For this reason, continental crust is much, much older than oceanic crust.Wandering ContinentsIf you could visit Earth as it was millions of years ago, it would look very different. Isolated from life on other continents, the animals developed into creatures unique to Australia, such as the koala, the platypus, and the Tasmanian devil.The Great Barrier Reef, off mainland Australias northeast coast, is another living laboratory. In the younger regions, the process of mountain building has happened recently and often continues to happen.The power for mountain building, ororogeny, comes from plate tectonics. A continent is one of Earths seven main divisions of land. Europe teaches a six continent model: Africa, America, Antarctica, Asia, Australia/Oceania and Europe. In Europe the shield area underlies the eastern Scandinavian peninsula and Finland. Enter your email below, and you'll receive this table's data in your inbox momentarily. Its population is about 31 million. Geological and seismological evidence accumulated in the 20th century indicates that the continental platforms do float on a crust of heavier material that forms a layer completely enveloping the Earth. On the other hand, 75% of Russian territory is located in Asia. More than a third of the worlds people live in China and India alone.The continent of Asia includes many islands, some of them countries. But using the criteria defined above, many geologists say there are six continents: Africa, Antarctica, Australia, North and South America, and Eurasia . We have read what are the continents, what are the continents of the world and their countries and other related facts. 7 Continents: South America - Worldometer Asia is a continent present in the eastern Hemisphere, Europe is in the west of Asia, North America is present in the Northern -Western Hemisphere, Africa and South America is present in both Northern and Southern hemispheres whereas Australia and Antarctica are the continents which are completely present in the Southern Hemisphere. It also consists of World's highest mountain ranges. It is thought to be the continent where the first humans evolved. The continents differ sharply in their degree of compactness. Asia consists of forty-eight countries as per the United Nations along with many other highly autonomous regions and disputed areas that are often generalised as countries of their own. List of Countries by Continent 2023 - World Population Review There are seven continents in the world: Africa, Antarctica, Asia, Australia/Oceania, Europe, North America, and South America. At that time, aprimitiveocean covered Earth. There also exist dozens of "territories" which are technically not countries because they are ruled by another nation. Ocean waters haveflooded huge areas and then gradually dried up. Eventually, the earth came to have three main layers: thecore, themantle, and thecrust.The crust and the top portion of the mantle form arigidshell around the earth that is broken up into huge sections calledtectonic plates. The name of such research stations there is Maitri and Dakshin Gangotri. At 14,000,000 square kilometres (5,400,000 square miles), it is the fifth-largest continent. Continents are Earths primary land divisions. In terms of land area, it covers about one-third of the total land. All maps, graphics, flags, photos and original descriptions 2023 worldatlas.com. Countries and Capitals, Continent wise List of Countries & their Capitals Its frequent eruptions are evidenced by hot, molten rock beneath the continents icy surface.Antarctica does not have any countries. Sometimes Europe and Asia are considered one continent called Eurasia. Oceania also boasts a large number of territories, many of which are controlled by the United States. But some countries use other systems, which divide the world into fewer continents. 7 continents of the world: Facts you need to know - India Today The continent has a wide range of climate regions, frompolarin theSiberian Arctic to tropical in equatorial Indonesia. 54 countries are here along with nine dependent territories which can be seen in the map. Almost every type ofecosystemis represented somewhere on the continent, fromcoral reefs in the Caribbean to Greenlands ice sheet to theGreat Plainsin the U.S. and Canada.Today, North America is home to the citizens of Canada, the United States, Greenland, Mexico, Belize, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama, and the island countries and territories that dot the Caribbean Sea and the western North Atlantic.Most of North America sits on the North American Plate. In the U.S., students are taught that there are seven continents: North America, South America, Europe, Asia, Africa, Australia and Antarctica. The seven different continents are unique landmasses known as Africa, Antarctica, Asia, Australia, Europe, North America, and South America. It is a continent in the seven continent system. There are 48 countries as recognized by the United Nations and few dependencies and other territories which can be seen in the map. Language links are at the top of the page across from the title. All rights reserved. This model is used by the United Nations and found in the Olympic Charter. The names of the seven continents of the world are: Asia, Africa, Europe, Australia, North America, South America, and Antarctica. 1- Asia It is the largest continent. Being the Earth's southernmost continent located in the Antarctic region of the Southern Hemisphere, it contains the geographic South Pole. The term Australasia is also sometimes use to refer to this region. If you went to school in the United States, chances are you were taught that there are seven continents: Africa, Antarctica, Asia, Australia, Europe, North America, and South America. The continents are, from largest to smallest: Asia, Africa, North America, South America, Antarctica, Europe, and Australia.Whengeographers identify a continent, they usually include all theislands associated with it. While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. Parts of Central Asia, including the Gobi Desert in China and Mongolia, are dry year-round. You will find 7 continents and 5 oceans here on the planet. Additionally, certain highly autonomous first-level administrative divisions fall under the definition of the word country. Antarctica is also an ideal place for discoveringmeteorites, or stony objects that have impacted Earth from space. In fact, Asia is the continent with the largest number of