have a land border. Therefore, in this case, we can talk about 4 continents ( one of the continental models of the world), also in descending order by size:
- AfroEurasia
- America
Parts of the world
The terms "mainland" and "continent" have scientific significance, but the term "part of the world" divides the land on a historical and cultural basis. There are 6 parts of the world, only unlike the continents, Eurasia differs by Europe And Asia, but the North and South America defined together as one part of the world America:
- Europe
- Asia
- America(both North and South), or New World
- Australia and Oceania
Speaking of parts of the world, they mean the islands adjacent to them.
The difference between the mainland and the island
The definition of the mainland and the island is the same - a part of the land washed by the waters of the ocean or seas. But there are significant differences.
1. Size. Even the smallest continent, Australia, is much larger in area than the world's largest island, Greenland.
(Formation of the Earth's continents, a single continent of Pangea)
2. Education. All continents have a tiled origin. According to scientists, there was once a single continent - Pangea. Then, as a result of the split, 2 continents appeared - Gondwana and Laurasia, which later split into 6 more parts. The theory is confirmed both by geological surveys and by the shape of the continents. Many of them can be put together like a puzzle.
Islands are formed in many ways. There are those that, like the continents, are located on the ruins of ancient lithospheric plates. Others are formed from volcanic lava. Still others - as a result of the activity of polyps (coral islands).
3. Habitability. All continents are inhabited, even Antarctica, which is harsh in terms of climatic conditions. Many islands are still uninhabited.
Characteristics of the continents
- the largest continent, occupying 1/3 of the land. Two parts of the world are located here at once: Europe and Asia. The border between them runs along the line of the Ural Mountains, the Black and Azov Seas, as well as the straits connecting the Black and Mediterranean Seas.
This is the only continent that is washed by all the oceans. The coastline is indented, it forms a large number of bays, peninsulas, islands. The mainland itself is located immediately on six tectonic platforms, and therefore the relief of Eurasia is incredibly diverse.
Here are the most extensive plains, the highest mountains (the Himalayas with Mount Everest), the deepest lake (Baikal). This is the only continent where everything is presented at once climatic zones(and therefore all natural areas) - from the arctic with its permafrost to the equatorial with its hot deserts and jungles.
¾ of the world's population lives on the mainland, 108 states are located here, of which 94 have the status of independent.
- the hottest continent on Earth. It is located on an ancient platform, so most of the area is occupied by plains, mountains are formed along the edges of the mainland. Africa has the most long river in the world - the Nile and the most extensive desert - the Sahara. Climate types presented on the mainland: equatorial, subequatorial, tropical and subtropical.
Africa is usually divided into five regions: North, South, West, East and Central. There are 62 countries on the mainland.
Washed by the waters of the Pacific, Atlantic and Arctic Oceans. The result of the movement of tectonic plates was a heavily indented coastline of the mainland, with a huge number of bays, straits, bays and islands. The largest island is in the north (Greenland).
The Cordillera Mountains stretch along the western coast, and the Appalachians along the eastern coast. The central part is occupied by a vast plain.
All climatic zones are represented here, except for the equatorial one, which determines the diversity of natural zones. Most rivers and lakes are located in the northern part. The largest river is the Mississippi.
The indigenous people are Indians and Eskimos. Currently, 23 states are located here, of which only three (Canada, the United States and Mexico) are on the mainland itself, the rest are on the islands.
It is washed by the Pacific and Atlantic oceans. Along the west coast stretches the world's longest mountain system - the Andes, or South American Cordillera. The rest of the mainland is occupied by plateaus, plains and lowlands.
This is the rainiest continent, since most of it is located in the equator zone. Here is the largest and most abundant river in the world - the Amazon.
The indigenous people are the Indians. Currently, there are 12 independent states on the territory of the mainland.
- the only continent on the territory of which there is only 1 state - the Commonwealth of Australia. Most of the mainland is occupied by plains, mountains are located only along the coast.
Australia is a unique continent with the largest number of endemic animals and plants. Indigenous people - Australian aborigines or Bushmen.
- the southernmost continent, completely covered with ice. The average thickness of the ice cover is 1600 m, the largest is 4000 m. If the ice in Antarctica melted, the level of the world's oceans would immediately rise by 60 meters!
Most of the mainland is occupied by an icy desert, life is glimmering only on the coasts. Antarctica is also the coldest continent. In winter, temperatures can drop below -80 ºC (record -89.2 ºC), in summer - up to -20 ºC.
Russia is located on the most interesting and diverse continent of the planet, which has collected a little bit of almost everything.
So what place does the Eurasian continent occupy in the world?
Characteristics of the largest continent on Earth
There are 6 continents in total on the planet. Eurasia (in English it says Eurasia) is the largest.
Characteristics:
- Area - 55,000,000 km².
- There was no such researcher who discovered Eurasia in its entirety. Various peoples opened it piece by piece, and in different periods great ancient civilizations were formed. The term "Eurasia" was introduced in 1880 by Eduard Suess.
- The mainland is so large that on the map it can be seen immediately in 3 hemispheres: northern, eastern and western.
