Everyone remembers that Africa is the hottest continent on the planet. But few people know that Africa is also the "highest" of the continents, since it has the highest average height above sea level. The relief of Africa is very diverse and complex: there are mountain systems, plateaus, large plains, active and long-extinct volcanoes.

The relief of any region, as is known, is closely connected with the tectonic and geological structure of the territory. The relief of Africa and the minerals of this continent are also associated with the tectonics of the mainland. Let's consider this question in more detail.

Plan for describing the relief of the territory of Africa

The relief of any continent is characterized according to a specific plan. The relief of Africa is described according to the following algorithm:

1. characteristics of the mainland.
2. Analysis of the history of the development of the earth's crust.
3. Characterization of external and internal (exogenous and endogenous) factors of relief formation.
4. Description of the general features of the relief of the continent.
5. Highlighting the maximum and minimum height.
6. Minerals and their distribution on the territory of the mainland.

Low and High Africa

The description of the relief of Africa should begin with the fact that the mainland, from an orographic point of view, is divided into two parts: High and Low Africa.

Low Africa occupies more than 60% of the entire area of ​​​​the continent (geographically, these are the northern, western and central parts of Africa). Heights up to 1000 meters prevail here. High Africa covers the southern and eastern parts of the mainland, where the average heights are 1000-1500 meters above sea level. Here are the highest points - Kilimanjaro (5895 meters), Rwenzori and Kenya.

General characteristics of the African relief

Now consider the main features of the relief of Africa.

The main feature is that the relief of the mainland is mostly flat. Mountain ranges border the mainland only in the south and northwest. In East Africa, the relief is predominantly flat.

Such landforms of Africa predominate: plateaus, plains, highlands, plateaus, remnant peaks and volcanic massifs. At the same time, they are located on the territory of the mainland very unevenly: inside it there are mostly leveled surfaces - plains and plateaus, and along the edges - hills and mountain ranges. This feature is associated with the tectonic structure of Africa, most of which lies on the ancient platform of the Precambrian age, and along its edges there are areas of folding.

Of all the mountain systems in Africa, only the Atlas is young. In the east of the mainland, the huge East African Rift Valley stretches for more than 6,000 kilometers in length. Grandiose volcanoes formed in the places of its faults, and very deep lakes formed in the depressions.

It is worth listing the largest landforms in Africa. These include the Atlas, Draconian and Ethiopian highlands, the Tibesti and Ahaggar highlands, the East African plateau.

atlas mountains

The mountainous landforms of Africa are, as already mentioned, only in the south and northwest of the mainland. One of the African mountain systems is the Atlas.

The Atlas Mountains arose 300 million years ago as a result of the collision of the Eurasian and African plates. Later, they were raised to considerable heights due to neotectonic movements that took place at the end of the Paleogene. It is worth noting that earthquakes occur in this area even now.

The Atlas is composed mainly of marls, limestones, and also ancient volcanic rocks. The bowels are rich in metal ores, as well as phosphorites and oil.

This is the largest mountain system in Africa, which includes several almost parallel mountain ranges:

• High Atlas.
• Rif.
• Tel Atlas.
• Middle Atlas.
• Sahara Atlas.
• Antiatlas.

The total length of the mountain range is about 2400 kilometers. The maximum heights are located on the territory of the state of Morocco (Mount Toubkal, 4165 meters). The average heights of the ridges range from 2000-2500 meters.

dragon mountains

This mountain system in the south of the mainland is located on the territory of three states - Lesotho, South Africa and Swaziland. The highest point of the Dragon Mountains is Mount Thabana-Ntlenyana with a height of 3482 meters. The mountains formed 360 million years ago, during the Hercynian era. They got such a formidable name due to their inaccessibility and wild appearance.

The territory is rich in minerals: platinum, gold, tin and coal. The organic world of the Dragon Mountains is also unique, with several endemic species. The main part of the mountain range (Drakensberg Park) is a UNESCO site.

The Drakensberg Mountains are the watershed boundary between the Indian Ocean basin and the upper reaches of the Orange River. They have a unique shape: their tops are flat, table-like, separated by erosion processes into separate plateaus.