transcontinental countries, including Russia, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, Armenia, Georgia, Turkey, and (surprisingly to many) Egypt, some of which are counted as Asian and some of which are not. Some of these territories are largely independent, but still part of another countryfor instance, Greenland is actually part of Denmark, and Puerto Rico is officially part of the United States (though not a state). South America is the fourth-largest continent and extends from the sunny beaches of the Caribbean Sea to thefrigidwaters near the Antarctic Circle.South Americas southernmost islands, calledTierra del Fuego, are less than 1,120 kilometers (700 miles) from Antarctica. Microcontinents, like New Zealand, lack cratons.Cratons have two forms:shields andplatforms. Today, tectonic plates continue to slowly slide around the surface, just as they have been doing for hundreds of millions of years.Geologists believe the interaction of the plates, a process calledplate tectonics, contributed to the creation of continents.Studies of rocks found inancientareas of North America have revealed that the oldest known pieces of the continents began to form nearly four billion years ago, soon after Earth itself formed. List of continents and continental subregions by population It is most commonly taught in English-speaking countries, as well as in China, India, and Pakistan. This article will give a list of some of the countries in those continents. The largest country by land area in Africa is Algeria, which spans over 919,595 mi (2,381,741 km). The distribution of the continental platforms and ocean basins on the surface of the globe and the distribution of the major landform features have long been among the most intriguing problems for scientific investigation and theorizing. These volcanic areas are fueled by heat generated as a large oceanic plate, called the Nazca Plate, grinds beneath the plate carrying South America.The central-southern area of South America haspampas, or plains. 12 countries are present here along with 3 dependencies. It is a natural region of islands designated by its geology, geography, botany, and zoology. About 75% of the Russian population lives in the European continent. Asia is by far the largest continent in the world, spanning 17.2 million square miles (44.6 million square kilometers). The term Oceania is also used to describe this region in order to differentiate it from the country of Australia. Country Population (2020) Land Area (Km) Density (P/Km) 1: Russia: 145,934,462: 16,376,870: 9: 2: Germany: 83,783,942: 348,560: 240: 3: United Kingdom: 67,886,011 . McMurdo Station, the largest community in Antarctica, is operated by the United States. There are 7 continents in the world (Although that depends on which model you are using ). Theocean covers almost three-fourths of Earth. The longest mountain ranges namely the Andes are also part of this continent. In the map pictured above Russia is divided into two parts (European Russia and the "Asian part" of the Russian Federation) along the Ural Mountains line, from the source of the Ural River down to the Greater Caucasus from the Caspian Sea to the Black Sea (following the modern definition of Europe as provided by the National Geographic Society). 2 countries of this continent is shared with Europe ie. Many of these forests thrive around Africas other great rivers, the Zambezi, the Congo, and the Niger. 3. The landmassess averageelevationabovesea levelis about 838 meters (2,750 feet).Although each isunique, all the continents share two basic features: old, geologicallystableregions, and younger, somewhat more activeregions. This article will be helpful for Class 6 students and the upper classes as well. The biggest of them is Canada, followed by also the rather huge United States, these two giants together occupy over seventy-nine of the complete continent space. [1] Palestine (a UN General Assembly observer state ), which has diplomatic relations with 138 countries as of 31 July 2019. There is great variation in the sizes of continents; Asia is more than five times as large as Australia. These help the student in-class examinations and competitive exams where general knowledge is needed. The Rights Holder for media is the person or group credited. Give a brief about the continent named North America? Canada and the United States together occupy 79% of the continents total land area. What are the seven continents and their countries? - Jagran Josh National Geographic Headquarters 1145 17th Street NW Washington, DC 20036. continent, one of the larger continuous masses of land, namely, Asia, Africa, North America, South America, Antarctica, Europe, and Australia, listed in order of size. However, Africa joins Eurasia to become Afro-Eurasia, leaving only Oceania and Antarctica as separate continents. In other systems, it is part of Asia, Eurasia or Eurafrasia. Greatmountain ranges have risen and then have been worn away. By some estimates, it is the worlds largest living organism.Most of Australia sits on the Australian Plate. For example, some combine North and South America into a single continent called simply "The Americas," or merge Europe and Asia into "Eurasia." These continents are made up of many countries and they include Antarctica, Africa, Asia, Europe, Australia, South America, and North America. Heavier material sank toward Earths center. There are technically no countries on the continent of Antarctica. The continent is sometimes called Oceania, to include the thousands of tiny islands of the Central Pacific and South Pacific, most notably Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia (including the U.S. state of Hawai'i). Even the rocks of the extremely old shield areas are older in the centre and younger toward the margins, indicating that this process of accumulation started early. Older, more stable mountain ranges are found in the interior of continents. The freezing temperatures of Antarctica make it an excellent place to study the history of Earthsatmosphereand climate.Ice cores from the massive Antarctic ice sheet have recorded changes in Earths temperature and atmospheric gases for thousands of years. Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). Continents are defined by their continental shelves. The Nubian Plate will carry most of the continent, to the west of the rift; the Somali Plate will carry the far eastern part of the continent, including the so-called Horn of Africa. The Horn of Africa is a peninsula that resembles the upturned horn of a rhinoceros. 