- The population density is about 94 people per sq. km.
- Eurasia is the continent with the largest population. For 2015, the number is 5 billion 132 million.
Extreme points on the mainland Eurasia with coordinates
List of Eurasian countries with capitals
Countries on the mainland are usually divided into countries of Europe and Asia.
European countries with capitals:
Asian countries with capitals:
What oceans border Eurasia
main feature geographical location Eurasia lies in the fact that the mainland is washed by almost all oceans. And since in some countries the 5th Ocean (Southern) has not yet been recognized, it can be partly argued that Eurasia is washed by all existing oceans.
What parts of the mainland are washed by the oceans:
- Arctic - northern;
- Indian - southern;
- Pacific Ocean - east;
- Atlantic - western.
Natural zones of Eurasia
There are all existing types of natural zones on the territory. They stretch from west to east and from north to south.
How are they geographically located?
- Arctic- islands in the very north;
- and forest-tundra- in the north of the Arctic Circle. In the eastern part, an expansion of the zone is observed;
- taiga- located a little to the south;
- mixed forests - located in the Baltic States and in the eastern part of Russia;
- broadleaf forests- zones in the western and eastern parts of the mainland;
- hardwood forests- located in the Mediterranean region;
- forest-steppes and steppes- located in the central part south of the taiga;
- deserts and semi-deserts- are located south of the previous zone, as well as in the eastern part in China;
- savannas- coast of the Indian Ocean;
- variable wet forests- the most southeastern and southwestern regions, as well as the Pacific coast;
- rainforests are islands in the Indian Ocean.
Climate
Due to the geographical position of the mainland, the climatic conditions on its territory are quite diverse. In different regions, all climatic indicators differ: temperature, rainfall, air masses.
Most southern regions are the hottest. To the north, the climate is gradually changing. The central part is already characterized by moderate climatic conditions. A northern part of the mainland is in the realm of ice and cold.
Proximity to the oceans also plays an important role. The winds of the Indian Ocean bring a large amount of precipitation. But the closer to the center, the less they are.
In what climatic zones is Eurasia located:
- arctic and subarctic;
- tropical and subtropical;
- equatorial and subequatorial.
Relief
On other continents, a certain type of relief is common. Mountains are usually located on the coast. The relief of Eurasia is different in that the mountainous regions are located in the center of the mainland.
There are two mountain belts: the Pacific and the Himalayan. These mountains have different age and formed at different times.
To the north of them are several plains:
- Great Chinese;
- West Siberian;
- European;
- Turan.
Also in the central part are the Kazakh hills and the Central Siberian plateau.
The highest mountains
One of the main features of Eurasia is that on the mainland there is the highest mountain in the world - Everest (8848 m).
Mount Everest
But there are several other highest mountain peaks:
- Chogori (8611 m);
- Ulugmuztag (7723 m);
- Tirichmir (7690 m);
- peak of Communism (7495 m);
- Peak Pobeda (7439 m);
- Elbrus (5648).
Volcanoes
The highest active volcano in Eurasia is Klyuchevaya Sopka. It is located near the eastern coast of the mainland in Kamchatka.
Volcano Klyuchevaya Sopka
Other active volcanoes:
- Kerinchi (Sumatra Island, Indonesia);
- Fujiyama (Honshu Island, Japan);
- Vesuvius (Italy);
- Etna (Sicily, Italy).
Volcano Erciyes
The highest extinct volcano is Erciyes (Turkey).
The largest island
Kalimantan is the largest island in Eurasia.
Parts of the island belong to 3 different countries: Indonesia, Malaysia and Brunei. It is the 3rd largest island in the world.
Peninsulas of Eurasia
The biggest river
The largest river in Eurasia, the Yangtze, flows through China.
Its length is approximately 6300 km, and the basin area is 1,808,500 km².
The largest lake
Lake Baikal is the largest in Eurasia and in the world.
Its area is 31,722 km². The lake is located in the eastern part of Siberia. It is truly unique, because it is not only the largest, but also the deepest in the world. The maximum depth of Baikal is 1,642 m.
- Iceland's capital, Reykjavik, is the northernmost in the world.
- One plant of interest is bamboo. It is able to grow up to 90 cm per day.
- "Altai" in translation from the Mongolian language means "Golden Mountains".
This article will look at the most big mainland- Eurasia. He received this name due to the combination of two words - Europe and Asia, which personify two parts of the world: Europe and Asia, which are united as part of this continent, and the islands also belong to Eurasia.
The area of Eurasia is 54.759 million km2, which is 36% of the entire land area. The area of the Eurasian islands is 3.45 million km2. The population of Eurasia is also impressive, as it accounts for 70% of the total population on the entire planet. As of 2010, the population of the Eurasian continent was already more than 5 billion people.
The continent of Eurasia is the only continent of the planet Earth, which is washed by 4 oceans at once. The Pacific Ocean washes the mainland in the east, the Arctic Ocean washes the north, the Atlantic Ocean washes the mainland in the west and the Indian Ocean in the south.
