GEOGRAPHY

MAPPING
PRELIMS 2025
[World Mapping]

Part - 1
 INDEX
Section - A
WORLD MAPPING
CHAPTER-1: GENERAL INFORMATION 1
CHAPTER-2: IMPORTANT ISLANDS 2
CHAPTER-3: IMPORTANT WATER BODIES OF THE WORLD 8
CHAPTER-4: IMPORTANT STRAITS 15
CHAPTER-5: MAJOR PHYSICAL FEATURES OF THE WORLD 21
CHAPTER-6: OTHER MISCELLANEOUS PHYSICAL FEATURES 26
CHAPTER-7: ARCTIC CIRCLE 34
CHAPTER-8: ANTARCTICA 37
CHAPTER-9: NORTH AMERICA 40
CHAPTER-10: SOUTH AMERICA 46
CHAPTER-11: CENTRAL AMERICA 52
CHAPTER-12: AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND 53
CHAPTER-13: OCEANIA 56
CHAPTER-14: CENTRAL ASIA 57
CHAPTER-15: MIDDLE EAST 59
CHAPTER-16: EAST ASIA 62
CHAPTER-17: SOUTH EAST ASIA 66
CHAPTER-18: AFRICA 69
CHAPTER-19: EUROPE 80
CHAPTER-20: RUSSIA 86
CHAPTER-21: MISCELLANEOUS INFORMATION 90
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CHAPTER

1 GENERAL INFORMATION

 Total Continents: There are 7 continents.

 Size: Largest to smallest: Asia>Africa> North America>South America>
Antarctica>Europe> Australia
 Continent with largest number of countries – Africa
 Continent without desert – Europe
 Only active volcano on mainland Europe - Mount Etna
 Largest Country (Area wise): Russia
 Smallest City (area wise): Vatican City-(an independent city-state, microstate and enclave within Rome,
Italy).
 Largest City (Population wise): Tokyo(Japan)- 37,435,191 people
 Largest city (Area wise): Chongqing-(China)-82,403 km²
 Highest city: Wen Chuan (Tibet). It is located at an altitude of 16732 feet.
 Longest border between two countries: Canada and the United States (8890 kms). US and Canada border is
the longest non-militarized and non-fenced border in the world.
o Other long borders between countries include: Russia and Kazakhstan: 6,846 kilometers; Chile and
Argentina: 5,308 kilometers; India and Bangladesh: 4,142 kilometers.
 Shortest land border between countries: Zambia's shortest border is the 150-metre strip of land that touches
Botswana near Kazungula. Zambia lies to the north-west of Botswana. Kazakhstan-Russia share the longest
single segment of land border.
o Gibraltar-Spain and Greenland-Canada rank the second and third respectively for the shortest land borders
between two countries.
 Largest Ocean (Deepest Also): Pacific Ocean with average depth of 4,280 meters. It contains the Earth’s
deepest point (Challenger Deep, at 10,928 m) and the Southern Hemisphere’s deepest point (Horizon Deep, at
10,823 m).

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CHAPTER

2 IMPORTANT ISLANDS

Island Information Location/Map

 Size: The world’s largest island.
 Location: Between the Arctic and
Atlantic oceans.
 Sovereign Part: It is autonomous
territory within the Kingdom of
Denmark.
Greenland
 Feature: Greenland contains the world's
largest and northern-most national park,
Northeast Greenland National Park
 Capital: Greenland's capital is Nuuk. It
is the capital and largest city of
Greenland.
 Size: It is the world's second-largest
island, and, the largest island in Southern
Hemisphere.
 Location: In Oceania in south-west
Pacific Ocean, separated by Torres Strait
from Australia.
New Guinea  Neighbours: Indonesia to the west,
Australia to the south and Solomon
Islands to southeast.
 Settled over a period of 40,000 years by a
mixture of peoples who are generally
referred to as Melanesians.

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 Size: It is the third-largest island in the

world.
 Rank In Asia: Largest island in Asia.
 Political Division: The island is
Borneo politically divided among three countries:
Malaysia and Brunei in north, and
Indonesia to south.
 Approximately 73% of the island is
Indonesian territory.

