Plate Tectonics and Mountains

• Plates are all next to each other (there are no "holes")
• Plates can move and collide
  • Collision of plates causes formation of mountain ranges
  • Friction can cause volcanoes, but "hot spot volcanoes" can also appear in the midst of plates
  • Friction on plate edges causes earthquakes (97% of all earthquakes)

Water

• Lakes form where rivers end in basins
• Rivers flow from mountains (or forests) to the sea (or a lake).
  • Multiple rivers can join together
  • Rivers always choose the path of least resistance. That's why on even ground they tend to meander.
  • Rivers never start and end in the same body of water
  • Sometimes they don't end up in the sea but go into the ground
  • They can split, but rarely, and only downwards (obviously)
  • When they split into many small rivers it's called a Delta. There will be a swampy area there. But Detla's aren't very big.

Climate

• Amount of precipitation depends on the distance to the coast. (More inland = less rain). This goes to the extreme if there is a mountain range inbetween.
• Climate depends on temperature, precipitation, and winds (air pressure)
• Climate zones (from equator out):
  • 1: Tropics. Humid and hot evergreen rainforests -> Wet and dry tropics with rainy and dry seasons, savannas. Diurnal climate (difference day-night is bigger than summer-winter). Plants grow all year round.
  • 2: Subtropics. Extremely hot and dry regions (deserts) -> Mediterranean climate (hot summers and mild winters)
  • 3: Temperate zone. Oceanic climate (deciduous forests, cool summers and mild winters, rare snow, lots of precipitation), transition climate (warm summers and cold winters, deciduous and mixed forests), continental climate (cold and long winters). 4 seasons.
  • 4: Polar regions. Dry. Sun never sets/rises. (See "Misc.")
• Differences between highest and lowest temperature depends on the distance to the coast. (More inland = more extreme differences)
• Mountains usually have a humid side (windward, the rain clouds can't get over the mountain), and an arid side (lee). On the arid sides there can be warm winds (dry air warms up when it sinks down from the mountains).
• Ocean currents influence air temperature of coastal regions

Settlements

• Mostly near rivers.
• Roads follow rivers and coastlines, because that's where people live and it's easy to make roads there
• Roads over mountains will be on the lowest spot on the mountain range

Misc.

• Polar Day & Night
  • In North Summer at the Northern pole the sun never sets and at the Southern pole the sun never rises.
  • In South Summer at the Southern pole the sun never sets and at the Northern pole the sun never rises.
• Wetlands
  • A wetland is a flood area, often alongside a river, at a river delta.
  • Mangrove = wetland where salt water and fresh water meet (in tropics and subtropics)
  • Swamp = forested wetland