The position of Africa relative to other continents and oceans, islands, bays, straits. What are the characteristics of the geographical location of Africa?

Africa is a continent that is second only to Eurasia in terms of area. The equator passes almost along its middle part. The situation of Africa with respect to other continents is of genuine interest. The continent completely, with a few exceptions, falls into the zone between the northern and southern tropics.

Description of continent

At the lessons of geography in school, 7th-grade pupils can get such a task: "Describe the position of Africa relative to other continents." You can start it with the following description. The continent is washed by several seas and oceans. The west coast leads to the Atlantic, the southern and eastern to the Indian Ocean, the northern to the Mediterranean, and the northeast to the Red Sea. Africa becomes part of the world if adjacent islands are added to the mainland. It occupies 6% of the surface of the planet Earth and 20% of the land area.

From the south, west and east, the continent ends with capes. These are the Agulhas, Almadi and Ras-Hafun, respectively. The northern extremity is represented by Ben-Seca. The mainland can not boast of a large number of islands. The most famous and largest of them is Madagascar. It is interesting to see the position of Africa relative to other continents and oceans, islands, bays, straits.

The Somali Peninsula is on the east coast, wedged into the Indian Ocean. The Gulf of Guinea violates the outlines of the western part of the coastline. The width of the northern half of the continent is 7.5 thousand km, here there are several sea bays. There is practically no shelf, the shore is high, it ends with a cliff. Serious depths and powerful surfs make the construction of ports and the approach of ships an extremely difficult task.

The Mediterranean and Red Seas are the natural boundary between Africa and Eurasia. The natural and climatic conditions of the northern part of the continent resemble the south of Europe and south-west Asia. The Gibraltar strait is 14 km wide - a barrier between the Old World and Africa. The Suez isthmus connects the mainland with Asia. As early as the nineteenth century a canal was built through it for the passage of sea-going vessels. Along the African coast are major trade waterways from the Old World to Australia and Asia.

The situation of Africa and Australia relative to other continents

The southern continents have common features of geographical location, which have affected the natural and climatic conditions. The main zones of Africa and Australia are close to the equator, so a lot of solar radiation falls on their surface. It should be noted that the amount of heat supplied to the land does not practically change in different months.

The southern continents have weak physical connections between themselves and with other continents. The exception is Africa, which is clearly connected to the Eurasian continent. Australia has no land communication with other continents since the Middle Mesozoic. Today between continents there is practically no exchange of representatives of the animal and vegetable worlds. The geographical position of Africa with respect to other continents allows the flora and fauna to move freely beyond its boundaries. The nature of the Arabian Peninsula and the Sahara, as well as the Atlas region and the Mediterranean coast has similar features.

The Australian continent is wholly owned by the Southern Hemisphere. The northern extremity is interfaced with warm seas. The Pacific influence is weakened by the archipelagoes that protect the continent from the east. Among other Southern continents, Australia is the most isolated. This fact has a strong influence on the local flora and fauna.

Africa and the World Ocean

The position of Africa relative to other continents can be characterized as follows:

• The western extremity is in contact with cold currents.
• The eastern shore is influenced by warm water masses.
• The southern extremity is washed by the strong current of the Western Winds, which is quite cold.

These features are typical for all southern continents, of course, with some amendments. The following parameters are inherent only in the African continent:

• It is located exactly in the middle of the equator. The southern and northern shores have almost the same latitude.
• The northern extremity is influenced by the Mediterranean Sea, this has affected the nature of the surrounding areas of the continent.
• Africa is a neighbor of the Eurasian continent and has similar features with South-West Asia.
• Only one of the southern continents is mostly located in the Northern Hemisphere. This is Africa.

Area and shape

Considering the position of Africa relative to other continents and oceans, it is impossible not to mention its outlines and dimensions. The surface area of this continent is 29.2 million km ² , which is about half of the Eurasian surface.

The form of the continent follows the patterns inherent in all terrestrial continents:

• The northern part is the widest, and the southern part is narrow.
• The largest width is in the low latitudes.

The equatorial, tropical and intermediate climatic zones cover about 85% of the area of Africa. This is typical of the continents in the south. The northern continents have only 20% of such territories.

