What do I need to know about physical geography?
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Climate Characteristics
Temperature
Precipitation
Seasons(hot/cold; wet/dry)
Climate Elements
Influence of latitude (It gets colder
the farther north or south of the
equator you go)
Influence of winds
Influence of elevation (It gets
colder when you gain elevation)
Proximity to water (water has a
moderating influence on climate –
the summers are cooler and the
winters warmer)
Mountains
Rocky Mountains create rain
shadows on leeward slopes
Himalayas block rain to create
steppes and deserts in Central Asia
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Effects of Climate
Crops – Different crops grow in
different climates
Clothing
Housing – log houses in areas with
many trees, adobe houses in dry
areas, tiled roof in Mediterranean
Natural hazards – droughts, floods
World Climate Regions
Low latitudes – tropical wet, tropical
wet and dry, arid, semiarid, highland
Middle latitudes – semiarid, arid,
Mediterranean, humid continental,
humid subtropical, marine west coast,
highland
High latitudes – subarctic, tundra,
icecap
Vegetation Regions
Rain forest (Amazon rain forest
Brazil)
Savanna (tropical grassland in Africa)
Desert (Arid)
Middle latitude forests
Taiga (in subarctic climate, coniferous
trees)
Tundra (cold grassland with some
bushes, lichens, and mosses located in
northern Canada, Russia)
Weather Phenomena
Monsoons – Seasonal wind that brings
rain to South and Southeast Asia.
Causes flooding but provides water for
crops
Typhoons – Same as hurricane in
Pacific Ocean
Hurricanes – Atlantic Ocean
Tornadoes – United States
Physical and Ecological Processes
 Earthquakes
 Floods
 Volcanoes
 Erosion
Human Impact on Environment
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Water Diversion
Aral Sea – shrinking due to over
irrigation, located in Central Asia
Colorado River – location of Hoover
Dam, used for irrigation in
Southwest U.S.
Aswan High Dam – located on Nile
River, built to stop flooding of river
and provide water for irrigation
and hydroelectric power
Canals, reservoirs, irrigation
Changing Landscapes
Agricultural terracing (China and
Southeast Asia)
Polders (reclaimed land from the
sea in the Netherlands)
Deforestation (Nepal, Brazil,
Malaysia)
Desertification (expansion of arid
conditions into non-arid areas –
basically the desert is getting
bigger, big problem in North Africa
near the Sahara and parts of Asia)
Picture of an arid climate zone (desert)
Human Impact on Environment
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Environmental Changes
Acid rain (causes by air
pollution/problem in Black Forest in
Germany and Eastern North America
Pollution (air pollution in Mexico City,
nuclear pollution near Chernobyl, oil
spills
Influence of Technology
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Agriculture (fertilizers,
mechanization), people can grow
more food now because of tractors
and better growing practices
Energy usage (most countries use
fossil fuels but some countries have
nuclear power
Automobiles – the automobile has
impacted the environment because
people have to make roads, parking
lots, and cities have grown with
suburbs
Airplanes – airport expansion/noise
Environmental Impact on Humans
 Settlement patterns (some places are
too hot or cold)
 Housing materials
 Agricultural activity
 Types of recreation
 Transportation patterns
Picture of agricultural terracing in Asia
Picture showing ship sitting on the
bottom of the Aral Sea
Picture of Hoover Dam on the Colorado
River
Map showing the direction of the
seasonal wind to South and Southeast
Asia (monsoon)
Diagram showing how a polder is made in
the Netherlands. Note the windmills, a
common cultural landscape in the
Netherlands.
Picture of two cooling towers of a
nuclear power plant