Ethiopian highlands

The relief of Africa is strikingly diverse. Here you can find high mountain ranges of the Alpine type, hilly plateaus, vast plains and deep depressions. One of the most famous mainland is the Ethiopian Highlands, within which not only Ethiopia is located, but also 6 other African states.

This is a real mountain system with average heights of 2-3 kilometers and the highest point of 4550 meters (Mount Ras Dashen). Due to the specific features of the relief of the highlands, it is often called the "roof of Africa". In addition, this "roof" often shakes, seismicity remains high here.

The highlands formed only 75 million years ago. It consists of crystalline schists and gneisses overlain from above by volcanic rocks. Quite picturesque are the western slopes of the Ethiopian Highlands, indented by the canyons of the Blue Nile River.

Within the highlands there are rich deposits of gold, sulfur, platinum, copper and in addition, it is also an important agricultural region. It is considered the birthplace of coffee, as well as some varieties of wheat.

Mount Kilimanjaro

This volcano is not only the highest point of the mainland (5895 meters), but also a kind of symbol of all of Africa. The volcano is located on the border of two states - Kenya and Tanzania. From the Swahili language, the name of the volcano is translated as "sparkling mountain".

Kilimanjaro rises above the Masai plateau at a height of 900 meters, so visually it seems that the volcano is unrealistically high. Scientists do not predict the activity of the volcano in the near future (other than possible gas emissions), although it was recently found that the lava is located 400 meters from the Kibo crater.

According to local legends, the volcano erupted about two centuries ago. Although there is no documentary evidence for this. The highest point of Kilimanjaro - Uhuru Peak - was first conquered in 1889 by Hans Meyer. Today, the speedy conquest of Kilimanjaro is practiced. In 2010, the Spaniard Kilian Burgada set a kind of world record by climbing to the top of the volcano in 5 hours and 23 minutes.

Relief of Africa and minerals

Africa is a continent with huge economic potential, which is characterized by huge reserves of various minerals. In addition, a more or less even, slightly dissected topography of the territory contributes to the development of industry and the construction of roads and other means of communication.

Africa is rich in minerals, on the basis of which metallurgy and petrochemistry can develop. Thus, the continent holds the absolute leadership in the world in terms of total reserves of phosphorites, chromites and tantalum. Africa also has large deposits of manganese, copper and uranium ore, bauxite, gold and even diamonds. On the mainland, they even distinguish the so-called "copper belt" - a belt of high mineral and raw material potential, stretching from Katanga to (DRC). In addition to copper itself, gold, cobalt, tin, uranium and oil are also mined here.

In addition, such regions of Africa as North Africa and West Africa (its Guinean part) are also considered very rich in the presence of minerals.

So you got acquainted with the features of the relief of the hottest continent on Earth. The relief of Africa is unique and diverse, here you can find all its forms - mountain ranges, plateaus and plateaus, highlands, hills and depressions.

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Relief

The Importance of the Landscape for Assessing the Prospects for Tourism Development

The characteristic of the landscape of the territory is paramount for assessing the prospects for the development of tourism in it, primarily because the characteristics of the landscape determine the features of nature and climate, form the external image of the environment, form its aesthetic value. The structure and typology of landscapes have a decisive influence on the popularity of a particular tourism in a particular country or region. In addition, the peculiarity of the landscape determines the conditions for the creation of tourism infrastructure - the possibility of construction, communication, construction of roads and transport centers. Heavily rugged terrain, an abundance of canyons, rivers make it difficult for tourists to access resources. Many times increase the cost of construction of tourist facilities. Reduce the capacity of resorts and tourist centers. Restrictive impact on tourism and increased seismic activity (Eight of the ten largest cities in the world by population are located in seismic zones. Life and safety of residents of Tokyo, Mexico City, New York, Mumbai, New Delhi, Shanghai, Calcutta and Jakarta, according to the UN Seismologists predict major earthquakes in other world cities, in particular, in Istanbul and Los Angeles

There are two main seismic belts: the Pacific, encircling the Pacific coast, and the Mediterranean, stretching across the south of Eurasia from the Iberian Peninsula to the west to the Malay arch. in the east.), the possibility of avalanches, river floods, volcanic eruptions (there are about 1,300 active volcanoes on Earth.), etc.

