By Ms Susan M Pojer Horace Greeley HS

By: Ms. Susan M. Pojer Horace Greeley HS Chappaqua, NY

US Geography Basics Third largest country in the world. Half the size of Russia. One third the size of Africa. Half the size of South America. 2 ½ times the size of Western Europe.

Topography of the US

The Contour of the US

Topography of the Northeast

Topography of the Southeast

Topography of the Midwest

The Great Plains

Topography of the West

Grand Canyon

The Continental Divide in the Americas is the line that divides the flow of water between the Pacific Ocean and Atlantic Ocean. Rain or snow that drains on the east side of the Continental Divide flows toward the Atlantic Ocean while precipitation on the west side drains and flows toward the Pacific Ocean. (However, some rivers empty into the desert and don't end up in the oceans. )

Bodies of Water Great Salt Lake Chesapeake Bay Lake Okeechobee

Great Salt Lake 2000 square miles. 10’ – 28’ deep. 6 times saltier than the oceans.

St. L aw re nc e R. Rivers Columbia R. Rio Gra nde R. Ark ans as R. on ds Hu Yukon R. . si ppi R M issis R. ri ou ss Mi o rad o l Co Potomac R. Ohio R.

The Mississippi: America’s Great River Road The “Big Muddy”. 2, 350 miles. Draining all or part of 31 states & 2 Canadian provinces. Covers 40% of the U. S.

. ts M ad a Nev rra Sie ^ Mt. Whitney . Mts ^ Mt. Mc. Kinley Alaskan Range ^ Pike’s Peak Ap pa lac hia n. M ts. y ck Ro Ca sc ad e M ts. Ad iro nd ac k. M ts. Mountains

s lain al P ntr Ce Great Basin At la nt ic Pl Co ai ns ast al Plains a t s a o Gulf C

The Great Plains

Cu mb Pl erl ate an au d Plateaus

Cumberland Plateau & ‘Gap’ AL, KY, TN, VA, WV 24, 640 sq. mi. Natural passage [Gap] through the Cumberland Mts.

Deserts Death Valley Mohave Desert

Mohave Desert – 3, 000’

Death Valley, CA 3. 3 million acres. 95% wilderness. 82’ below sea level Less than 2 “ of rain annually No rain fell in 1929 1913 – record 134 degrees Farenheit !

Rio Gra nde R. Yukon R. ^ Mt. Mc. Kinley Alaskan Range ^ Pike’s Peak Ark ans as R. on ds Hu . Mts ^ Mt. Whitney o R. rad Death Colo Valley Mohave Desert . si ppi R M issis . ts M ada Nev rra Sie Great Basin Salt Lake R. s ri lain ou ss al P Mi ntr Ce y ck Ro Ca sc ad e Columbia R. Cu Ap m pa lac P ber At hia late lan la nt n M au d ic St ts. Pl Co. L ai a ns st aw al re Ad nc iro e nd R. ac k. M ts. Completed Map Potomac R. Chesapeake Bay Ohio R. l Plains a t s a o Gulf C R. Lake Okeechobee

U. S. Population as of August 22, 2003 303, 824, 640 One birth every 7 seconds. One death every 13 seconds. One international migrant (net) every 35 seconds. Net gain of one person every 10 seconds.

Seismography Data: 1977 -1997 Earthquakes !

Tornadoes Per Year: 1950 -1997

Hurricane Camille: “The Storm of the Century” until … Katrina? !? August 17, 1969 Category 5 Killed 412 people

Katrina: The Most Expensive Hurricane August 2005 The nation's most costly natural disaster Katrina killed more than 1, 600 people Destroyed 200, 000 Gulf Coast homes Displaced about 1 million people. News reports place insured property damage at $25. 3 billion in 1. 7 million insurance claims -975, 000 of them in Louisiana.