Page 53 - Geography for Secondary Schools Student’s Book Form One

Geography for Secondary Schools
Student’s Book Form One
Major relief features of the continents

Each continent has its unique geographical features. The surface of any continent is
not regular in shape and elevation. The height above the sea level (altitude) and slope
(degree of steepness of the land) give rise to different relief features. In this regard, the
main relief features of the continents include Plains, plateaus, mountains, and basins.
Other relief features include hills and valleys. Figure 4.3 shows the major relief features
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of the continents.

N
Arctic Ocean

Europe
North America
Appalachian Alps Asia
Rockies
Atlas Himalayas
Atlantic Ocean
Niger Nile Pacific Ocean
Pacific Ocean Africa
Congo #
Andes South America Indian Ocean
Great Dividing Range
Australia
Drakensberg

Key
Kilimanjaro Mountain Southern Ocean
Great African Rift Valley
African Basins Antarcti
Ethiopian Highlands Antarctica
Km
World Great Mountains 0 1,250 2,500 5,000
Figure 4.3: Major relief features of the continents

Plains Plateaus
Plains are continuous stretches of A plateau is an extensive high altitude
comparatively flat lands that do not area with more or less uniform summit
change much in elevation. For example, level. Plateaus significantly rise above the
the Serengeti plains of Tanzania, Siberia in surrounding area with one or two sides
Asia, North European plains, Indo- Gangetic with steep slopes. Plateaus are formed
plains in India, and the Great Central plains when forces from within the Earth uplift a
of North America. Many extensive plains large land area. Uplifted areas of level or
result from down warping of the earth’s undulating land form plateaus, sometimes
crust. Plains found along coastal areas are called tectonic plateaus.
known as coastal plains. These include When an uplifted area slopes down to
the coastal plains of Tanzania, Kenya and sloping lower land, it is a table land. South
Mozambique. African, Arabian, and Spanish plateaus

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