2. Physical Geo of the United States Of America By Connor Birch and Olivia Carlson

3. Major Features There are many physical features in the united states. The main consist of mountain ranges, lakes, deserts, canyons, national parks, and volcanoes.

4. Great Lakes There are 5 Great Lakes in the US. They are, Lake Huron, Lake Ontario, Lake Michigan, Lake Erie, and Lake Superior. These combine to make up for 21% of the world’s surface freshwater. These began to form at the end of the last glacial period. They combine to cover 94,250 square miles of land. The surface area is roughly the same size as The United Kingdom. Ontario is lower than sea level and the rest are called the Upper great Lakes.

5. Mountain ranges The 48 contiguous states consist of many mountains ranges. The main ranges you probably know of are the Appalachian and the Rocky Mountains ranges

6. Appalachian Mountains The Appalachians are a series of mountains in the eastern part of the US. The Appalachians formed after the Ordovician period. They are filled with wild life and kept in place by erosion. They run off water into many streams including the Appalachian basin. They have many exposed cliffs that crack from the tectonic boundary underneath.

7. Rocky Mountains The rocky mountains are a series of mountains on the west coast of the US. They continue into the southwestern regions of Canada. They stretch more then 3,000 miles. The eastern side rises largely over the interior plains of the us. The rocky varies in width from 70-300 miles wide.

8. Mojave Desert There is one main desert in the US. It is the Mojave Desert. In occupies a significant part of southeastern California. It hosts many mountain ranges causing many valleys. Most of these valleys are forever drained so they don’t provide any water.

9. The Grand Canyon There is one canyon in the US that stands out above all others and you probably know what it is, The Grand Canyon. It is located in the Colorado Plateau. It isn’t the deepest in the world but in the US it is. It is super old and hosts many beautiful rocks from long ago in the sides of it. It is 277 miles long, up to 18 miles wide, and over a mile deep.

10. National Parks Everglades National Park is home to lots of wild life in Florida. It is the largest subtropical wilderness in the US. It was created to protect a very fragile ecosystem. It covers 1,509,000 acres and has a elevation of 0-8 feet above sea level. Yellowstone National Park is home to lots of wildlife just like Everglades National Park but is located in Wyoming. It has many hot springs and geysers such as, The Grand Prismatic Spring and The Old Faithful Geyser. As water is transported underground it goes over a mantle hotspot causing the springs and geysers.

11. Volcanoes There are a few volcanoes in the US but the one everybody know of is Mt. Saint Helens. It is located in Washington. It is an active volcano and the last time it erupted was 1980. it is 45 miles west of the Cascade range. It runs off into many streams because the average rainfall is 140 in.

12. Sources <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> Http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Lakes http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Appalachian_Mountains http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grand_Canyon http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rocky_Mountains http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Everglades_National_Park http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mojave_Desert http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yellowstone_National_Park#Geography http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mount_St._Helens <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><>