5-1 Physical Geography of the United States

5-1 Physical Geography of the United States

​Landforms of the United States

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• ​Many of the landforms of the United States can be traced back to glacial activity and the tectonic plate movement of the Earth's crust.

The Grand Canyon​

Located in Northern Arizona​

​Appalachian Mountains

• ​Oldest landform in the United States that was created over 480 million years ago

• ​Stretch from Newfoundland, Canada to Alabama.

• ​Great Smoky Mountains is a popular mountain range.

Kila​uea Volcano

• ​found in Hawaii

• ​most active volcano in the world

Death Valley

• ​largest national park in the continent

• ​located in Eastern California

• ​lowest point in entire continent

The Rocky Mountains​

• stretches 3,000 miles from ​Canada to New Mexico.

​The Everglades

• ​located in Florida

​Carlsbad Caverns

• ​located in New Mexico

​Yellowstone National Park

• contains 2/3rds of the worlds geysers.

• Old Faithful​

​Water Systems (terms to know)

• ​Tributary- a smaller river or stream that feeds into a large river

• ​Headwaters- the source of a stream or river

• ​Divide- a high point or ridge that determines the direction rivers flow

• ​fall line- a boundary in the eastern United States where the higher land of the Piedmont drops to the lower Atlantic Coastal Plain

​Mississippi River

• ​longest river in North American that flows 2,350 miles.

• ​1.5 miles wide at the mouth

Open Ended

How have rivers and lakes been important to the economic development of the United States ?

​Great Lakes

• ​Lake Superior

• ​Lake Huron

• ​Lake Erie

• ​Lake Ontario

• ​Lake Michigan

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• ​Great Lakes serve any economic and recreational purposes that makes powerful trade and industrial centers.

​Climate Regions

• ​The United States has a variety of climates.

• ​High latitudes of Alaska have long, cold winters and brief midld summers. (subarctic climate)

• ​Places with high elevation have cooler climates than those with low elevation.

• ​Tropical climates in Hawaii and Florida.

• ​Humid subtropical in Southeast region

• ​Great Plains have a semiarid climate/humid continental climate

• ​California has a Mediterranean climate

​Hurricane

• ​a large, powerful windstorm that forms over warm ocean waters

• ​Hurricane season typically runs from May to November.

Open Ended

Which parts of the United States are most vulnerable to damage from hurricanes?

​Natural Resources

• ​The United States is rich with natural resources such as water, fossil fuels, timber, fish and more.

• ​Fossil fuels are resources formed in the Earth by plant and animal remains.

• ​Earth's fossil fuels include coal, petroleum, and natural gas.

• ​Fish are also an important natural resource.