The study of U.S Life and Institutions. Lecturing by Sarif Syamsu Rizal, M.Hum Faculty of Humanity Dian Nuswantoro University Semarang - Indonesia

1. GEOGRAPHY OF THE
UNITED STATES OF
AMERICA
Azizah Istiqomah C11.2009.01028
Abill Wimanda C11.2010.01146
Ayu Monita C11.2010.01185
Lectured by: Sarif Syamsu Rizal, M.Hum

21. United States nowadays

23. LOCATION ON THE MAP
• United States of America is located in the North
America
• The conterminous (excluding Alaska and Hawaii)
United States stretches across central North America
from the Atlantic Ocean on the east to the Pacific
Ocean on the west, and from Canada on the north to
Mexico and the Gulf of Mexico on the south.
• It consists of 50 states and a federal district.
• The United States is the world's third largest country in
population and in area.

24. AREA
TOTAL
3,717,813 sq mi
9,629,090 km2
LAND
BORDERS
CANADA
5,526 miles
8,893 km
3,536,294 sq mi
9,158,960 km2
MEXICO
2,067 miles
3,327 km
WATER
181,519 sq mi
470,131 km²
COASTLINES 12,380 miles
19,920 km
LATITUDE
38°0' N
LONGITUDE 97°0'W

25. POLITICAL GEOGRAPHY
The conterminous United States may be divided into several
regions:
1. The New England states
(Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode
Island, and Connecticut),
2. The Middle Atlantic states
(New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania,
Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, and West Virginia),
3. The Southeastern states
(North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida,
Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, Arkansas, Tennessee,
and Kentucky),

26. POLITICAL GEOGRAPHY
4. the states of the Midwest
(Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa,
and Missouri),
5. the Great Plains states
(North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, and Kansas),
6. the Mountain states
(Montana, Idaho, Wyoming, Colorado, andUtah),
7. the Southwestern states
(Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona), and
8. the states of the Far West
(Washington, Oregon, California, and Nevada).

27. Washington, D.C. (District of Columbia),
is the capital of the United States.

28. New York is its largest city.

29. The Largest Population

30. The Smallest Population
Cody City

31. the Great Plains and the
• The primary topographical the USA
Topography Map of
features of continental Missouri River and
Mississippi River
United States include the
andLakes in theplain systems
the coastal northern
the Great
Rocky Mountains in thein the central interior
west
along the eastern Atlantic
Midwest, the Appalachian
coast and southern Gulf
Mountains in the East
coast.

32. LANDFORMS

33. The Atlantic and Gulf Coastal Plain
The Coastal
Plain extends
along the
Atlantic and
Gulf coasts
from Cape
Cod,
Massachusetts
, to Mexico.

34. • The plain was formed millions of years ago when deep
marine sediments were deposited on the ocean's floor.
Eventually these sediments emerged to become dry
land.
• This flat coastal lowland varies in width from only a
few miles in New England to more than 500 miles (800
km) in the lower Mississippi River valley.
• Sandy beaches, bars, and islands border the coast;
swamps and marshes are often found short distances
inland.
• The inner margin of the Atlantic Coastal Plain is
marked in part by the fall line, where rivers descend
from the Piedmont Plateau, forming rapids and
waterfalls. Washington, D.C., Richmond, Virginia,
Columbia, South Carolina, and many other
southeastern cities are located on or near the fall line.
The Atlantic and Gulf Coastal Plain

35. The Appalachians Highlands
• The Appalachian
Highlands is a region
of mountains, valleys,
and plateaus
extending
southwestward from
New England to
Alabama.
• The Appalachians are
one of the oldest
mountain systems in
the country. Through
the ages they have
been worn down
relatively low.

37. The Superior Uplands / Northwestern Midwest
The Superior
Uplands are in
Minnesota,
Wisconsin, and,
Michigan.
They are part of
the huge
Canadian Shield
and rise to a
maximum height
of about 2,000
feet (600 m).

38. Central Uplands
The Central Uplands
are in Missouri,
Arkansas, and
Oklahoma.
They include the
Ozark Plateau and
the Boston and the
Ouachita Mountains.
The Ozarks rise to
about 2,500 feet (760
m); the Ouachitas, to
3,000 feet (900 m).
Ozark
Ouachita

39. THE ROCKY MOUNTAINS
The Rocky Mountains
rise abruptly from
the Great Plains and
extend
northwesterly from
northern New
Mexico to Canada.
Compared with the
Appalachians, the
Rockies are
geologically young
and are considerably
more rugged.

40. The Basin and Range Section
The Basin and
Range section,
covering parts of
Utah, Nevada,
California, Arizona,
New Mexico, and
Texas, is a vast dry
area of low
mountains, most of
them running north
and south, and
broad basins.