The dimensions of Eurasia are quite impressive. The length of Eurasia when viewed from west to east is 18,000 kilometers and 8,000 kilometers when viewed from north to south.
Eurasia has all the climatic zones, natural zones and climatic zones that exist on the planet.
The extreme points of Eurasia, which are located on the mainland:
There are four extreme continental points that Eurasia has:
1) In the north of the mainland, Cape Chelyuskin (77 ° 43′ N), which is located on the territory of the country of Russia, is considered the extreme point.
2) In the south of the mainland, Cape Piai (1°16′ N), which is located in the country of Malaysia, is considered the extreme point.
3) In the west of the mainland, the extreme point is Cape Roca (9º31′ W), which is located in the country of Portugal.
4) And finally, in the east of Eurasia, the extreme point is Cape Dezhnev (169°42′ W), which also belongs to the country of Russia.
The structure of the mainland Eurasia
The structure of the continent of Eurasia differs from all other continents. First of all, the fact that the mainland consists of several plates and platforms, as well as the fact that the continent in its formation is considered the youngest of all the others.
The northern part of Eurasia consists of the Siberian Platform, the East European Platform, and the West Siberian Plate. To the east, Eurasia consists of two plates: it includes the South China platform and also includes the Sino-Korean platform. In the west, the mainland includes plates of Paleozoic platforms and Hercynian folding. The southern part of the mainland consists of the Arabian and Indian platforms, the Iranian plate and part of the Alpine and Mesozoic folding. The central part of Eurasia consists of the Aleozoic folding and the Paleozoic platform plate.
Eurasian platforms that are located on the territory of Russia
The continent of Eurasia has many large cracks and faults, which are located on Lake Baikal, in Siberia, in Tibet and other regions.
Relief of Eurasia
Due to its size, Eurasia as a continent has the most diverse relief on the planet. The mainland itself is considered the highest mainland on the planet. Above herself high point mainland Eurasia is only the mainland Antarctica, but it is higher only due to the thickness of the ice covering the earth. The landmass of Antarctica itself does not exceed Eurasia in height. It is in Eurasia that the largest plains in terms of their area and the highest and most extensive mountain systems are located. Also on the territory of Eurasia there are the Himalayas, which are the highest mountains on planet Earth. Accordingly, the most high mountain in the world is located on the territory of Eurasia - this is Chomolungma (Everest - height 8,848 m).
To date, the relief of Eurasia is determined by intense tectonic movements. Many regions on the territory of the Eurasian continent are characterized by high seismic activity. There are also active volcanoes in Eurasia, which include volcanoes in Iceland, Kamchatka, the Mediterranean and others.
Climate of Eurasia
The continent of Eurasia is the only continent on which all climatic zones and climatic zones are present. In the north of the mainland there are arctic and subarctic belts. The climate here is very cold and harsh. To the south begins a wide strip of the temperate zone. Due to the fact that the length of the mainland from west to east is very huge, the following zones are distinguished in the temperate zone: maritime climate in the west, then temperate continental, continental and monsoon climate.
South of the temperate zone is the subtropical zone, which is also divided into three zones from the west: Mediterranean climate, continental and monsoon climate. The very south of the mainland is occupied by the tropical and subequatorial belts. The equatorial belt is located on the islands of Eurasia.
Inland waters on mainland Eurasia
The continent of Eurasia differs not only in the amount of water space that washes it from all sides, but also in the size of inland water resources. This continent is the richest in terms of ground and surface water. It is on the mainland of Eurasia that the largest rivers of the planet are located, which flow into all the oceans washing the continent. These rivers include the Yangtze, Ob, Huang He, Mekong, Amur. It is on the territory of Eurasia that the largest and deepest reservoirs are located. These include the largest lake in the world - the Caspian Sea, the deepest lake in the world - Baikal. Underground water resources distributed on the mainland rather unevenly.
As of 2018, there are 92 independent states on the territory of Eurasia that are fully functioning. The largest country in the world - Russia is also located on Eurasia. By clicking on the link you can see full list countries by area and population. Accordingly, Eurasia is richest in the nationality of the people living on it.
Fauna and flora on the Eurasian continent
Since all natural zones are present on the Eurasian continent, the diversity of flora and fauna is simply enormous. The mainland is inhabited by a variety of birds, mammals, reptiles, insects and other representatives of the animal world. The most famous representatives of the animal world in Eurasia are the brown bear, fox, wolf, hares, deer, elk, squirrels. The list goes on and on as a wide variety of animals can be found on the mainland. Also birds, fish, which have adapted to both low temperatures and arid climates.
Mainland Eurasia video:
Due to the size and location of the mainland, vegetable world also very varied. On the mainland there are deciduous, coniferous and mixed forests. There are tundra, taiga, semi-deserts and deserts. The most famous representatives of trees are birch, oak, ash, poplar, chestnut, linden and many others. Also a variety of species of herbs and shrubs. The poorest region on the mainland in terms of flora and fauna is the far north, where only mosses and lichens can be found. But the more you go south, the more diverse and rich flora and fauna on the mainland.
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