 Location: Madagascar is a large island in

the Indian Ocean off the eastern coast of
southern Africa.
 Size: Madagascar is the fourth largest
island and the 2nd largest island country
Madagas-car
in the world.
 Madagascar is an island republic that is a
part of Africa.
 Capital: Antananarivo.

 Location: Baffin Island, in the Canadian

territory of Nunavut, is the largest island
in Canada and the fifth-largest island in
the world.
Baffin Island  The island is separated from the mainland
by the Hudson Strait.

 Part of Sunda Island: Sumatra is one of

the Sunda Islands of western Indonesia.
 Size: It is the largest island that is fully
within Indonesian territory.
Sumatra  World's sixth largest island.

 Size: It is the 7th largest island in the

world, and the 2nd most populous after
the Indonesian island of Java.
 Country: It is the largest and most
populous main island of Japan.
Honshu  Location: The island separates the Sea of
Japan from the North Pacific.

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 Location: It is a large island in the Arctic

Archipelago that straddles the boundary
between Nunavut and the Northwest
Territories of Canada.
 Size: It is the eighth largest island in the
Victoria Island world

 Location: Great Britain is an island in the

North Atlantic Ocean off the north-west
coast of continental Europe, consisting of
England, Scotland and Wales.
 Size: It is the largest of the British Isles,
Great Britain the largest European island, and the ninth-
largest island in the world
 It is dominated by a maritime climate with
narrow temperature differences between
seasons.

 Size/Location: Ellesmere Island is

Canada's northernmost and third largest
island, and the tenth largest in the world.
 The Arctic Cordillera Mountain system
covers much of Ellesmere Island.
Ellesmere Island

 It is an island country in the west-central

Pacific Ocean.
 Capital: Funafuti
 Neighbours include Kiribati, to the north,
and Fiji, to the south.
 The Tuvaluans are Polynesian and they
Tuvalu Island speak Tuvaluan language which is closely
related to Samoan.
 Tuvalu is at acute risk from natural
disasters, including rising storm surges,
cyclones, and tsunamis due to its low-
lying geography.

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 It is a collection of 130 islands and coral

reefs and is located in the South China
Sea, almost equidistant from China and
Vietnam.

Paracel Islands

 The Spratly Islands consist of more than

100 small islands in the South China Sea.
 Located north of insular Malaysia and are
midway between Vietnam and
Philippines.
 They are claimed in their entirety by
Spratly Islands China, Taiwan, and Vietnam, while
portions are claimed by Malaysia and the
Philippines.

 It is situated in the Pacific Ocean thousand

km from the Ecuadorian coast.
Galapagos  It is distributed on either side of the
Islands Equator with an underwater wildlife
spectacle with abundant life.
 It is designated as a UNESCO World
Heritage site in 1978.
 Mount Azul at 5,541 feet is the highest
point of the Galapagos Islands.

 Located in the western Pacific Ocean.

 In 2018, Republic of Marshall Islands
became the first country to issue its own
cryptocurrency and certify it as legal
tender.
Marshall Islands

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 Lie in the eastern Indian Ocean, about

2,900 kilometers (1,800 miles) northwest
of Perth.
 It comprises of coral atolls and islands, the
archipelago includes North Keeling Island
Keeling Islands
and the South Keeling Islands.
(Cocos Islands)
 Its inhabitants are predominantly the
descendants of the original plantation
workers, mostly of Malay origin.

 It is a British Overseas Territory located

in the Western Caribbean Sea.
 The territory comprises the three islands
of Grand Cayman, Cayman Brac, and
Little Cayman, located south of Cuba and
Cayman Islands northwest of Jamaica.
 The Cayman Island dollar is the official
currency, but American money is widely
accepted.

 Lampedusa is a small island in Southern

Italy near the Mediterranean Sea.
 It is a part of the Sicily region in the
European nation. Malta and Tunisia are
Lampedusa
the nearest African countries from the
Island
island.

