PHYSICAL FEATURES PHYSICAL FEATURES OF THE EARTHOF THE EARTH

2 Physical 2 Physical Features:Features:LAND

WATER

LANDFORMSLANDFORMS1. Mountains

• Consist of rocks and soil and are high in elevation.

• Mount Everest is considered the highest mountain in the world with a height of 29,029 feet.

2. Mountain Range• A group of interconnected

mountains. One example is the Andes in South America. It is the longest mountain chain in the world. However, the biggest mountain range in the world is the himalayas along the borders of South Asia and China.

3. Hills3. HillsSmaller than Mountains and are

either single mount on high ground or several of them in a particular place.

The chocolate Hills in Bohol is a good example.

4. Volcanoes4. VolcanoesConsidered mountains but they

have craters or openings at their peaks from which the hot lava, stones and mud are ejected.

5. Plateaus5. PlateausAre elevated and comparatively

level landforms. Plateaus have cool climate

because they are situated high above sea level.

Tibet, an autonomous region of China along the Himalayas is the highest plateau in the world. It is about 16,000 feet high.

6. Plains6. PlainsPlains vast areas of flat level land

just a few feet above sea level. These places are conducive to

farming especially if the lands are irrigated or along river routes.

Almost all continents except Antarctica have plains.

7. Valleys7. ValleysValleys are stretches of land

between hills or mountains, often with river flowing through them.

DesertsDesertsAre large areas of dry, sandy

wasteland. Rainfall is insufficient because of the hot air that prevents the formation of clouds.

Sahara desert in North America is the largest desert in the world.

Physical Features According Physical Features According to their Natural Formationto their Natural Formation1. ContinentsThey are very large bodies of

land surrounded by water.

2. Islands2. IslandsAre similar to continents. They

are also surrounded by water but are of a much smaller size.

3. Peninsulas3. PeninsulasAre areas of land near bodies of

water.

4. Isthmuses4. IsthmusesAre narrow strips of land joining

two larger bodies of land that would otherwise be separated by water.

5. Deltas5. DeltasAre bodies of land formed by the

continuous deposit of soil at the mouth of a river.

Bodies of WaterBodies of Water1. Oceans• Are very large bodies of water that

surround land masses. There are 5 oceans in the world, namely:

1. Pacific Ocean-Largest Ocean2. Atlantic Ocean3. Indian Ocean4. Antarctic Ocean(Southern Ocean)5. Arctic Ocean

2. Seas2. SeasAre expanse of salt water that

surround the continents.The South china Sea is the

largest sea in the world.

3. Rivers3. RiversAre natural streams of water

flowing to the sea. They usually originate from higher plains to much lower areas.

The longest river in the world is the Nile River in Africa which measures 6,693.44 km.

4. Lakes4. LakesAre bodies of fresh water

surrounded by land.

5. Gulf5. GulfAre part of the sea almost

surrounded by land.The Mexican Gulf is the biggest

Gulf in the world.