GEOGRAPHY

Unit 1

Geographical features: uneven terrain

Relief: set of geographic features

Coast: seashore

Erode: surface wear produced by friction

Flat: horizontal level

Continent: each of the large areas of land separated by oceans

Tributary: secondary river that flows into another principal

Delta: geographical feature produced by the deposition of sediments at the mouth of a river

Lagoons: natural reservoir of water smaller than a lake

Marsh: deep ground where water collects, with the bottom covered by mud

DIFFERENT TYPES OF RELIEF

Inlet: a thin channel of water that leads inland from the sea. Inlets created by glaciation are called fjords and are usually found on mountainous coastlines.

Headland/cape: a small area of land that projects out into the sea.

Peninsula: a large scale headland surrounded by water on three sides. A peninsula can be connected to the land by a thin stretch of land called isthmus.

Island: a piece of land completely surrounded by water.

Gulf: an area of sea surrounded by land on three sides. A bay is similar but smaller.

Oceanic ridge: an underwater mountain range that generally covers a large area and reaches high altitudes.

Oceanic trench: a long depression on the ocean floor that can be thousands of meters deep.

Abyssal plain: a flat area of the ocean floor. They are found at depths of between 3000 and 7000 meters.

Continental shelf: the undersea extension of a continent that descends gradually to depths of around 400m. The shelf might extend for only a few kilometers under the sea, or it may extend for many.

Continental slope: a steep underwater area that links the continental shelf with the ocean floor.

Mountain: a large landform that is higher than thee surrounding land. A mountain range is a continuous chain of mountains.

Basin: an area of land that is drained by a river or a lake and that is lower than the surrounding area.

Valley: is a linear depression in the land.

Plateau: a flat area of land which sits at a certain altitude above sea level.

Plain: a large, open, flat or slightly undulating are of land.

Cliff: a high, steep, or overhanging face of rock.

Massif: a geologically distinct mass of rock or a series of connected masses forming the peaks of a mountain range.