Therefore, landscapes that, on the one hand, are attractive, primarily due to the pronounced alternation of relief forms, the richness of local nature, will be the most appropriate for the needs of tourists, on the other hand, they comply with the standards for housing construction and the provision of the necessary social infrastructure.

To date, the vast majority of recreation is located at the junction of landscapes of various types. The tourist zones of Europe, Russia, individual countries of Asia and America are located mainly at the junction of low- and mid-mountain and seaside (lakeside) landscapes. In the states of Africa and the Middle East, a combination of desert, low-mountain and seaside landscapes is actively used. Sharp landscape differences form an extremely high aesthetic significance of recreations (for example, mountainous coasts of the seas or a steppe or desert that breaks into the sea). The presence of flat space on the edge of landscapes allows the construction of tourism infrastructure.

Relief- the totality of all the irregularities of the earth's surface, which are called "landforms". They are distinguished by size, structure, origin, etc. By size, the largest, large, medium and small (small) landforms are distinguished.

The largest are continents and oceanic trenches, large- mountains and plains, medium and small ones - hills, ravines, dunes, etc.

The size and location of large and largest landforms depend on the age, structure and location of large tectonic structures, i.e. sections of the earth's crust. The plains are located on platforms(extensive sedentary and poorly dissected sections of the earth's crust.), and at the base of the mountains lie geosynclines(extensive mobile and highly dissected parts of the earth's crust).

On the territory of most countries there are landforms of different scales. It is advisable to start a general description of the relief by indicating what forms of relief are located on the territory, what is their ratio in area (which of them prevails), listing the names of the most significant mountains and plains.

The relief is most dissected in mountainous regions, so you should start with them from them. Characteristics of the mountains ( The mountains- vast, highly elevated and heavily dissected areas of the earth's surface) includes several provisions, each of which has not only an independent meaning, but is a logical transition to other important aspects.

The characteristics of the largest and most interesting for tourism mountains or mountain ranges (or mountainous countries) are given according to the following plan:

name and location.

mountain system	Where are located
Cordillera	west coast of South and North America	USA, Canada, Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Chile and Argentina.
Andes	West coast of South America	Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Chile and Argentina
Khibiny	Europe, Kola Peninsula.
scandinavian mountains		Sweden, Norway
Alps		France, Italy, Switzerland, Germany, Austria, Liechtenstein, Slovenia
Carpathians	Central Europe	Slovakia, Hungary, Poland, Ukraine, Romania, Serbia and partly Austria
Ardennes		France, Belgium and Luxembourg
Apennine mountains
Balkan mountains		Bulgaria
Crimean the mountains		Ukraine Crimea
Rhodopes		Bulgaria (83%) and Greece (17% of the array).
Sudetenland		Germany, Poland and Czech Republic
Pyrenees		Spain, France and Andorra, between the Bay of Biscay and the Mediterranean
Caucasian mountains		Russia, Georgia, Azerbaijan, Armenia
Ural mountains	Eurasia East European and West Siberian plains.
Altai		Russia, Kazakhstan, China, Mongolia
Western and Eastern Sayan
Himalayan mountains		India, Pakistan, Nepal, Bhutan and Tibet
Karakoram		India, Pakistan and China
Pamir		Tajikistan (Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Region), Kyrgyzstan I, Kita th and Afghanistan
Kunlun
Hindu Kush		Afghanistan, Pakistan
Tien Shan		Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan and China
Atlas		Morocco, Algeria, and Tunisia

2. age of mountains. Allocate mountains young and old. Mountains that grow faster than they collapse are called young mountains. These include the Alps and the Apennines, the Caucasus and the Andes, the Pamirs and the Himalayas. In the outlines of young mountains there are many sharp corners, sharp peaks of ridges, sharp ledges, broken lines, steep slopes, rockfalls often occur here, earthquakes often occur, volcanism processes are characteristic, and numerous river gorges are found. As a rule, all these mountains have a significant height (Himalayas. The youngest mountains, in which volcanic activity and mountain building have not yet been completed, belong to the continental and island ring of the Pacific Ocean.

