Geography of the United States
Geography of the United States
By this time, we are already familiar with the study of geography. When we look at the geography of any area (e.g., the U.S.A. or New York State), we must consider five main Themes, or topics: Location, Place, Interaction, Movement and Region. The Five Themes of Geography
Location
describes where a place is -- its position on the Earth's surface. Two ways to describe location: Relative Location and Absolute Location.
Relative Location: The description of a place in relation to another.
Absolute Location: The exact location of a place using lines of longitude and latitude.
Place
describes an area in terms of its physical and human characteristics such as climate, landforms, waterways, language, religion, social activities, etc...
Interaction
describes how people change their environment or adapt to it
Movement
describes the movement of people, goods, and ideas. This occurs through migration, trade, and cultural diffusion.
Region
describes an area that has its own unifying characteristics. This is done: politically -- the Middle East is a political region, physically -- the rainforests of Brazil, and culturally -- Muslim areas are influenced by the religion of Islam.
Physical Geography
The United States
The U.S. is located in the center of the North American continent. It is bordered by Canada to the north, and Mexico to the south. On the east is the Atlantic Ocean, and on the west, is the Pacific Ocean. In addition to the 48 continental states, Alaska and Hawaii are included, for a grand total of 50 states.
For the sake of comparison, all of the land area in North America totals 13,408,433 square miles. Of that, the United States alone accounts for 5,983,517 square miles. That means the U.S. occupies just less than half (almost 45%) of continent! It also means that the United States is the third-largest country on earth (by size), right behind Russia and Canada.
According to 2001 Census figures, the U.S.
By this time, we are already familiar with the study of geography. When we look at the geography of any area (e.g., the U.S.A. or New York State), we must consider five main Themes, or topics: Location, Place, Interaction, Movement and Region. The Five Themes of Geography
Location
describes where a place is -- its position on the Earth's surface. Two ways to describe location: Relative Location and Absolute Location.
Relative Location: The description of a place in relation to another.
Absolute Location: The exact location of a place using lines of longitude and latitude.
Place
describes an area in terms of its physical and human characteristics such as climate, landforms, waterways, language, religion, social activities, etc...
Interaction
describes how people change their environment or adapt to it
Movement
describes the movement of people, goods, and ideas. This occurs through migration, trade, and cultural diffusion.
Region
describes an area that has its own unifying characteristics. This is done: politically -- the Middle East is a political region, physically -- the rainforests of Brazil, and culturally -- Muslim areas are influenced by the religion of Islam.
Physical Geography
The United States
The U.S. is located in the center of the North American continent. It is bordered by Canada to the north, and Mexico to the south. On the east is the Atlantic Ocean, and on the west, is the Pacific Ocean. In addition to the 48 continental states, Alaska and Hawaii are included, for a grand total of 50 states.
For the sake of comparison, all of the land area in North America totals 13,408,433 square miles. Of that, the United States alone accounts for 5,983,517 square miles. That means the U.S. occupies just less than half (almost 45%) of continent! It also means that the United States is the third-largest country on earth (by size), right behind Russia and Canada.
According to 2001 Census figures, the U.S.