 Located in the Pacific Ocean's

northwestern hemisphere.
 It is also known as the Bonin Islands.
Ogasawara  UNESCO World Heritage site in Japan.
Islands/Bonin
Islands

 It is an island country consisting of six

major islands and over 900 smaller islands
in Oceania.
 It is situated in the southwest Pacific
Ocean, approximately 2,000 km to the
Solomon Islands
northeast of Australia.
 More than 90% of the islanders are ethnic
Melanesians.
 Once a British protectorate, the Solomon
Islands achieved independence in 1978.

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 Cook Islands is a self-governing island

state in free association with New
Zealand.
 It is located in the South Pacific Ocean. Its
Cook Islands capital is Avarua on Rarotonga Island.
 The highest point is Te Manga on the
Rarotonga island.

 Agaléga are two outer islands of

Mauritius located in the Indian Ocean,
about 1,000 kilometers north of Mauritius
island.
Agalega Island  Notable settlements include Vingt Cinq
on the North Island and Sainte Rita on the
South Island.

 It is an island group located in the central

Indian Ocean and is about 1,000 miles
south of the southern tip of the Indian
subcontinent.
 It is an overseas territory of the United
Chagos Kingdom.
Archipelago  Its key islands include the Diego Garcia
atoll, Danger Island, Egmont Islands,
Eagle Islands, Nelsons Island, Peros
Banhos atoll.

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CHAPTER

3 IMPORTANT WATER BODIES OF THE WORLD

Seas Information Location/Map

 Location: It is a seawater inlet of Indian Ocean,
between Africa and Asia.
 Locational Feature: Its connection to the ocean is in
the south, through the Bab-el-Mandeb strait and the
Gulf of Aden.
 Bordering Countries: Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Egypt,
Sudan, Eritrea, Djibouti
 The Red Sea separates the coasts of Egypt, Sudan, and
Eritrea from those of Saudi Arabia and Yemen
 It is connected to the Arabian Sea and the Indian
Red Sea Ocean to the south through the Gulf of Aden and the
narrow strait of Bab El-Mandeb.
 It contains some of the world’s hottest and saltiest
seawater. With its connection to the Mediterranean
Sea via the Suez Canal. Because, The Red Sea region
receives very little precipitation in any form.
 While the Red Sea is mainly fed by oceanic currents
and not rivers directly flowing into it, there are small
seasonal streams and wadis that drain into the Red Sea
during periods of heavy rainfall in the surrounding
arid regions.

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 Location: It is a region of the northern Indian Ocean.

 Inflowing River: The biggest river flowing into the
sea is the Indus River.
 Branches:
Arabian o Gulf of Aden: In the southwest, connecting with
Sea the Red Sea through strait of Bab-el-Mandeb.
o Gulf of Oman: In the northwest, connecting with
the Persian Gulf.

 Location: It is a marginal sea of north-eastern Indian

Ocean.
 Surrounded By: The coastlines of Myanmar and
Thailand along the Gulf of Martaban and west side of
the Malay Peninsula and separated from the Bay of
Andaman Bengal by Andaman Islands and Nicobar Islands.
Sea

 Location: It is a marginal sea of the Western Pacific

Ocean.
 Importance: Has tremendous economic and
geostrategic importance.
South  One-third of the world's maritime shipping
China Sea passes through it

 Location: The East China Sea is an arm of the

Western Pacific Ocean, located directly offshore from
East China East China.
Sea  Largest Inflowing River: The Yangtze River (Chang
Jiang) is the largest river flowing into the East China
Sea.
 Location: Marginal sea of Western Pacific Ocean
located between mainland China and the Korean
Peninsula.
 Between mainland China to west & north, Korean
Peninsula to east, & Shandong Peninsula and
Liaodong Peninsula to south.
 Connects with the Bohai Sea to the northwest.
 One of largest shallow areas of continental shelf in the
Yellow Sea
world with an average depth of 44 metres and a
maximum depth of 152 metres.
 Dotted with numerous islands, largest of which
include Jeju Island (South Korea), Shandong
Peninsula islands (China), and Ganghwa Island
(South Korea).
 Feature (Yellow Colour): It is one of four seas
named after common colour terms (others - Black
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Sea, Red Sea and White Sea), and its name is

