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Geography vocabulary: Difference between revisions
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=== lake === | === lake === | ||
=== ocean === | === ocean === | ||
== atmosphere == | |||
=== winds === | |||
* Trade winds: blow from east to west (generally) | |||
* Westerlies: blow from west to east (generally | |||
** these winds defined oceanic travel during the "age of sail" (wind-powered boats) | |||
** they also defined location and direction of European expeditions during the Age of Discovery | |||
*** ex. the Portuguese discovered Brazil because their ships had to sail west, across the Atlantic in order to catch the winds and currents that would then carry their ships south and east to cross the Cape Peninsula and the Cape of Good Hope (southern tip of Africa) | |||
* windward v. leeward | |||
** windward = upwind, or that side facing or nearest to the incoming wind | |||
** leeward = downwind, or that side facing away or furthest from the incoming wind | |||
*** see the Lesser Antilles for the "Leeward" and "Westward" Islands | |||
=== sea === | === sea === | ||
=== strait === | === strait === | ||
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== Major world regions == | == Major world regions == | ||
[[File:United Nations geographical subregions.png|thumb|Statistical regions as defined by the UNSD. Antarctica is not shown.]] | |||
* major regions | * major regions | ||
** there are many regions and sub-regions and different sources will define these regions differently | ** there are many regions and sub-regions and different sources will define these regions differently | ||
** the United Nations uses "geoscheme" system to define major world regions | |||
** we will list these regions per continent | ** we will list these regions per continent | ||
* See [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_the_physiographic_regions_of_the_world List of Physiographic Regions per continent (wiki)]] | * See [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_the_physiographic_regions_of_the_world List of Physiographic Regions per continent (wiki)]] | ||
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=== Africa === | === Africa === | ||
* East Africa | * East or Eastern Africa | ||
* North Africa | ** Horn of Africa = the peninsula of east Africa between the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean | ||
* | *** = the easternmost point of Africa | ||
* North or Northern Africa | |||
* South or Southern Africa (not the nation "South Africa") | |||
* Sub-Saharan Africa | * Sub-Saharan Africa | ||
* | * West or Western Africa | ||
=== Australia === | === Australia === | ||
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== Geology & geological processes == | == Geology & geological processes == | ||
=== Land forms === | === Land forms processes === | ||
* '''erosion''' = the transport or movement of rocks and soil by water or wind | * '''erosion''' = the transport or movement of rocks and soil by water or wind | ||
** erosion spreads silt (important for farming), forms canyons, coastlines, and other surface features | ** erosion spreads silt (important for farming), forms canyons, coastlines, and other surface features | ||
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=== Hydrology cycle === | === Hydrology cycle === | ||
=== Water forms === | === Water forms processes === | ||
* waves = oscillations | |||
** waves in water are technically "wind waves" | |||
** water waves are caused by winds | |||
* underwater waves | |||
** ocean floor topography causes underwater waves | |||
** highest underwater waves occur in the Luzon Strait between Taiwan and the Philippines | |||
*** caused by two parallel underwater ridges | |||
*** some underwater waves there can be as high as 1,600 feet | |||
* see " Geoffrey Giller, “Long a Mystery, How 500-Meter-High Undersea Waves Form Is Revealed.” ©2014 by Scientific American | |||
=== === | |||
== Geography Fun Facts & Oddities == | == Geography Fun Facts & Oddities == | ||