To the old mountains Altai, Tien Shan, Nan Shan, Sayans, Greater Khingan, Kunlun, Scandinavian mountains, Urals belong. In the ancient mountains, internal processes have long ceased, while external forces continue to carry out their destructive work, gradually leveling them.

3. seismic activity (where it occurs). Mountainous areas with increased seismic activity are not favorable for the development of tourism. The exception is certain areas where eruptions of water (geysers) or mud volcanoes can be observed, and in exceptional cases even magmatic eruptions, but from a safe distance.

morphostructure: the composition of the mountain ranges (in the case of a mountainous country), the extent and relative position of the ranges, the average and maximum height (name of the highest peak) of the mountain formation.

Mountain country- a vast, geologically isolated region of mountainous terrain with complex orography. For example: Tien Shan, Pamir-Alai.

mountain range- a group of closely spaced peaks, similar in size (Shkhelda mountain range)

mountain system(mountain group) - a separate section of a mountainous region, a compact system of ridges and individual massifs, separated from other similar groups by valleys and low saddles (Altai, Tien Shan).

mountain knot- a separate part of a mountainous country, distinguished by its height, complex orography and glaciation. For example: the Fann Mountains, the Matchinsky mountain junction and the Takali junction within the Pamir-Alay, the Daut junction in the Caucasus.

mountain range- a section of mountainous relief elongated in one direction with a close height of neighboring peaks. For example: the Abishira-Akhuba ridge, the Svan ridge in the Caucasus, the Darvaz and Yazgulem ridges in the Pamirs.

Mountain chain- an independent, main, mountain range of great length with a relatively small width. For example: the Turkestan ridge in the Pamir-Alai, the Ak-Shyirak ridge in the Tien Shan, the Main Caucasian ridge.

Spur- a relatively short, secondary ridge, branching off from the main one. In many cases, pass routes run through the spurs, connecting different sources of one river, one glacier. The crests of the spurs are the safest and often the easiest way to climb the passes located in the main ridge.

Valley- an intermountain depression of great length with a relatively small width, serving as a drain for surface water: rivers or glaciers.

Gorge- deep valley with steep slopes over 30°

Canyon(abyss) - a deep valley with steep slopes over 60 °, if its width is much less than its depth. In the practice of travelers, a technically difficult section of a valley with steep banks that break into the river is called a canyon.

The origin of the mountains By origin, mountains are divided into folded, blocky, folded-blocky. Fold mountains arise in geosynclines as a result of the crushing of sedimentary strata into folds and the general uplift of the entire area. Moreover, large blocks of the earth's crust rise asymmetrically: one of their slopes is steep, the second is gentle. The rise of a folded mountainous country is accompanied by the formation of a foothill trough located nearby and is the result of the lowering of the lithosphere. It compensates for the rise of the neighboring area. The asymmetric structure of folded mountainous countries and foothill depressions can be traced in all mountainous countries. So, the northern slopes of the Crimean Mountains, the Greater Caucasus and the Himalayas are gentle, the southern ones are steep. The main characteristic feature of folded mountainous countries is their elongation in the form of chains of mountain ranges over long distances, hundreds and thousands of kilometers. Folded mountains are found on all continents, in most cases they are high mountains. For example, these are the mountains of the Alpine-Himalayan folded belt (Atlas, Pyrenees, Alps, Apennines, Carpathians, Stara Planina, Crimean, Caucasus, mountain ranges of Asia Minor, Armenian and Iranian highlands, Kopetdag, Pamir, Himalayas, etc.). blocky mountains are uplifts of the earth's surface, limited by faults. These are massive mountains with steep slopes and relatively weak dissection. Blocky mountains often consist of layers of rocks crumpled into folds, have flat surfaces of peaks and steep rocky slopes of valleys. They arise as a result of faults, i.e., the movement of sections of the earth's crust along faults in a vertical direction or close to it. Raised stepped areas form mountains. An example of fault mountains is the Dragon Mountains in Southeast Africa. From the side of the Indian Ocean, they form steep stepped slopes and give the impression of a high mountain range. The same must be said of the Western and Eastern Ghats in India, which are the uplifted edges of the Deccan Plateau. There are also fault mountains in South America (mountains of the southeast of Brazil) and other regions. During faults, horsts and grabens are formed. Gorsts- raised areas of the earth's crust, limited by faults. The horst massifs are the Harts, Tarbagatai, and the ridges of Central Africa. grabens- sections of the earth's crust subsided along faults. Many of them host the largest lakes of the Earth (Baikal, the Great North American, a number of lakes in Africa). Folded-block mountains appeared on the site of sections of the earth's crust that underwent mountain building in the distant geological past. Gradually, the mountains collapsed, turning into hilly plains. The earth's crust in these regions has lost its plasticity and acquired rigidity and stability. Then these areas underwent repeated mountain building, which was accompanied mainly by faults, faults, uplift and subsidence of individual blocks. The fold-block mountains with flat tops and steep slopes include the Urals, Tien Shan, Altai, Sayan Mountains, the ridges of Transbaikalia, the Central French Massif, the Appalachians, the East Australian Mountains, etc.