descriptive of golden-yellow colour of silt-laden
water discharged from major rivers.
 Strategic Significance: Since 2018, it has also served
as the location of "peace zones" between North and
South Korea.
 Location: Marginal sea between Japanese archipelago,
Sakhalin, Korean Peninsula, & mainland of Russian Far
East.
 Feature: The Japanese archipelago separates the sea from
the Pacific Ocean.
 To the east it is connected with Inland Sea of Japan by
Sea of Kanmon Strait and to the Pacific by Tsugaru Strait.
Japan  There are no large islands in the Sea of Japan.
 Major Ports:
o Russia: Vladivostok, Sovetskaya Gavan,
Nakhodka, Kholmsk & Alexandrovsk-
Sakhalinsky
o North Korea: Wonsan Hamhung, & Chongjin.
o Japan: Niigata, Tsuruta and Maizuru.
 Location: It is a marginal sea of the western Pacific
Ocean.
 Connectivity: It is connected to the Sea of Japan on
either side of Sakhalin: on the west through the
Sakhalin Gulf and the Gulf of Tartary; on the south
Sea of through the La Pérouse Strait.
Okhotsk

 Size: World's largest inland body of water.

 Location: endorheic basin, lies between Europe
&Asia
Caspian  Inflowing Rivers: Europe's longest river, the Volga,
Sea/ enters it. Also, Ural river flows into it.
Mazan-
 Significance: Caspian Sea is home to wide range of
daran Sea/
species and may be best known for its caviar and oil
Hyrcania
industries.
Sea/
 Bordering Countries: Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan,
Khazar Sea
Russia, Iran, Turkmenistan [TARIK]

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 Location: It is a marginal Mediterranean Sea of the

Atlantic Ocean lying between Europe and Asia.
 Inflowing Rivers: Principally
Danube, Dnieper, and Don.
 Bordering Countries: Bulgaria, Georgia, Romania,
Black Sea Russia, Turkey, and Ukraine.(GURRBT)

 Location: It is a sea in Eastern Europe connected to

the Black Sea by the narrow (about 4 km or 2.5 mi)
Strait of Kerch, and is sometimes regarded as a
northern extension of the Black Sea.
 Inflowing Rivers: Don and Kuban
Sea of Azov  Constant outflow of water from Sea of Azov to
Black Sea.
 Specific Feature: The Sea of Azov is the shallowest
sea in the world.

 Connectivity: It is a sea connected to Atlantic Ocean

 Primary Inflows: Atlantic Ocean, Sea of Marmara,
Nile, Ebro, Rhône, Chelif, Po.
 Bordering Countries (Clockwise): Spain, France,
Monaco, Italy, Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and
Herzegovina, Montenegro, Albania, Greece, Turkey,
Mediterran
Syria, Lebanon, Israel, Egypt, Libya, Tunisia,
ean- Sea
Algeria, and Morocco.
 Island Countries in Sea: Malta and Cyprus.
 Levant is old term referring to countries of eastern
Mediterranean. Region along eastern Mediterranean
shores, roughly corresponding to modern-day Israel,
Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, and certain adjacent areas.
 Location: It is an elongated embayment of
Mediterranean Sea between Europe and Asia.
 Connectivity: In the north, the Aegean is connected
to the Marmara Sea and the Black Sea by the straits
of the Dardanelles and the Bosphorus.
Aegean Sea

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 Location: It is an elongated bay of Mediterranean

Sea.
 Bordering countries: Albania, Greece, and Italy

Ionian Sea

 Location: Northernmost arm of the Mediterranean

Sea.
 Separates: The Italian Peninsula from the Balkans.
 Bordering Countries: Italy, Albania, Croatia, Greece,
Montenegro, Slovenia, and Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Adriatic
Sea

 Location: It is part of the Mediterranean Sea off the

western coast of Italy.
 Geological Features: The Tyrrhenian Sea is situated
near where African and Eurasian Plates meet;
therefore, mountain chains and active volcanoes such
Tyrrhenian as Mount Marsili are found in its depths.
Sea

 Location: It is an arm of the Mediterranean Sea.