7 continents of the world and their countries One final point regarding this particular list of countries per continent: A few countries bridge the gap between two continents, such as Russia (Europe/Asia), Cyprus (Europe/Asia), and Egypt (Africa/Asia). advertisement Earth is around 71 per cent water per cent water and 29 per cent land. If you could visit the planet in the future, you might find that part of the United States's state of California had separated from North America and become an island. Continents make up mostbut not allof Earths land surface. Each continent also hosts many independent nation-states. When geographers identify a continent, they usually include all the islands associated with it. Another range, the Kjlen Mountains, extends along the northern part of the border between Sweden and Norway. The Continents of the World - Nations Online Project Their materialfused with that of islands on the neighboring plate. Asia is the largest continent while Australia is the smallest continent in the world. Theequatorruns through Africa in the middle of the continent. The term Pacific Islands generally excludes the islands of New Zealand and the continent of Australia. Africa comprises 54 countries. Country Population (2020) Land Area (Km) Density (P/Km) 1: Brazil: 212,559,417: 8,358,140: 25: 2: Colombia: 50,882,891: 1,109,500: 46: 3: Argentina: 45,195,774: . The continuous smashing of spacedebrisand the pull ofgravitymade the inside of Earth heat up. This term means Australia, New Zealand and the whole of New Guinea, plus those islands which are geologically connected. This number comprises 193 countries that are member states of the United Nations and 2 countries that are non-member observer states - the Holy See and the State of Palestine. We provide you year-long structured coaching classes for CBSE and ICSE Board & JEE and NEET entrance exam preparation at affordable tuition fees, with an exclusive session for clearing doubts, ensuring that neither you nor the topics remain unattended. Greenland and all the islands in the Caribbean Sea are usually considered part of North America.Together, the continents add up to about 148 million square kilometers (57 million square miles) of land. Our planet is divided into basically two categories namely landmasses and the water bodies. Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree. When plates carrying islands subducted, the islands themselves did not descend into the mantle. The three water bodies through which the equator passes are the Atlantic ocean, Pacific ocean and Indian ocean. Earth consists of 7 continents namely Asia, Europe, Australia, North America, South America and Africa, in which Asia is the largest and Australia is the smallest. When you reach out to him or her, you will need the page title, URL, and the date you accessed the resource. It is mostly situated in the southern hemisphere, with the exception of a small area of the northernmost portion of the continent. The central and southern areas of Africa aredominated by rainforests. There are seven continents: Asia Africa North America South America Antarctica Europe and Australia (listed from largest to smallest in size). With 1.3 billion people as of 2018, it accounts for about 16% of the world's human population. The most populated of these countries is the United States, which has a population of 329.9 million people. From north to south, Africa stretches about 8,000 kilometers (5,000 miles). In winter, Antarcticas surface area may double aspack icebuilds up in the ocean around the continent.Like all other continents, Antarctica has volcanic activity. The continents of Europe and Asia, for example, are actually part of a single,enormouspiece of land called Eurasia. MicrocontinentsIn addition to the seven major continents, Earth is home to microcontinents, or pieces of land that are not geologically identified with a continent. Major microcontinents include: The audio, illustrations, photos, and videos are credited beneath the media asset, except for promotional images, which generally link to another page that contains the media credit. If you have questions about how to cite anything on our website in your project or classroom presentation, please contact your teacher. The longest river in the world is also present here. The heat from inside the earth causes the plates to slide around on themoltenmantle. Antarctica is an island, and is completely surrounded by the Southern Ocean. In order from smallest to largest, they are: Oceania, Europe, Antarctica, South America, North America, Africa, and Asia. A continent is a large continuous mass of land conventionally regarded as a collective region. There are more than 40 countries in Asia. This article consists of a list of countries by continent, along with their capitals. However, the continent of Australia itself includes only the nation of Australia, the eastern portion of the island of New Guinea (the nation of Papua New Guinea) and the island nation of New Zealand.Australia covers just less than 8.5 million square kilometers (about 3.5 million square miles). More water flows from it than from the next six largest rivers combined.South America is also home to the worlds highestwaterfall, Angel Falls, in the country of Venezuela. There are seven continents on Earth, each with a different climate and culture. 7 Continents of the World and 5 Oceans List Continent - Wikipedia European explorers were responsible for colonizing land on every continent except Antarctica. But some countries use other systems, which divide the world into fewer continents. Some also consider it as the largest island in the world but most of the geologists consider it only a continent or a country. Some are among the most-populated countries in the world, including China, India, and Indonesia. The most populous of these countries is Nigeria, which has more than 211 million people. Antarctica is the fifth largest continent by land area, and the least populated continent. All of them, except Antarctica, are home to millions, if not billions, of inhabitants. The growing of wheat is a majorindustryin the pampas.Grazing animals, such ascattleand sheep, are also raised in the pampas region.In northern South America, the Amazon River and its tributaries flow through the worlds largest tropicalrainforest. 1 country namely Palestine only has observer status of the United nations and not yet recognised as a separate country.