lowlands Low mountains - the absolute height is from 500 to 800 m, the steepness of the slopes is 5-10 °. Characteristic signs of low mountains are rounded outlines of peaks, soft gentle slopes. (mountains of the Middle Urals, Cis-Urals, the Kola Peninsula and Karelia). As a rule, these mountains are covered with forests, cut by wide valleys of calm rivers. The low mountains include some mountains of central and western Australia, northern Russia, Central Europe, and many others. But there are also sharp, rocky forms - the spurs of the Tien Shan, the ridges of the Transcaucasus, the foothills of the Main Caucasian Range. However, their heights are not always associated with ancient age. Sometimes even fairly young mountains can be greatly reduced. The main role in shaping the appearance of mountains is played by external forces - glaciers, winds, sea waves. For example, it is assumed that the low mountains of Byrranga on the Taimyr Peninsula experienced a strong flattening effect of the Arctic ice sheet.

Middle mountains Medium-altitude mountains (middle mountains) with a height of 800 to 2000 m. The average steepness of the slopes is 10-25 °, the relief forms are very diverse. Soft relief forms are characteristic of the mountains of the Southern and Northern Urals, Crimean, Kopet-Dag, etc. Pointed, peaked peaks, sharp ridges, steep rocky peaks - the mountains of the Polar Urals, Novaya Zemlya, etc. This is the most common mountain height on our planet. Middle mountains occupy vast areas on all continents of the Earth. Among them are many mountains of Siberia and the Far East, the Crimean Mountains, the Carpathians, the Jura in Western Europe, the Dinaric Highlands, the mountains of the Apennine and Iberian Peninsulas, the Scandinavian Mountains in northern Europe, the Appalachians in North America and others. In the middle mountains, a change in landscapes on the slopes with an increase in height is clearly visible - altitudinal zonation. For example, in the Carpathians, broad-leaved forests give way to coniferous forests with height, then light forests and shrubs, and mountain meadows begin higher.

highlands High mountains (highlands) - above 2000 m, the steepness of the slopes is more than 25 °. The high-altitude zone is entirely rocky, the ridges are jagged, sharp peaks and glaciers are characteristic. Individual mountain peaks rise especially high. For example, they reach the highest height in the Himalayas. These are the youngest mountains in terms of age and appearance. To describe their appearance, the term "alpine relief" is used, i.e. the mountains have a shape similar to the Alps - one of the youngest mountain systems. The peers of the Alps are the Caucasus, the Himalayas, the Karakoram, the Andes, the Rocky Mountains, etc.

	Mountain peaks	mountain systems
	Chomolungma (Everest)	Himalayas	Eurasia
	Communism Peak		Eurasia
	Victory Peak	Tien Shan
	aconcagua		South America
	McKinley	Cordillera	North America
	kilimanjaro	Kilimanjaro massif	Africa
		B. Caucasus
	B. Ararat	Armenian Highlands
	Vinson Massif		Antarctica
		B. Caucasus
		Western Alps

description morphosculptures mountains: character of slopes, peaks, etc.

mountain range- a large linearly elongated uplift of relief with clearly defined slopes intersecting in the upper part of the mountain range.