Coastline

Regardless of what continent was discussed, the description of the geographic position of the continent is not without mentioning the properties of the coasts. Africa is no exception. If we compare the degree of unevenness of the outlines of different continents (the ratio of the area occupied by large peninsulas to the rest of the continent's surface), then the following picture is obtained:

• 1:99 - African.
• 1:50 - South American.
• 1: 4 - Australian.
• 1: 3 - Eurasian and North American.

In general, the continents located in the southern latitudes have a much smaller number of large peninsulas.

The study of the continent

Africa was actively studied at the end of the XVIII century, when Western researchers were motivated by the desire to get new sources of useful natural resources. The main number of expeditions was organized inside the continent. The upper and then the middle and lower currents of the river p. Niger. The travelers crossed the Sahara.

After this research, the territories of the south of the African continent are affected. The p. Limpopo. Expedition of Russian scientists was engaged in describing the tributaries of the Blue Nile. Gradually, new lakes, mountain peaks opened, rivers were studied. One of the research results by the end of the XIX century was the survey of rivers: Congo, Nile, Zambezi and Niger. And at the beginning of the next century, significant deposits of natural resources were discovered on the mainland.

Relief

The relief and position of Africa relative to other continents of the Earth is the result of the historical development of the continent. The surface of it is unique. The main area is occupied by flat places and plateaus, located at an altitude of 200-1000 m above sea level. Lowland areas are few. The most famous plateau is the East and South Africa. Elevated areas alternate with basins (Kalahari, Congo, etc.).

Tectonic history of the continent

What are the characteristics of the geographical position of Africa and its historical development? The basis of the mainland is the Arabian-African platform, which is quite ancient. It was formed as a result of the split of Gondwana, which appeared in the Archaean Proterozoic. For several billion years, the platform has become stable. The northern Atlas mountains and the southern Cape formed much later.

The giant platform suffered periods of elevations and subsidence. The northern extremity was several times below sea level. There are sedimentary layers on the crystalline rocks of the basement. Closer to the south, in the center of the Sahara, the foundation rises to the surface.

The surface of the east and south of the African continent was formed in a different way: the bark often rose and broke. Volcanoes appeared and functioned. In these areas - a lot of plains, formed by lava flows. Graben filled with water and turned the lake. Volcanic activity and tremor of the cortex have been noted so far. In the rift zone there are volcanoes, among them - Kilimanjaro. This is the highest point of the mainland, equal to 5895 m.

Minerals

What are the characteristics of the geographical location of Africa and mineral resources? The continent has a rich set of deposits, most of which are among the largest on Earth.

Ore fossils - gold, iron, copper, zinc, etc. - refer to the ancient foundation of the platform. It consists of the following rocks: magmatic and metamorphic. The richest deposits exist in the southern and eastern regions of the continent. According to gold reserves, Africa leads the way, and copper is the second largest in the world.

Diamonds are another asset of the mainland. These stones are used not only in the jewelry sphere, but also as the hardest material on earth. Africa provides ½ of the world's demand for diamonds. Deposits of this stone are found in the Southwest and in the central regions of the continent.

Climate

The situation of Africa with respect to other continents also explains its climatic conditions. It is rightly considered the hottest place on the planet. The main part of the continent is characterized by temperatures above +20 ºC. Such conditions are connected with finding Africa between the northern and southern tropics. In this area the sun rises high, and twice a year falls into the zenith. Seasonality is expressed not so much by temperature differences as by precipitation.

Circulating atmospheric streams determine the climatic conditions, the degree of moistening and its frequency. A low pressure region forms above the equator, and a high pressure region toward the poles. Trade winds cover almost the whole of Africa. Precipitation is brought only by winds blowing from the southeast. In the winter in the subtropics the rains form from the humid air coming from the Atlantic.

Climatic zones

Considering the position of Africa relative to other continents, it is worth mentioning the issue of climatic zonality:

• Equatorial belt. It includes a swimming pool p. Congo and the north of the Gulf of Guinea.
• The tropical belt. South and north of the equatorial.
• Subtropical belt. Includes the northern and southern outskirts of the continent. Climate conditions are optimal for humans.

A number of scientists do not share the first two belts, but consider it equatorial-tropical. Within its boundaries, regions are distinguished by the number of wet months.