 Lies Between: The Italian Riviera (Liguria) and the
island of Corsica.

Ligurian
Sea

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 Location: It is a body of water in the Mediterranean

Sea near the Balearic Islands.
 Inflowing River: The Ebro River flows into this
Balearic small sea.
Sea

 Location/Region: It is a region of Atlantic Ocean

bounded by four currents forming an ocean gyre.
 Boundaries:
o West: Gulf Stream
Sargasso o North: North Atlantic Current
Sea o East: Canary Current
o South: North Atlantic Equatorial Current.
Together they form a clockwise-circulating system of ocean
currents termed North Atlantic Gyre.

 Location: It is a sea of the Atlantic Ocean in the

tropics of Western Hemisphere.
 Feature: It has world's second largest barrier reef, the
Caribbean Mesoamerican Barrier Reef.
Sea

 Location: It is an ocean basin and a marginal sea of

the Atlantic Ocean.
 Largely surrounded by the North American continent.
Gulf of
Mexico

 Location: It is an arm of the North Atlantic Ocean

between Labrador Peninsula and Greenland and is a
marginal sea of the Atlantic.
 Connectivity: It connects to the north with Baffin
Labrador Bay through the Davis Strait.
Sea  Currents: Northwest Atlantic Mid-Ocean Channel
(NAMOC).

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 Location: Sea of Atlantic Ocean between Great Britain

(specifically England & Scotland), & Norway, Denmark,
Belgium Germany, Netherlands, and France.
 It is bordered by the United Kingdom and Norway to the
west, Denmark to the south, Germany, the Netherlands,
Belgium, and France to the east, and the Faroe Islands and
Norway's Svalbard archipelago to the north.
 It connects to Atlantic Ocean via English Channel in
North Sea
the southwest.
 The Kiel Canal connects the North Sea with the Baltic.
 Major rivers that drain into North Sea include Forth,
Elbe, Weser, Ems, Rhine and Meuse, Scheldt,
Thames, and Humber.
 Major ports located along its coasts, such as
Rotterdam, the busiest port in Europe, Antwerp,
Hamburg, Bremerhaven & Felixstowe.
 Location: It is a marginal sea in the Atlantic Ocean.

Norwegian
Sea

 Location: It is a marginal sea of the South Pacific off

the northeast coast of Australia, and classified as an
interim Australian bioregion.
 Significance: It is the world's largest reef system,
the Great Barrier Reef (GBR) [A World Heritage Site
Coral Sea by UNESCO]

 Location: It is a marginal sea of the South Pacific

Ocean, situated between Australia and New
Zealand.
 It was named after the Dutch explorer Abel Janszoon
Tasman Sea Tasman, who was the first recorded European to
encounter New Zealand and Tasmania.

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CHAPTER

4 IMPORTANT STRAITS

Straits: A natural narrow strip of water which connects two larger bodies of water. This also separates
two large landmasses. Some of the busiest and most important straits of the world are:
Connecting Water
Strait Connecting Countries Map/Location
Bodies

Strait of Atlantic Ocean and the

Spain and Morocco
Gibraltar Mediterranean Sea

Hormuz Gulf of Oman and the

Iran and Oman
Strait Persian Gulf

Djibouti, Yemen, and

Bab-el- Gulf of Aden and the
Eritrea of the Somali
Mandeb Red Sea
Peninsula

Arctic Ocean and East

Bering Strait Asia from America
Pacific Ocean

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Pacific Ocean to the

Strait of
Malaysia and Sumatra east with the Indian
Malacca
Ocean to the west

Other Straits
Connect-ing Connecting Water
Strait Map/Location
Countries Bodies

The Bay of Bengal in

the northeast with the
Palk Strait India and Sri Lanka
Palk Bay/Arabian Sea
in the southwest

Java island of
Java Sea to Indian
Sunda Strait Indonesia with its
Ocean
Sumatra island