The main elements of the relief of the ridge are slopes and crests. They can be represented by any type of relief and their various combinations.

Crest- the line of the highest heights of the mountain range, a narrow, pronounced watershed formed by the intersection of the slopes. It can be jagged, even, sharp, rounded, plateau-like, scree, rocky, snow-ice, grassy. Very sharp, steep ridges are called knives. The ridge during a thunderstorm is the most likely place to be struck by lightning. At the same time, the ridge is not subject to rockfalls and avalanches, and often serves as a path to the summit or pass. On the visited ridges there are equipped sites for tents.

Vertex- a pointed or domed hill protruding above the ridge. The vertex, depending on the shape, can be called peak, dome, tower, needle etc., however, many significant peaks, regardless of shape, are called peaks

slopes in shape they are convex, concave, stepped, etc.

In terms of steepness, the slopes are gentle - up to 20 degrees (in most cases, insurance is not needed); medium steep - up to 30-35 degrees, steep - up to 40-45 degrees and very steep - up to 60 degrees, where different types of insurance are required depending on the complexity of the terrain. Slopes steeper than 60 degrees are called walls, steeper than 90 degrees - overhanging or negative walls.

Saddle- a shallow depression between two peaks.

Pass- passable and passed saddle. In most cases, this is the shortest path between neighboring water basins.

Gendarme- a significant sharp rocky ledge of the ridge.

Lamb foreheads(curly rocks) - protruding sections of rocks, smoothed by a glacier. The steepness of the sheep's foreheads increases rapidly down the valley. Sheep foreheads are characteristic of the mouth steps of hanging valleys and cirques, as well as crossbars. The surface of sheep's foreheads is covered with a thin layer of turf and small scree, easily shifting under load and slippery due to oozing water. Careless movement along them can lead to falling down a slope with increasing steepness, ending in faults. Special care is required here when descending without a clearly visible path.

The appearance of the alpine relief is affected not only by its youth, but also by the fact that weathering processes are more active at significant heights, changing the relief. Temperature fluctuations and especially the action of glaciers located above the snow line maintain a sharp, contrasting appearance of the mountains, creating trough-shaped valleys - trogs, sharp peaks - carlings, bowl-shaped depressions on the slopes of the mountains - glacial cirques. These landforms are the "calling card" of all the high mountains of the world. The altitudinal zonality in the highlands is clearly expressed and varies from forests or steppes at the foothills to zones of alpine meadows and even high-mountain lifeless deserts above the snow line, in the regions of glaciers.

What rocks are mountains made up of? as this factor often has a decisive influence on the possibilities of tourism development.

Features of the relief of Russia

diverse, there are high mountains and vast plains;

2/3 of the territory is occupied by plains;

the predominance of plains in the western and central parts of the country;

mountains - along its eastern and partially southern outskirts;

lower altitude position of the western part compared to the eastern;

high altitude of the southern mountains

These features are explained by the large size of the territory, its diverse tectonic structure, and the location of the main tectonic structures. Plains are located on platforms. Mountains arose within folded regions. In general, the territory of Russia forms a huge amphitheater, open to the north and northwest, therefore, the largest rivers of the country - the Ob, Yenisei, Lena - carry their waters to the north.

Plains occupy about 60% of the country's territory. They stretched from the western borders of Russia to the Lena, from the coast of the Arctic Ocean to the foothills of the Caucasus, Altai and Sayan Mountains. The two largest plains of Russia - East European and West Siberian- belong to the greatest plains of the world.

