Geography of Europe

GEOGRAPHY OF EUROPE

• Approximately 200 million years ago, there was only one continent, Pangea.

• It was in the Southern Hemisphere. • It eventually separated into the continents we

know today .

List of continents by population

The following table summarizes area and population of each continent by decreasing

area. AREA AND POPULATION OF THE CONTINENTS

CONTINENT AREA (KM2) POPULATION

Asia 43,820,000 4,164,252,000

Africa 30,370,000 1,022,234,000

America

42,330,000 934,611,000 

Antarctica 13,720,000 4,490

Europe 10,180,000 738,199,000

Australia 9,008,500 29,127,000

Europe• Europe is the second smallest of the continents.

• It has the third highest population.

• It has a population of more than 730 million which represents about 11 per cent of the world population.

• Nowadays, there are approximately 50 countries.

THE PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY OF EUROPE

DISTRIBUTION OF POPULATION IN EUROPE

EUROPEAN REGIONS

Landforms of Europe• Europe has unique geography and weather

patterns so the landscape, waterways and climate vary greatly.

• Europe is called a “peninsula of peninsulas”. as it is a large peninsula of Asia.

• The landforms also include islands, plains and mountain ranges.

There are six major peninsulas in Europe:• Northern peninsulas: Jutland peninsula

and Scandinavian peninsula.

• Southern peninsulas: Italian peninsula, Iberian peninsula , Balkan peninsula and Crimean peninsula.

Which countries are covered by the different peninsulas?

SCANDINAVIANPENINSULA

Norway and Sweden.

JUTLAND PENINSULA

Denmark and the northern portion of Germany. 

ITALIAN PENINSULA

Italy, San Marino and the Vatican City.

IBERIAN PENINSULA

Spain, Portugal, and Andorra.

BALKAN PENINSULA

Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria Croatia, Greece, Macedonia, Montenegro Romania, Serbia, Kosovo, Italy*, Slovenia, Turkey

CRIMEAN PENINSULA

Nowadays the sovereignty over the peninsula is currently disputed between Ukraine and the Russian Federation.

MOUNTAINS AND PLAINS

• North and east of the continent: plains and large areas of lowlands.

• South: we find here many different mountains.

• The most important mountain chains are:

The Scandinavian Mountains, Ural Mountains, Pennines, Alpes, Carpathian Mountains, Transylvanian Alps ,Massif Central,Pyrenees, Apennines, Dinaric Alps, Balkan Mountains, Caucasus Mountains and The Meseta Plateau.

The Alps• The Alps are the highest and most extensive mountain

range system in Europe, stretching approximately 1,200 kilometres across eight countries:

• Austria, France, Germany, Italy, Liechtenstein, Monaco,  Slovenia, and Switzerland.

• Cuts Italy off from the rest of Europe.Mont Blanc is the highest peak.

Pyrenees• It forms a natural border between France

and Spain and separates the Iberian Peninsula from the rest of continental Europe. It extends for about 500 km.

• Aneto is the highest peak.

The Apennine MountainsThey are a mountain range consisting ofparallel smaller chains extending 1,200 km.They divide the Italian peninsula betweeneast and west.Corno Grande is the highest point.

The Balkan Mountains• These mountains stretch from the east

of Serbia to the Black Sea at the east of Bulgaria.

• They extend for about 530 km .• The highest peak is Botev.

The Caucasus Mountains• They are a mountain system in Eurasia between

the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea• They form a natural barrier between Europe and

Asia to the south. • They contain Europe's highest mountain, Mount

Elbrus, 5,642 metres.

Ural Mountains ( or the Urals)• The mountain range forms part of the

conventional boundary between the continents of Europe and Asia.

• They extend about 2,500 km and cover Russia and Kazakhstan.

• Mount Narodnaya is the highest point.

RIVERS

• There are many rivers in Europe and their characteristics vary according to the ocean or sea they flow into.

• Rivers that flow into the Artic Ocean are long with regular course and in winter they are frozen.

• Rivers that flow into the Atlantic Ocean are short with high volume of water.( The Seine and theThames).

• Rivers that flow into the Mediterranean Sea: They are short with irregular water flow.( Po and Rhone).

• Rivers that flow into the Caspian Sea and Black Sea : They are long and regular (Volga and Danube).

• There are many medium size lakes in Central Europe, for example the Lake Constance and Lake Geneva.

IMPORTANT RIVERS• The Danube: It is located in Central and Eastern

Europe. It is Europe's second-longest river. It is 2,850 km in length, and it flows through 10 countries: Germany, Austria,Slovakia,Hungary,Croatia,  Serbia, Romania,Bulgaria, Moldova, Ukraine.

• The Rhine : It is the second-longest river in Central and Western Europe.

• It flows through 6 countries: Switzerland, Liechtenstein, Austria, Germany, France, Netherlands.

• The Seine: It has 776-kilometres long river and an important commercial waterway within the Paris Basin in the north of France.

• The Elbe : Rising in the Czech Republic, it flows north through Germany, ending in the North Sea.

• The Volga: It is he longest river in Europe in terms of length, discharge, and watershed. It flows through central Russia. It's 3,692 km long.

• The Thames: This river flows through southern England. It is the second longest river in England and the second longest in UK.

• It’s 346 km long.

CLIMATE IN EUROPE• Europe has many different climates depending on the country

location within de continent. Polar climate: Coldest climate on Earth.Very low temperatures (-50

in winter). Flora: very restricted but we find Tundra. Alpine climate: ( covers the high mountains regions) Cool

temperatures in summer and very cold in winter. Heavy rain and snow. Flora: coniferous and pine trees.

Continental climate: (covers the Eastern Europe)Hot summers and cold winters. Low rainfall and occasional storms in summer. Flora: Steppes and taiga.

Mediterranean climate: (covers Southern Europe and the area along the Mediterranean Sea). High temperatures in summer and cool in winter. Low precipitation but higher in autumn. Flora: evergreen trees.

Oceanic climate: Central and Western Europe). Mild temperatures in summers with high precipitation all year. Flora: broadleaf forests.