Papua New Guinea — Arafura Sea & Gulf of

Torres Strait
Australia Papua

Mainland Australia Tasmania Sea and

Bass Strait
and Tasmania South Ocean

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North New Zealand

Tasman Sea and South
Cook Strait and South New
Pacific Ocean
Zealand

Stewart Island from

Foveaux Tasman Sea and South
the South Island of
Strait Pacific Ocean
New Zealand

Tsugaru Honshu and Hokkaido Japan Sea and Pacific

Strait in northern Japan Ocean

Formosa
The South China Sea
Strait/ China and Taiwan
and the East China Sea
Taiwan Strait

Crimea and mainland Black Sea and Sea of

Kerch Strait
Russia Azov

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Separate parts of
Bosporus Sea of Marmara and
Asian Turkey from
Strait Black Sea
European Turkey

Dardanelles Black Sea and Sea of

Strait Aegean

Otranto Adriatic Sea and Ionian

Italy and Albania
Strait Sea

Tyrrhenian Sea and the

Messina
Italy and Sicily Ionian Sea, within the
Strait
central Mediterran-ean

Bonifacio Corse (France) and Both sides

Strait Sardinia (Italy) Mediterranean Sea

Yucatan Gulf of Mexico and the

Mexico and Cuba
Strait Caribbean Sea

Gulf of Mexico and the

Florida Strait USA and Cuba
Atlantic Ocean

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Magellan Divides two regions in Atlantic and Pacific

Strait Chile Ocean

Baffin Island and Hudson Bay and

Hudson Strait
Labrador peninsula Labrador Sea

Canada and Greenland Baffin Bay and

Davis Strait
(Denmark) Labrador Sea

Denmark North Atlantic to Arctic

Iceland and Greenland
Strait Ocean

Great Britain and English Channel and

Dover Strait
France North Sea

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Russia (East Russia

Japan sea and Okhotsk
Tartary Strait and Sakhalin Islands)
Sea

North-western
Connected to Yellow
Bohai Strait extension of Yellow
sea via Bohai
sea

Bali Sea and Indian

Bali Strait Bali and Java
Ocean

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CHAPTER

5 MAJOR PHYSICAL FEATURES OF THE WORLD

MAJOR GRASSLANDS OF THE WORLD

Name Region
Savannas Africa, South America, Australia
Steppes Eurasia
Pampas South America
Prairie North America
Veld Southern Africa
Downs Australia, New Zealand
Pustaz Eurasia
Campos South America

SOME MAJOR PLATEAUS OF THE WORLD

Name Features
Tibetan Plateau  Located in South-Central Asia and stretches through the countries of Tibet, China, and
India.
 It is the highest, largest and most famous plateau in the world.
Colorado  Largest plateau in America; divided by Colorado river and Grand Canyon
Plateau  Known for emergence of Artesian wells
 Intermontane plateau with mesas and buttes found at many places.
Altiplano  It is an intermontane plateau which is located between two ranges of Andes Mountain.
Plateau  Capital of Bolivia La Paz and Sucre are situated on this plateau.
Columbia  It is located in parts of Washington, Oregon, and Idaho states of the U.S.
Plateau  It is surrounded by the Cascade Range and Rocky Mountains and it is divided by the
Columbia River.
Hardangervidda  It is one of the largest plateaus in Europe located at a distance of about 200 km to the west
Plateau of Oslo in the Hardanger region of western Norway.
Deccan Plateau  It is a large plateau which forms most of the southern part of India.