Located in the western part of the country Russian (Eastern European) plain, it is located on the ancient Russian platform (earlier than 500 million years). This circumstance explains its flat relief, as well as the absence or insignificance of manifestations of such natural phenomena as earthquakes and volcanism. The East European Plain stands out among other plains with the most diverse relief. The West Siberian Plain is one of the largest accumulative low-lying plains in the world. It extends from the shores of the Kara Sea to the steppes of Kazakhstan and from the Urals in the west to Central Siberian Plateau in the east. The plain has the shape of a trapezoid tapering to the north: the distance from its southern border to the northern reaches almost 2500 km, width - from 800 to 1900 kmkm 2. the nature of the relief of the Russian Plain is quite complex. To the north of the latitude of Moscow, glacial landforms predominate - including moraine ridges, of which the most famous are Valdai andSmolensk-Moscow hills (the latter reaches a height of 314 m); moraine, outwash, lacustrine-glacial lowlands are widespread. To the south of the latitude of Moscow, the uplands, directed mainly in the meridional direction, alternate with flat areas. There are numerous ravines and gullies on the hills. In the west is Central Russian Upland(maximum height 293 m), separating the upper reaches of the Dnieper, Oka and Don; here the valleys of small rivers are clearly defined; at the same time, large rivers have wide, shallow floodplains; in some places, a strong influence of eolian processes and the formation of dunes were noted. Located to the east Volga Upland, reaching a height of 329 m and abruptly breaking off to the river. The lower reaches of the Volga are within Caspian lowland, some parts of which have a height of 90 m below sea level. To the south the East European Plain extends up to the spurs Greater Caucasus. Extensive Kuban andKuma lowlands divided Stavropol Upland, where heights from 300 to 600 m predominate. There are large hills here, some marks of which exceed 300 and even 400 m (the highest point Bugulmino-Belebeevskaya elevation reaches 479 m), and vast lowlands with small hills and ridges scattered over them (in the north) or rather monotonous (Caspian). The lowest parts of the plain are located in the coastal strip of the Caspian Sea with a height of 26 m. The average height of the plain is 170 m.

The East European and West Siberian plains are separated by low and narrow (up to 150 km) Ural mountains, only some peaks of which exceed 1500 m. The highest point of the Urals is mountain Folk(1895 m).

To the east of the Urals is a vast West Siberian Plain, which is located on the West Siberian plate. This plain is often referred to as the lowland. The West Siberian Plain is one of the largest accumulative lowland plains in the world. It stretches from the shores of the Kara Sea to the steppes of Kazakhstan and from the Urals in the west to the Central Siberian Plateau in the east. The plain has the shape of a trapezoid tapering to the north: the distance from its southern border to the northern reaches almost 2500 km, width - from 800 to 1900 km, and the area is only slightly less than 3 million sq. km 2 .

The West Siberian Plain is characterized by an exceptionally uniform relief with slight elevation fluctuations. Only some small areas in the marginal parts of the plain exceed 200 m. Almost half of the territory lies below 100 m above sea level. The average height of the plains is only 120 m. That is why the West Siberian Plain is most often called a lowland.

From the southeast, the West Siberian Plain is bordered by Altai mountains There are three main types of relief in Altai: the surface of the residual ancient peneplain, the alpine glacial high-mountain relief and the mid-mountain relief.

- Mount Elbrus does not reach 5642 m, and the coast lies 28 m below the level. More than half of the area of ​​Russia is occupied by plains of various heights. The largest plains are:, West Siberian and. About a third of the territory is occupied by mountains. They frame the plains in the south, east and northeast of the country. Between the Black and the Caucasus Mountains are located. In the Asian part - the belt of mountains of Southern Siberia. To the northeast of the Central Siberian Plateau are the mountains of the North-East of Siberia, and along - a chain of highlands and mountain ranges. The mountains of the Far East (and) are the youngest mountains in our country. They are part of the vast Pacific volcanic belt ("Pacific Ring of Fire"). They are distinguished by significant, frequent and strong presence of active volcanoes. The Ural is the only mountain structure located among the vast plains of the western part of the country. This is where the boundary between the lithospheric plates once passed.

Russia, especially in the Asian part, has a general slope of the surface to the north. Most of the territory is a giant amphitheater, inclined towards, where large rivers carry their waters. The patterns of placement of the largest landforms are explained by the peculiarities of the structure of the earth's crust and the history of the geological development of the territory. Smaller surface irregularities are superimposed on the largest landforms: large, medium and small. Large landforms include individual ridges and intermountain depressions in mountain structures, high elevations and wide river valleys on the plains. Medium forms are valleys of small rivers, hills, beams, ravines, and small ones are dunes, bumps, mounds, etc. The formation of medium, small and some large landforms is due to external forces, that is, the activity of rivers, streams, glaciers, wind, etc. e. Relief has a huge impact on human life. Plain and mountainous areas are distinguished by population density, the degree of development and the prevailing types of economic activity.

