1. Physical Geography of Europe
Chapter 11

2. Forces that helped create landforms in Europe
Wind
Water
Ice
This influences where people have chosen to live in Europe

3. Major Landforms of Europe
Plains and Mountains in the interior
Mountains also run along its northern and southern sides
It basically is one big peninsula and is made up of smaller ones (surrounded on three sides by water)

4. Mountains of Europe
In northwest have been rounded by millions of years of erosion and glaciations; have low peaks (Ben Nevis is highest mountain in this part of the region and is found on the British Isles)
The Central Uplands
From Iberian Peninsula to Eastern Europe
Low rounded mountains
High plateaus
Scattered forests
Includes the Mesta (Spain’s Central Plateau) and the Massif Central (France’s Central Highlands)
Mountains in southern Europe are younger, high and jagged
The Pyrenees (more than ft high and were created by folding)
The Alps: forms a crescent from southern France to Balkan Peninsula
Mt Blanc is the highest peak in this chain (found in France)
Major rivers start here like the Rhine and the Po
This mountain chain separates the warm dry climate of Med region from cooler climates of the North
Mountains in Eastern Europe
Carpathians

5. Northern European Plain
Created by Ice Age glaciers
Also called Great European Plain
Stretches from southeastern England to western France and all the way east to Poland, Ukraine, and Russia
Fertile soil and wealth of rivers have drawn farmers to this area
Southern edge is especially fertile because of deposits of loess (fine wind borne soil left by glaciers)
Coal, iron ore, and other minerals are found near here which helped Western Europe’s industrial development in the 1800s
Today Europe’s largest cities like Paris and Berlin are located on this Plain

6. The Great Hungarian Plain
Also very fertile
Extends from Hungary to Croatia and Romania
Farmers cultivate grains, fruits, vegetables, and raise livestock in lowlands along the Danube River (#8 on map)

7. Eurasia Europe and Asia share common land mass
Part of Russia (west of Ural Mts) is in Europe and the other part (east of Ural Mts) is in Asia

8. Has an unusually long, irregular coastline that touches
Baltic Sea (#10)
North Sea (#3)
Mediterranean Sea
Black Sea (#12)
Aegean Sea
Atlantic Ocean
Because of this most of Europe lies within at least 300 miles of water

9. The Dutch Deal with the North Sea
About 25% of Netherlands lie below sea level
Coastal dunes have not always been able to keep the water out
Since Middle Ages the Dutch have built dikes: large banks of Earth and stone
This new land reclaimed from the sea is called polders
At one time used windmills to drain and keep the area dry but now use other sources of energy to run pumps to get water out
This allows 100s to 1000s of acres to be used for farming and settlement
Recent past years the dikes have been breached causing devastating flooding

10. Peninsulas
Body of land that sticks out into a lake or ocean and is surrounded on THREE sides by water
Europe is one large peninsula made up of smaller peninsulas
Scandinavian
Jutland
Iberian
Italian
Balkan

11. Scandinavian Peninsula
#11 on map
Made of three fjords: long narrow steep sided inlets that were created by glaciers along the Atlantic Coast
Norway, Sweden and Finland
Have mountains
Lots of glacier lakes

12. Jutland Peninsula Denmark Extends into the North Sea
Lots of sand and gravel on western side from glaciers
Fjords were also carved into its coastline on the east
The interior is flat plains or low hills

13. Iberian Peninsula Extends of southwestern Europe Portugal and Spain
Separates the Atlantic Ocean from Mediterranean Sea
About 20 miles of water separates it from southern tip of Africa at straight of Gibraltar
One big plateau
Pyrenees cuts it off from rest of Europe so that up until modern times the people were mostly isolated and oriented to the sea

14. Italian Peninsula Extends like giant boot into Mediterranean Sea
Rocky cliffs and sandy beaches along coasts
Plains and Mountains
Along Po River very fertile

15. Balkan Peninsula In southeastern Europe
Surrounded by Adriatic Sea and Ionian Sea on west and Aegean Sea and Black Sea on east
Has Mt ranges like Carpathians and valleys
Includes the Danube River (very fertile land nearby)
Overland travel is difficult and people move along rivers and seas mainly

16. Iceland is south of Arctic Circle in Atlantic Ocean
On Mid-Atlantic Ridge which is an underwater mountain range
Has volcanoes, hot springs, and geysers
Its in high latitudes
Glaciers are found next to hot springs and volcanoes
Homes and industries are heated by piping water from hot springs
Lowlands on coast but rises to plateaus in interior

17. British Isles Lie northwest of Mainland
Consist of 2 large islands: Great Britain and Ireland
1000s of smaller ones
Rugged coastlines with rocky cliffs
Mts, plateaus, valleys in north
Low hills and plains in south
Ireland is lush green land of cool temps and lots of rain

18. Southern Islands Found in Mediterranean Sea
Sicily, Sardinia, Corsica, Crete, Cyprus
Lot of tectonic activity in this area
Mt Etna is Europe’s most active volcano and is found on island of Sicily
Spain has some islands as well
Over 2000 islands are located in Aegean Sea and are part of Greece

