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Continents
There are a total of seven continents on earth: Africa, Antarctica, Asia, Australia, Europe, North America and South America. This category should contain questions regarding the continents.
6,600 Questions
How does earth continents different positions than today?
Scientists believe that Earth's continents were once connected in a single landmass called Pangaea, which began breaking apart about 200 million years ago. Over time, the movement of tectonic plates has caused the continents to drift to their current positions. This process, known as continental drift, is ongoing and continues to reshape the Earth's surface.
Is Mexico considered a continent?
There are a city, state and country named Mexico:
- There is Mexico City (pop: 19,231,829) capital of the country of Mexico.
- There are two states with the name Mexico on them. There is New Mexico (capital: Santa Fe), which is a US state and Estado de Mexico (capital: Toluca), which is a Mexican state.
- Finally, there is a country named Mexico (official name: Estados Unidos Mexicanos or Mexican United States) which is south of the United States.
How many days during the year is the Sun directly overhead in the continental US?
The Sun is directly overhead in the continental US on two specific days each year, typically around late June and late December. These correspond to the summer and winter solstices respectively.
The term for a large landmass that is smaller than a continent and separated by physical barriers is "subcontinent." Subcontinents are distinct regions that have their own unique geological and geographical characteristics.
What is the largest continent in the world and where is it?
Asia is the largest continent in the world. It is located in the Eastern and Northern Hemispheres and covers an area of about 44.58 million square kilometers.
What continent is located in the tropics and south temperate zones?
South America spans across the tropics and the south temperate zones. The continent crosses the equator and extends southwards to include regions with temperate climates.
A continent that would never have the sun directly overhead at any time during the year?
Antarctica would never have the sun directly overhead at any time during the year due to its location near the South Pole. The tilt of Earth's axis ensures that the sun never reaches directly overhead in this region.
"30 degrees east longitude" is the description of a line that joins the north and south poles
and crosses territory in Europe, Asia, Africa, and Antarctica.
"150 degrees west longitude" is the description of a line that joins the north and south poles
and crosses territory in North America and Antarctica.
What continent has yielded the largest trove of meteorites?
Antarctica has yielded the largest trove of meteorites due to the ice sheets that preserve and concentrate them. Antarctica's cold, dry conditions help preserve meteorites on the surface where they can be easily collected.
If I remember correctly, it is Antarctica, because in the process of making a model of the earth flat so that it can become a map, the globe is distorted, meaning that some seas and continents look bigger than they really are, like Greenland.
How big does an area of land have to be to be considered a continent?
Continents are generally identified by convention rather than any strict criteria.
Conventionally, "continents are understood to be large, continuous, discrete masses of land, ideally separated by expanses of water."[1] Many of the seven most commonly recognized continents identified by convention are not discrete landmasses separated by water. The criterion "large" leads to arbitrary classification: Greenland, with a surface area of 2,166,086 square kilometres (836,330 sq mi) is considered the world's largest island, while Australia, at 7,617,930 square kilometres (2,941,300 sq mi) is deemed to be a continent. Likewise, the ideal criterion that each be a continuous landmass is often disregarded by the inclusion of the continental shelf and oceanic islands, and contradicted by classifying North and South America as two continents; and/or Asia, Europe and Africa as three continents, with no natural separation by water. This anomaly reaches its extreme if the continuous land mass of Europe and Asia is considered to constitute two continents. The Earth's major landmasses are washed upon by a single, continuous world ocean, which is divided into a number of principal oceanic components by the continents and various geographic criteria.[2][3]
References and notes
- ^ Lewis, Martin W.; Kären E. Wigen (1997). The Myth of Continents: a Critique of Metageography. Berkeley: University of California Press. p. 21. ISBN 0-520-20742-4, ISBN 0-520-20743-2.
- ^ "http://www.answers.com/Ocean#Encyclopedia". The Columbia Encyclopedia (2006). New York: Columbia University Press.
- ^ "Distribution of land and water on the planet." UN Atlas of the Oceans (2004).
What 3 continents In South America does the equator pass through?
The equator passes through three continents in South America: South America, Africa, and Asia.
Which plate does not have a continent?
Two plates that have no continents on them are the nazca plate and coco's plate, i think there may be more but.
What continent formed in 0.7 billion years ago?
North America began to form around 1.5 billion years ago from the collision and amalgamation of multiple smaller landmasses. By 0.7 billion years ago, North America was a distinct continent, though its shape and size were different from what we see today.
What is the 6th largest planet?
Saturn is the 6th largest planet in our solar system. It is known for its distinctive rings made up of ice, rocks, and dust particles.
How many continents have the equator running through them?
The equator runs through 3 continents - Africa, South America, and Asia.
What continents are crossed by 15 degrees south?
The continent that the 15th parallel south passes through is Africa.
How many continents lie on south of equator?
South America, Africa, and Asia lie both north and south of the equator - i.e. the equator passes through each of these continents.
The equator passes through Ecuador, Columbia and Brazil in South America.
The equator passes through Gabon, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of Congo, Uganda, Kenya and Somalia in Africa.
The equator passes through Indonesia in Asia.
North America and Europe lie entirely north of the equator
Australia and Antarctica both lie entirely south of the equator.
What is the force that caused the movement of continents from one supercontinent to the other?
The force responsible for the movement of continents is known as plate tectonics. This is driven by the movement of molten rock beneath Earth's surface, which creates convection currents that push and pull the tectonic plates, causing them to move and shift over time.
How do continents affect surface currents?
Continents can block the flow of surface currents, creating barriers that deflect the currents in different directions. They can also influence the direction and speed of currents by shaping the coastlines and creating deep ocean basins that can channel currents. Additionally, continents can impact the distribution of heat and moisture, which can affect the intensity and direction of surface currents.
Theory of plate tectonics explains how forces deep within earth can cause ocean floors to spread and continents to move
Do some scientists think the continents once formed a single landmass?
Yes, the theory of continental drift suggests that the Earth's continents were once joined together in a single landmass called Pangaea. This theory is supported by evidence such as the matching shapes of continents, distribution of fossils, and geological similarities across continents.