Thus, the following conclusions can be drawn:

1. The relief of Russia is very diverse: there are wide plains, plateaus, high and medium-altitude mountains.
2. Plains are the predominant of the large landforms.
3. The territory of the country, especially its Asian part, has a general decrease to the north, as evidenced by the direction of flow of most large rivers.
4. Mountain structures frame the plains, and the main part of the mountains is concentrated in the south of Siberia, the northeast and east of the country.

With such an abundance and variety of relief forms, the vastness of the territory, differences and natural and climatic conditions, it seems natural that there is a large spectrum represented in the bowels of our state.

The relief of Russia is characterized by heterogeneity and contrast: high mountain ranges coexist with vast plains and lowlands. Almost 2/3 of the country's territory is occupied by endless plains of various shapes and heights. The diversity of Russian landscapes is explained by the large occupied area and the peculiarities of geological development.

Features of the relief of Russia

The relief is a complex of all the irregularities of the earth's surface, which can be either convex or concave. Based on these features, the relief is conditionally divided into two large groups: mountains and plains.



Rice. 1. Relief map of Russia

The relief of the Russian Federation is very diverse. The country is dominated by flat land rich in minerals: oil, natural gas, coal, shale, iron ore, gold and many other mineral resources.

The plains alternate with the heights of the mountain ranges. The highest point not only in the country, but throughout Europe is the famous Mount Elbrus (5642 m.), Located in the Caucasus. There are also other five-thousander mountains here: Kazbek, Dykhtau, Shkhara, Pushkin Peak.

The Caucasus Mountains, located between the Caspian and Black Seas, are divided into two mountain systems: the Lesser Caucasus and the Greater Caucasus. All the highest peaks are located in the latter, where glaciers and eternal snows reign at high altitudes.



Fig.2. Caucasian mountains

The Caspian lowland is located 28 m below sea level. Such fluctuations in altitude - about 5700 m - on the territory of one state are very impressive.

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The position of Russia relative to large landforms

The diversity of landforms and their location is closely related to the geological features of the territory. Large plains lie on the surface of young and ancient platforms of Russia at different heights, occupying the main part of the country's area:

• Eastern European (another name is Russian);
• West Siberian;
• Central Siberian Plateau.

The central part of Russia is located on the East European Plain, which is considered one of the largest on the globe.

The Russian and West Siberian plains are separated by the ridges of the Ural Mountains, the total length of which is more than 2.5 thousand km. In the southeast, the Russian Plain is bounded by the Altai mountain system.

The average altitude of the Central Siberian Plateau ranges from 500-700 m above the level of the World Ocean.

In the northeast of the Russian Federation, the Pacific Folding Belt is located, which includes Kamchatka, the Kuril Islands and Sakhalin Island.

All of the above islands are the peaks of ancient sea mountains, the growth of which does not stop to this day. It is for this reason that this region is characterized by frequent and intense earthquakes.

In the northwest, the territory of the country is located on the Baltic Crystalline Shield. This region is characterized by lake and sea plains, low mountains and marshy lowlands.

Mountain systems of the Russian Federation

Mountains in Russia occupy almost 1/3 of the entire territory.

• On the border of the Asian and European parts of the state, the Ural Mountains are located - the oldest and longest. They do not differ in great height, and are now heavily destroyed. On average, the height of the Ural Mountains does not exceed 400 m, and the highest point is Mount Narodnaya (1895 m).
• In the south of the Russian Federation is the young mountain system of the Greater Caucasus, which serves as a natural border between Georgia and Azerbaijan. Mount Elbrus (5642 m) is the highest point.
• The Altai Mountains are located in the south of Siberia. They are relatively low, but their growth is still ongoing. The highest point is Mount Belukha (4506 m).
• Kamchatka has high mountain ranges with volcanic peaks. It is there that the world's largest active volcano is located - Klyuchevskaya Sopka (4850 m.).



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