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 It is bordered by two mountain ranges, the Western Ghats and the Eastern Ghats.
 The plateau includes the Deccan Traps which is the largest volcanic feature on Earth.
Ethiopian  Highest plateau in Africa
Highland  Largest continuous area of its elevation in the continent
Piedmont  located in the Eastern United States.
Plateau  It is situated between the Atlantic coastal plain and the main Appalachian Mountains,
stretching from New York in the north to central Alabama in the south.
Potohar plateau  Located in the northeastern part of Pakistan.
 Bordered by the Jehlum River to the east, by the Indus River to the west, by the Margalla
Hills and the Kala Chitta Range to the north, and by the Salt Range to the south.
Central  It is located in the Siberian Platform, between the Yenisei in the west and the Central
Siberian Plateau Yakutian Lowland in the east.
Appalachain  Appalachian Plateau is a series of rugged dissected plateaus located on the western side of
Plateau the Appalachian Mountains.
 It is the northwestern part of the Appalachian Mountains, stretching from New York to
Alabama.
Mongolian  It is the part of the Central Asian Plateau and having an area of approximately 3,200,000
plateau square kilometres.
 It is bounded by the Greater Hinggan Mountains in the east, the Yin Mountains to the
south, the Altai Mountains to the west, and the Sayan and Khentii mountains to the north.
 The plateau includes the Gobi Desert as well as dry steppe regions.
Patagonian  Geographical region that encompasses the southern end of South America, governed by
Highland Argentina and Chile.
 It is a piedmont plateau lying in southern part of Argentina.
Transylvanian  Located in central Romania.
Plateau  Surrounded by the Eastern, Southern and Romanian Western branches of the Carpathian
Mountains.
Kimberley  Plateau region of northern Western Australia, extending from the rugged northwest Indian
Plateau Ocean coast south to the Fitzroy River and east to the Ord River.
Antarctic  This plateau is located in Central Antarctica and cuts across parts of the South Pole and the
Plateau Amundsen Scott Station.

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MAJOR BIOMES OF THE WORLD

MAJOR MOUNTAINS OF THE WORLD

MAJOR DESERTS OF THE WORLD

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MAJOR RIVERS OF THE WORLD

VOLCANIC BELTS

MAJOR LAKES

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List of Drying Lakes

Name Location
 Lake Chad in the Sahel spans the countries of Nigeria, Niger, Chad and
 The Chari River, fed by its tributary the Logone, provides over 90% of
Lake Chad
the lake’s water, with a small amount coming from the Yobe River in
Nigeria/Niger
 Found in the state of South Australia
Lake Eyre  Also called Lake Kati Thanda by local indigenous people, is a salt lake
located in a basin that’s the lowest point of continental Australia.
 Located in Southwestern France, near the base of the Pyrenees
Lake Montbel
Mountains
 Located in the state of Nevada, which is the western region of America’s
Walker lake
Great Basin, one of the driest areas in North America
 Located between Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, the Aral Sea is an
Aral Sea
endorheic lake
Lake poopo  Located in the Bolivian Altiplano Mountains
 Lake Urmia is a hypersaline lake located in Iran.
 Formerly the largest saltwater lake in the Middle East, covering over
Lake Urmia
2,000 square miles, Lake Urmia has shrunk to only 10 per cent or its
original size
 One of the African Great Lakes, Lake Tanganyika is located in Tanzania
Lake Tanganyika
and considered the second largest lake by volume in the world
 Located in Djibouti, in the so-called Horn of Africa, Lake Djibouti,
Lake Assal
covering about 20 square miles, rests at the bottom of a volcanic crater
Lake Faguibine  Found in the Sahel region of Mali
 Located near the city of Guadalajara, Lake Chapala is Mexico’s largest
Lake Chapala
freshwater lake
 Lying between Peru and Bolivia, is perched atop the Andean Altiplano at
over 12,000 feet in elevation
Lake Titicaca
 It is the largest lake in South America and has a surface area of over
3,200 square miles
 Located in Jiangxi Province in southeastern China, Poyang Lake is the
Poyang lake
largest fresh water lake in China
 Lake Pergusa is a lake in Sicily, set between a group of mountains in the
Lake Pergusa
Erean Mountains chain near Pergusa

MAJOR PENINSULAS OF THE WORLD LOCAL WINDS

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CHAPTER

6 OTHER MISCELLANEOUS PHYSICAL FEATURES

LANDLOCKED COUNTRIES
 A landlocked country is a country that does not have territory connected to an ocean or whose coastlines lie on
endorheic basins.
 There are currently 44 landlocked countries and four partially recognized landlocked states.
 Kazakhstan is the world's largest landlocked country.

