North America North America Geographical Facts - PowerPoint Presentation

Slide1

North AmericaSlide2

North America Geographical Facts

North America is the

3

rd

largest continent, containing

16.5%

of the earth’s total land area.

North America is the

4

th

most

populous

continent with a population around

515 million

.

North America’s largest city is

Mexico City, Mexico

(over 8.8 million people).

The highest point in North America is

Mount McKinley/Denali

in Alaska (20,320 feet above sea level)

The lowest point is

Death Valley

in California (282 feet below sea level).

The

Mississippi /Missouri River System

is the largest river system in North America and the fourth largest river system in the world.Slide3

Mexico City, MexicoSlide4

Mount McKinleySlide5

Death ValleySlide6

Four Great Physical Regions of North AmericaSlide7

Four Great Physical Regions of North America

The four great physical regions of North America are:

Canadian Shield

Great Plains

Mountainous West

Varied Eastern Region

that consists of:

Appalachian Mountains

Coastal PlainsSlide8

The Canadian Shield

The Canadian Shield is the largest area of exposed rock on the face of the earth.

The Canadian Shield covers half of Canada and extends down into part of the U.S. (1.7 million square miles).

The Canadian Shield is an area of poor soil but is very rich in mineral resources and other natural resources.Slide9

The Canadian ShieldSlide10

The Great Plains

The Great Plains extends from Alberta, Saskatchewan down into Mexico (1.4 million square miles).

The rainfall of the Great Plains increases as you go west to east.

The western portion of the Great Plains lies in the

rain shadow

of the Rocky Mountains.

The Great Plains produces

25%

of the world’s grains.Slide11

The Great PlainsSlide12

Mountainous West

The various mountain ranges of the Mountainous West extend from Canada all the way into Mexico – its also known as the

Cordillera

.

The major range of the region is the

Rocky Mountains

.

This area is the

continental divide

of North America.

This region is also home to the

Grand Canyon

, the world’s largest

gorge

, which is a deep, narrow canyon (277 miles long, 18 miles wide and up to 1 mile deep).Slide13

Mountainous WestSlide14

Grand CanyonSlide15

Appalachian MountainsSlide16

Coastal PlainsSlide17

The Early Americans

The first Americans migrated from Asia during the Ice Ages thousands of years ago.

They spread across N. America and developed societies based on the natural environment of the area they lived in.

The first civilizations developed in the

Mesoamerica

region because it was the first area to support agriculture.

Over time, North America was colonized by various European colonies, and the cultures of these early societies blended in with the various European cultures that were brought over – this is known as

cultural convergence

.Slide18

MesoamericaSlide19

The U.S. and Canada

The two largest countries of North America are Canada and the U.S.

Both countries share many cultural and economic similarities.

Both have

varied economies

and are highly industrialized.

Both are world leaders in the

standard of living

of their populations.Slide20

Canada

Canada is known as the

Great White North

.

Canada is the second largest country in the world but has a relatively small population (around 34 million).

The majority of Canada’s population lives near the southern border due to the harsh climate of the north.Slide21

Canada’s Culture

Over half of Canada’s population lives in an area that stretches from Lake Erie along the St. Lawrence River that is known as

Main Street

.

The majority of Canada’s population is of European descent but there is also a large Asian population along the Pacific Coast.

The predominate religion of Canada is Christianity.

Canada has two official languages –

English

and

French

– making the nation

bilingual

.Slide22

The United States

The U.S. is a

fragmented country

– it is broken up by either another country or an international body of water.

The forty-eight states that are physically connected are called the

contiguous states

or the

Lower 48

.

The U.S. is the fourth most populous country in the world, with a population of around 315 million.

Christianity is the predominant religion of the U.S.

The U.S. does not have an “official” language but the predominant one is English.Slide23

Middle America

The area of North America that extends from Mexico to Panama is known as

Middle America

or

Central America.

Combined with South America, it is also known as

Latin America

.

This region is an

isthmus

, which is a narrow strip of land that connects two larger land masses (about 40 miles wide at its most narrow point).Slide24

Central America

Most of the countries of Central America have either faced or are still facing

poverty

and

political instability

.

Historically they had agrarian economies but are becoming more diversified today.

Christianity is the predominant religion of Central America, primarily

Catholicism

.

The

predominant

language of Central America is

Spanish

.Slide25

The Panama Canal

One of the most important features of Central America is the

Panama Canal

.

Built by the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers between 1905 and 1914, its 40 miles long and has an 85 foot change in elevation.

The U.S. owned the canal until the year 2000, when they gave it back to Panama.

The Panama Canal connects the

Atlantic

and

Pacific Oceans

and is a very important trade route.

Slide26

The Panama CanalSlide27

The Panama CanalSlide28

The Islands of the Caribbean

The islands of the Caribbean are sometimes called the

West Indies

because when Christopher Columbus discovered them, he believed he was in the Indies Islands (East Indies) that are located in the Pacific.

These islands can be divided into two groups:

The

Greater Antilles

– the big islands of Cuba, Hispaniola, Jamaica and Puerto Rico

The

Lesser Antilles

– the Lesser Antilles are an

archipelago

, which is a group or chain of islandsSlide29

The Greater and Lesser AntillesSlide30

The Greater Antilles

Culturally, all of the islands of the Greater Antilles have a Spanish heritage except for Jamaica, which was controlled by Great Britain (it didn’t gain its independence until 1962).

Poverty and political instability have been problems in the past, especially

Haiti

, which is the poorest country of the Western Hemisphere.

All of these islands are independent countries except for

Puerto Rico

, which is a territory of the U.S.Slide31

The Lesser Antilles

The Lesser Antilles are also known as the

Pirate Islands

.

The Lesser Antilles are small in size and population and rely mainly on tourism.

Poverty is a problem for the inhabitants of the Lesser Antilles because much of the money from tourism doesn’t stay in

the islands.