41. East of the Coast Ranges
• East of the
Coast Ranges
are the
Cascade
Range of
Washington
and Oregon,
and the high
Sierra Nevada
of California.
CASCADE RANGE
SIERRA NEVADA

42. East of the Coast Ranges
• Lofty volcanic peaks
dot the Cascades,
towering high above
the other
mountains.
• Mount Rainier, the
highest of these old
volcanoes, rises
14,410 feet (4,392
m) above sea level.
Mt. Rainier

43. East of the Coast Ranges
• The rugged Sierra Nevada
range includes Mount Whitney,
which rises 14,494 feet (4,418
m) and is the highest peak in
the United States outside of
Alaska (Mount McKinley, in the
Alaska Range, rises to 20,320
feet [6,194 m]).
In Death Valley, less than 100 miles
(160 km) southwest of Mount Whitney,
is the lowest point in the country—282
feet (86 m) below sea level

44. THE HIGHEST MOUNTAIN
Mc. Kinley Mountain
6.134 m

45. RIVER
The main
stems of
38 rivers
in the
United
States are
at least
500 miles
(800 km)
long.

46. The main stem is "the primary
downstream segment of a river,
as contrasted to its tributaries".
The United States Geological
Survey (USGS) defines a mainstem segment by listing
coordinates for its two end
points, called the source and
the mouth.

47. The Yukon and Columbia rivers—
begin in Canada and flow into the
United States.

48. The Milk and Saint Lawrence rivers and the Red River of
the North—begin in the United States and flow into
Canada. Of these, only the Milk River crosses the
international border twice, leaving and then re-entering
the United States.

49. Two rivers, the Colorado and the Rio Grande,
begin in the United States and flow into or
form a border with Mexico.

50. In addition, the drainage basin of the Mississippi
and Missouri rivers extend into Canada, and the
basin of the Gila River extends into Mexico .

51. Rivers east of the divide drain into the Atlantic
Ocean, the Gulf of Mexico, or Hudson Bay.

52. THE LONGEST RIVER
The Longest River in the United
States as measured by the United
States Geology is Missouri River in
Montana. As stated above some
sources consider the Missouri
River a part of the Mississippi
River and include its length
combined with the Mississippi.
The USGS lists the Missouri River
as a separate river and therefore it
is the longest river in the United
States at 2,540 miles. The
Missouri River starts in the Rocky
Mountains in Montana and flows
into the Mississippi River near St.
Louis, Missouri.

53. LAKES
FROM SATELLITE
There are 1219 lakes
listed in the United
States. The Great
Lakes—Superior, Huron,
Michigan, Erie, and
Ontario—are the largest
lakes of the United
States. Of the five, only
Lake Michigan lies
entirely within the
United States.

54. • In the dry regions of the West are many salt
lakes, of which the Great Salt Lake, in Utah, is
the largest. Smaller salt lakes include the
Salton Sea, in California, and Pyramid Lake, in
Nevada.

55. High in the western mountains are some of the nation's
most scenic lakes. Among them are Lake Tahoe, in
California and Nevada; Crater Lake, in Oregon; and
Yellowstone and Jackson lakes, in Wyoming.
LAKE TAHOE
CRATER LAKE
YELOWSTONE LAKE
JACKSON LAKE

56. FORESTRY IN U.S.A

57. • Here are United States Forest Service maps defining the 20 major forest
cover types in the United States and where they are most often located
based on frequency of occurrence. These forest land maps have been
constructed based on data "that indicate the species forming a plurality of
live-tree stocking". The maps delineate exactly where each timber cover
type most commonly occurs.

58. DESERT IN U.S.A
GREAT BASIN
• There are four major desert categories in the
Southwest USA: Great Basin, Mojave,
Sonoran and Chihuahuan. The deserts are
classified based on the plant species that live
there. Desert classifications also take into
account the temperature of the deserts. The
Great Basin Desert is considered a "cold
desert" with plant life that is not subtropical,
but the other deserts are called "hot
deserts" and contain subtropical plant life.
CHIHUAHUAN,
ARKANSAS-NEW MEXICO
MOJAVE, CALIFORNIA
SONORAN, ARKANSAS

60. WEATHER AND CLIMATE
• The difference between weather and climate
is a measure of time. Weather is what
conditions of the atmosphere are over a short
period of time, and climate is how the
atmosphere "behaves" over relatively long
periods of time.
• When we talk about climate change, we talk
about changes in long-term averages of daily
weather

61. • An easy way to
remember the
difference is
that climate is
what you
expect, like a
very hot
summer, and
weather is what
you get, like a
hot day with
pop-up
thunderstorms.

62. Cont’
• Weather in The United States of America is
influenced by the high pressures zones. The
origin of a high pressure zone will determine
the type of weather to come. If a high
pressure zone moves in from the south, the
weather is usually warm and clear in the
summer. However, a high pressure zone
originating from the north will usually bring
cold weather in the winter months.