19. Water Systems MANY MANY MANY
This is why countries in this region were first to be industrialized!

20. Rivers of Europe
Many flow from mountain and highland areas to the coasts
Many canals have been created to link rivers so that goods can be transported and increase accessibility to water to more places and provide irrigation and can serve as a source of hydroelectric power

21. Rivers on Scandinavian Peninsula
Short
DO not provide easy connections b/t cities

22. Rivers on Iberian Peninsula
Are generally too narrow and shallow for large ships

23. The Thames River
Allows oceangoing ships to reach the port of London

24. The Rhine River Most important in western Europe
Connects many industrial cities to the port of Rotterdam on the North Sea
Runs from Swiss Alps through France and Germany and into the Netherlands

25. The Danube River #8 on map
Flows from Germany’s Black Forest through Hungary and Romania
Dumps in to the Black Sea
Every year ships and barges carry millions of tons of cargo on this river

26. The Main-Danube Canal Very important for Europe
Connects the Rhine River to the Main River
Connects Danube to Black and North Seas
MAJOR for trade

27. Other Major Rivers The Seine, the Rhone, and the Loire in France
The Elbe and Weser in Germany
The Vistula in Poland
The Po in Italy
Dnieper in Ukraine

28. Natural Resources of Europe
Has abundant supply of iron ore and coal
Use coal, oil, gas, nuclear and hydroelectric power as sources of energy (Portugal is working on wave power)
Large deposits of oil and natural gas are located under the North Sea which contributes to Europe’s energy needs
Large deposits of coal are located in UK, Germany, Ukraine, and Poland and though it is an important energy source many are trying to use natural gas cause its cleaner
France depends heavily on nuclear power because it does not have large oil and natural gas reserves
Some Europeans burn peat as a fuel source (vegetable matter found in swamps that is dug up, chopped into blocks and dried so it can be burned)
Deposits of iron ore are found in Sweden, France, and Ukraine
Other minerals found in Europe are bauxite, zinc and maganese

29. Climate and Vegetation of Europe

30. Influences of Climate of Europe
Latitude
Mountain barriers
Wind patterns
Distance from large bodies of water
North Atlantic Current

31. Areas that lie near or along bodies of water in Europe
Western and southern portions
Climate is warmer and milder than other areas like Canada or Northern US that have same latitude
This is because of warm winds brought by the North Atlantic Current
Paris and Boston have same latitudes but Paris has much milder climate

32. Parts of eastern and northern Europe
Have a colder climate because of their distance from the warming effects of the Atlantic Ocean
Eastern Europe tends to be drier cause of distance from Atlantic Ocean

33. Vegetation found in Europe
Varies
Forests
Grasslands
Tundra plants
Small shrubs
Just depends on climate

34. Types of Climates Found in Europe
Varies
Cold barren tundra (northern parts)
Subarctic (northern parts)
Steppe (in southern parts)
Marine West coast
Humid continental
Humid subtropical
Mediterranean (coasts of Italy, Greece, Spain)

35. High Latitude Regions Found in the far northern portions of Europe
Tundra: parts of Iceland, Sweden, Finland; bitterly cold winters, short cool summers, permafrost, little vegetation
Subarctic: Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania; forests are main vegetation; found where Europe and northern Asia meet
Marine West Coast: Norway and southern parts of Iceland and Sweden, warmer, cool mild winters and 90 inches of rain a year from Norwegian and North Atlantic Current
Humid Continental: parts of eastern Norway, southern Sweden and Finland that are sheltered by mountains resulting in warmer summers, cold winters and less than 30 inches of rain

36. Mid-latitude Regions
Marine west coast climate: Western Europe; with mild winters, cool summers, and lots of rainfall
Mediterranean climate: parts of Southern Europe; hot dry summers, mild rainy winters and Alps block a lot of moist Atlantic winds
Humid subtropical: other parts of Southern Europe like Northern Italy and central parts of Balkans
Mistrals: are a strong north wind from Alps which can send gusts of bitterly cold air through southern France
Siroccos: high dry winds from North Africa that may bring high temperatures to the region
Humid continental climate: much of Eastern Europe; snowy winters and hot summers; warm ocean currents have less of influence due to distance from Atlantic Ocean
Highland climate is found in the Alps with colder temperatures and more rain than nearby lowlands
Foehns: dry winter winds that blow down from mountains to valleys and plains which can trigger avalanches
Avalanches: destructive masses of ice, snow, and rock sliding down mountainsides and can be serious hazards to skiers, hikers, and villages

37. Dry Regions are found in southeastern and southwestern Europe
Southeastern steppe
Southwestern steppe
Rainfall varies and can be scarce
Grasslands
Hungary, Serbia, Montenegro, and Romania through Ukraine and Central Asia
Hot summers, extremely cold winters
Caused by distance from Atlantic Oceans moist winds and Carpathian Mountains
Farming can be difficult in these areas because of extreme temperatures, periods of drought, poor and easily eroded soils and high winds
Parts of Iberian Peninsula
Extends over 81,000 miles
Madrid (Spain’s capital) is at the center of it
Caused by rain shadow effect from Pyrenees Mountains

38. Review
Physical Map
Essay Question: How has the physical geography of Europe affected the people that live there? Explain two clear examples!