Important Trivia
Facts Location
Doubly Land-Locked Countries
Landlocked Countries surrounded by countries which are
themselves landlocked.
 Example- Uzbekistan, Liechtenstein

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Enclave
A country completely surrounded by another country
Example-
 Lesotho [enclaved by S. Africa]
 St. Marino and Vatican City
[enclaved by Italy]

Largest Dam – Grand Coulee, on the Columbia River in

the U.S. state of Washington.

Largest Delta – Sunderban Delta shared by India and

Bangladesh formed by river Ganga and Brahmaputra.

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Largest Desert – Sahara

Largest Island – Greenland

Largest artificial lake

Lake Volta, Ghana

Largest freshwater Lake- Lake Superior, shared by USA

and Canada

Largest saltwater lake – Caspian Sea

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Highest Mountain Range – Himalayas

Largest mountain peak – Mt. Everest in Nepal [8851 m]

Longest Mountain range – Andes, South America

[roughly 7000 km length]
Highest Volcano Ojos Del Salado, in Andes. It is shared
by Argentina and Chile. It is at a height of 6885 m.

Deepest and largest ocean – Pacific Ocean

Deepest Point on Earth – Mariana Trench, Pacific Ocean

Largest Peninsula – Arabia

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Coldest Place – Vostok (Antarctica).

It has a peak temperature of -89 degree Celsius.

Driest place on Earth

Atacama Desert, Chile

Largest and Busiest Port – Euro port and Rotterdam

Port[combined], both in Netherlands.

Longest River – River Nile [6690 km]

Largest river in volume

River Amazon, South America

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Largest River Dam

Hirakud Dam on River Mahanadi, Odisha

Largest Volcano Mouna Loa, Hawaii, USA

Highest Waterfall – Angel Falls, Venezuela

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Broadest Strait Davis Strait between Baffin Island

(Canada) and Greenland (Denmark).

Largest Bay Hudson Bay

Largest Gulf Gulf of Mexico.

Largest Archipelago Indonesia [roughly 300 islands]

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Biggest and Deepest canyon of the world – Yarlung

Tsangpo Grand Canyon, Tibet.

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CHAPTER

7 ARCTIC CIRCLE

 The Arctic is a polar region located at the northernmost part of Earth.

 The Arctic consists of Arctic Ocean, adjacent seas, and parts of Alaska (United States), Canada, Finland, Greenland
(Denmark), Iceland, Norway, Russia, and Sweden.

WATER BODIES
 Chukchi Sea: It is connected to the Bering Sea and the Pacific Ocean via the Bering Strait at its southernmost end.
 East Siberian Sea: It is the one of the least studies water bodies in the area which is experiences extremely harsh
climate.
 Laptev Sea: It is a marginal sea of the Arctic Ocean. It is located between the northern coast of Siberia, the Taimyr
Peninsula, Severnaya Zemlya and the New Siberian Islands.
 Kara Sea: It is located to the north of Siberia between the Barents Sea and the Laptev Sea.
 Barents Sea: It is off the northern coasts of Russia and Norway and is relatively shallower than the other parts of the
Arctic Ocean.
 The sea serves as an important site for the exploration of hydrocarbon resources.
 It is also a productive fishing area.
 The Pechora Sea and the White Sea are both parts of the Barents Sea.
 Wandel Sea: It stretches from Greenland’s northeast to Svalbard.

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Murmansk port: It is one of the largest ice-free ports in Russia located on the Kola Peninsula at the coast of Barents Sea.
India’s activities in Arctic
 Himadri – India’s research laboratory in Svalbard, Norway; near the North Pole.
 India deployed IndArc in 2014, a multisensory observatory in Kongsfjorden.
 India’s northernmost atmospheric laboratory was established at Gruvebadet in 2016.

Arctic Council
 Arctic Council is an inter-governmental forum to promote cooperation among Arctic states on common issues such
as sustainable development and environmental protection.
 Ottawa Declaration established the Arctic Council in 1996.
 Headquartered at Tromsø, Norway.
 Member states: Canada, Denmark, Finland, Norway, Iceland, Russia, Sweden and the United States — make up the
Arctic Council.
 India has the status of ‘Observer’ member since 2013. 12 other countries have such a status in the Arctic Council.

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