AMERICAN GEOGRAPHY Flashcards
How many states are in USA?
The United States has 50 states - Besides 48 found in the continent, there are also Alaska and the island state of Hawaii.
Which are the geographical limitis?
The country is bounded on the north by Canada, on the east by the Atlantic Ocean, on the south by the Gulf of Mexico and Mexico and on the west by the Pacific Ocean.
Which is the capital?
Wahington DC
Physical features
The USA ranges from moist rain forest to arid deserts and bald mountain paks.
Highest and Lowest peak?
The highest peak is found in Alaska, Mount McKinley with 6194m. And the lowest is found in California on the Death Valley with 89m below sea level.
What are the Appalachian Mountains?
At the western edge of the Atlantic coastal plain, there is a chain of low, almost unbroken mountains, stretching from the northern part of Maine southwest into Alabama, called the Appalachian Mountains.
These mountains contain enormous quantities of easily accessible coal and iron. The piedmont hills, to the east of the main peaks, are most highly productive agricultural land in the country after the Midwest.
Plains
extends from central Canada southwards to Mexico and from the Appalachian Mountains westwards to the Cordillera. These interior plains are divided into two major parts; the wetter, eastern portion is called the Central Plains and the western portion the Great Plains, both of which have good soil.
Cordillera
To the west of the Great Plains is the Cordillera. It is a region of tremendous variety, which can be sub-divided into various other regions. On its eastern border the Rocky Mountains, a high discontinuous chain of mountains stretching from Alaska down to Mexico. The rugged mountains contain many important metals such as lead, uranium and gold.
Hawaii
Hawaii is a chain of twenty islands, only seven of which are inhabited. The mountainous islands were formed by volcanic activity and there are still a number of active volcanoes.
Rivers
The United States has several immensely long rivers. There are a large number of rivers in the eastern part of the nation, the longest of which is the Missouri (3.942km), a tributary of the Mississippi (3.760km); the Mississippi-Missouri-Red Rock system extends for 6.176km before entering the Gulf of Mexico near New Orleans. Two other tributaries of the Mississippi – the Ohio and Tennessee – are more than 1.250km long. In the West the Rio Grande, which forms part of the United States-Mexico border, flows for 3.016km and only the Colorado (2.320km), Columbia (2.240km) and the San Joaquim-Sacramento river systems reach the pacific.
Population
With a population of 331,695,704 people, the United States of America ranks #3 in the world in terms of population.
Language
The official language of the United States spoken by most of its population is English with 239 million people. Followed by Spanish and Chinese
Ethnic groups
Non-Hispanic white (60.1%)
Hispanic and Latino - of any race (18.5%)
Black or African American (13.4%)
Asian (5.9%)
Two or more races (2.8%)
Native Americans and Alaska Natives (1.3%)
Native Hawaiians and Other Pacific Islanders (0.2%)
Climate
The overall climate in the United States is temperate, with notable exceptions. Alaska has an Arctic tundra climate, while Hawaii and South Florida have a tropical climate. The Great Plains are dry, flat and grassy, turning into arid desert in the far West. The United States of America is divided into eight main regions, each with its own unique landscape and conditions with a distinct difference between the weather and climate in the north and the south.
natural resources
The United States is one of the largest global producers of the metals and minerals powering manufacturing – from precious metals such as gold and silver to copper, nickel, iron, lead, uranium, bauxite, mercury, tungsten and zinc.