63. CLIMATE
Climate, in short, is the description of the
long-term pattern of weather in a particular
area.

64. SPRING
SUMMER
WINTER
AUTUMN

65. NATURAL DISASTERS

66. TORNADO SEASON
•In the U.S., tornado season tends to
move northward from late winter to
mid-summer.
• In Southern states, tornado season is
typically from March to May.
• In the Southern Plains, it lasts from
May to early June.
•On the Gulf Coast, tornadoes occur
most often during the spring.
•And in the Northern Plains, Northern
states and upper Midwest, peak
season is in June or July.

67. What causes tornadoes?
• The most common explanation for the
formation of tornadoes is the result of warm,
moist air meeting cooler, dry air, and creating
instability in the atmosphere. When the wind
changes direction and increases in speed and
height, it creates an invisible horizontal
spinning effect in the lower atmosphere.
Inside this updrift, rising air tilts the spinning
air from horizontal to vertical, forming
tornadoes that can be miles wide.

68. HURRICANE SEASON
• Hurricane season runs
from June 1 to
November 30, with a
peak from mid-August
through early
October. Some of the
more devastating
hurricanes have
included
the Galveston
Hurricane of
1900, Hurricane
Andrew in 1992,
and Hurricane
Katrina in 2005. The
remnants of tropical
cyclones from the
Eastern Pacific also
occasionally impact
the western United
States, bringing
moderate to heavy
rainfall.
Hurricane Andrew

69. FLOODING
before
after
• There was
the Great
Mississippi Flood
of 1927, the Great
Flood of 1993,
and widespread
flooding and
mudslides caused
by the 1982-1983
El Niño event in
the western
United States.

70. SNOWSTORMS
A winter storm is an event in which the
varieties of precipitation are formed that
only occur at low temperatures, such
as snow or sleet, or a rainstorm where
ground temperatures are low enough to
allow ice to form (i.e. freezing rain).
In temperate continental climates, these
storms are not necessarily restricted to the
winter season, but may occur in the late
autumn and early spring as well. Very
rarely, they may form in summer, though it
would have to be an abnormally cold
summer, such as the summer of 1816 in
the Northeast United States of America.

71. WATCHING VIDEO
• KLIK on My FOLDER named Oklahoma
Tornado Video

72. MINING – AGRICULTURE

73. • Natural resources: coal, copper, lead, molybdenum,
phosphates, rare earth elements, uranium, bauxite,
gold, iron, mercury, nickel, potash, silver, tungsten,
zinc, petroleum, natural gas, timber
• Note: the US has the world's largest coal reserves
with 491 billion short tons accounting for 27% of
the world's total

74. MINERAL
 Mineral resources are available in
abundance and spread almost evenly in all
regions of North America.
 It is a highly influential geographic factor for
the development of the United States as it is
today.
 This country has oil and gas deposits and
coal very rich.
 Natural gas is found in Texas, Louisiana, and
Alberta.

75. CONT’
• Other sources of minerals are metallic minerals.
United States also has a supply of main metallic
mineral ores. Iron ore deposits located around
the Great Lakes (Great Lakes). United States
produced more steel than iron ore, iron ore
therefore many are imported.

76. Regions which have potential of mineral
resources in the U.S

77. Fruits, vegetables, cotton,
and tobacco are
predominant in the warm,
subtropical zones of
northern Mexico and the
United States.
Important agricultural
areas in this zone include
the Rio Grande Valley
(citrus fruits) in the U.S.
state of Texas and Mexico,
Californias Central Valley
(fruits and vegetables), the
Gulf Coastal Plain
(vegetables), and the
sandy valleys of the
Appalachians (cotton and
tobacco).
These areas benefit from
ample rain and warm air
currents.

79. NATURAL
PHENOMENON
>> Fog in San Fransisco

80. NATURAL
PHENOMENON
The red tide in California- entire bay of Puerto Rico

81. NATURAL
PHENOMENON
>> HOAR FROST

82. NATURAL
PHENOMENON
HAIL STORM >>

83. NATURAL
PHENOMENON
Aurora Borealis

84. Klik to play video

85. REFERENCES
• http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/noaan/climate/climate_weather.html
• www.infoplease.com
• http://www.indexmundi.com/united_states/natural_resources.html
• United States: Political Geography —
Infoplease.com http://www.infoplease.com/encyclopedia/us/unite
d-states-political-geography.html#ixzz2DRw5MWG2
• www.bing.com
• http://forestry.about.com/od/forestresources/tp/Forest_Cover_Typ
e.htm
• http://www.ehow.com/list_6598446_names-deserts-southwestusa.html#ixzz2EFOyNirT