Area: 43,608,000 million sq. km (30% of the total laud surface of the earth.)
Latitudes: 10°11’S to 81°12'N
Longitude: 26°2' E to 169°40' W in the east crossing 180' longitude.
North-South Extent: 6,440 km
East-West Extent: 9,650 km
Only some of the Indonesian group of islands is located to the south of the equator in the southern hemisphere.
The largest continent in the world.
13 times larger than India
Most Northernmost point: Mys Dezhneva Russia
Most Southernmost point: Pulau Pamana
Most Easternmost point: Mys Dezhneva Russia
Most Westernmost point: Bozca Adasi Turkey.
Highest point: Mt Everest Nepal
Lowest point: Dead sea Israel/Jordan
Highest temperature: Tirat Tsvi Israel
Lowest temperature: Verhoyansk Russia
The Northern Lowlands
The Central Mountains
The Central and Southern Plateaus
The Peninsulas
Deserts
The Great River Plains
Island Groups
The Northern Lowlands are the extensive plain areas that comprise of several patches of lowlands of this large continent.
The major lowlands are:
Great Siberian plain
It extends between the Ural Mountains in the west and the river Lena in the east. It is the largest lowland in the world covering an area of 1,200,000 square miles approx.
Manchurian Plain
It is the area adjoining the Amur river and its tributaries of the northern part of China with an area of 135,000 square miles approx.
Great Plains of China
It is contributed by two major rivers of China, Hwang Ho, and Yangtze river, which covers an area of 158,000 square miles approx.
Tigris-Euphrates plains
Ganga plains
The river Ganga is the most important river which flows through India and Bangladesh.
The river Ganga rises in the Indian state of Uttarkhand and flows south and east through Gangetic plains, and finally discharges itself into the Bay of Bengal.
It is the largest river in India, and it is the most sacred river to Hindus.
The most important tributaries of Ganga are the Yamuna, Chambal, the Gomati, the Ghaghara, the Ramganga, the Mahanadi, the Kosi, the Gandak.
Irrawaddy plains
At 2,170 kilometers (1,340 miles), the Irrawaddy river is the largest in Myanmar (Burma).
Most of the 47 million in the country live on or near the Irrawaddy.
Its tributaries flow from the eastern margins of the Tibetan plateau and, although not directly fed by glaciers, originates high in the same mountains as the other rivers we have described here.
These are the prominent and extensive mountain ranges that cover the parts of Central Asia.
They consist of Pamir and Tian Shan ranges and extending across portions of Afghanistan, China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan.
These mountain ranges are designated as biodiversity hot spots by Conservation International, which covers several montanes and alpine ecoregions of Central Asia.
It encompasses several habitat types, including montane grasslands and shrublands, temperate coniferous forests, and alpine tundra.
A mountain knot is a junction of two or more mountain ranges.
The two main mountain knots in Asia are:
The Pamir Knot is the junction of five mountain ranges they are the Sulaiman, the Hindu Kush, the Kunlun, the Karakoram, and the Himalayan ranges. Mount Everest, the highest peak in the world in the Himalayan range.
The Armenian Knot is connected to the Pamir Knot by the Elburz and the Zagros Ranges that originate in the Armenian Knot. The Tien Shan and the Altai are other mountain ranges in Asia.
Mount Everest (8848 m), Nepal-Tibet, China border
K2 (8,61,1 m), Pakistan-China
Kangchenjunga (8,586 m), Nepal-Sikkim (India).
Lhotse (8,516 m), Nepal-Tibet, China
Makalu (8,462 m), Nepal-Tibet, China
Cho Oyu (8,201 m), Nepal
Plateaus are the land areas having a relatively surface considerably raised above adjoining land on at least one side and often cut by a deep canyon.
Tibetan Plateau
Columbia- Snake Plateau
Colorado Plateau
Deccan Plateau
Kimberley Plateau
Katanga Plateau
Mascarene Plateau
Laurentian Plateau
Mexican Plateau
Patagonian Plateau
Bolivian Plateau
Anatolian Plateau
Others
Arid Landforms – Erosional, Depositional – Wind, Water Eroded
Deserts of Central Asia
The patterns formed by the streams, rivers and lakes in a particular drainage basin which are governed by the topography of the land constitute the drainage patterns of an area.
There are 7 types of drainage patterns:
Drainage Patterns
Rivers of Asia
Important Rivers
Important Seas
Major lakes of Asia are
Baikal is the deepest lake in the world. It is in Southern Siberia, Russia.
Important Lakes
Freshwater
Saltwater
The important straits in Asia are the Strait of Malacca, Bering Strait, etc.
Important Straits
Asia’s climate can be most generally divided into three zones:
North/Central Zone
Southwest
Southeast
Mining
Drilling
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1. What are the major characteristics of the Central and Southern Plateaus in Asia? |
2. How do the Central and Southern Plateaus contribute to the geography of Asia? |
3. What countries in Asia are located on the Central and Southern Plateaus? |
4. How do the Central and Southern Plateaus impact the local communities living in the region? |
5. What are some of the challenges faced in the Central and Southern Plateaus region of Asia? |
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