From North to South and East to West, the world’s largest
countries provide a beautiful snapshot of the variety of geography, climate and
wildlife on the planet. Collectively, the world’s largest countries contain rainforest
and tundra, mountains and valleys, coastline and desert. As we explore the
largest nations, we visit five different continents, with world’s most
spectacular geography, and every type of climate that can be imagined.
Excitingly, it’s always changing, too: history has taught
that geopolitical boundaries shift dramatically as centuries pass. In the next
decades, who’s to say which countries will become the world’s largest?
10. Algeria
Algeria, with 2.38 million square
kilometers, is the tenth-largest country in the world by area and the only
African country in the top 10. Situated in Northern Africa, Algeria has a
Mediterranean coastline of 998 km long. About 90 percent of the country is
desert, and much of its desert regions are highly elevated. The Atlas
Mountain range runs along the country’s northern border, while the
interior, much of which is above sea level of hundreds of meters, contains the
Algerian portion of the Sahara Desert. The massive Algerian
Sahara extends all the way to the south of the country which is bordered with Niger and Mali.
9. Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan’s with area of 2.72 million
square kilometers stretch over vast plains and highlands. A cool and dry, but
not quite desert-like, climate prevails for most of the year. Kazakhstanis
experience a great range of temperatures throughout the year, though it doesn’t
get as cold in Kazakhstan as it does in parts of its northern neighbor, Russia.
Formerly part of the USSR, the largest nation in the
world for most of the 20th century, Kazakhstan’s current main claim
to fame is its status as the largest landlocked country in the world—and
the only landlocked country in the top 10.
8. Argentina
Argentina, the world’s 32nd most
populous country, is the world’s eighth largest, and the largest Spanish-speaking nation
in the world by area. Its 2.78 million square kilometers includes some
of the most varied geography and climate in the world. Swampy, tropical
conditions in the very north give way to freezing glacial regions in the south.
Patagonia
is one of the most spectacular and dangerous places on the planet, stretches
from the southern Andes in the West to the Atlantic Ocean in the East. The
southern tip of Argentina, known as Cape Horn, is one of the stormiest
locations on the globe.
7. India
India is the second largest nation in
terms of population, and seventh largest in terms of area. Its boundaries have
changed quite a few times over the past century, and even still, India claims
that the northern region of Kashmir (an area disputed with Pakistan) belongs under Indian control
completely. As it stands, without Kashmir, India’s territory stretches for 3.29
million square kilometers. China, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Nepal each
share a border with India, and its geography ranges from the majestic Himalayan
Mountains to the tropical shores of the southern peninsula.
6. Australia
An approximately 4.4 million square kilometer difference
between Australia and India represents the
second-largest size difference between countries ranked consecutively in the
top 10. Australia, at around 7.69 million square kilometers, is over twice the
size of India. It’s the largest country in Oceania by far.
The vast majority of its population lives in coastal
cities like Sydney in the East and Perth in the West, and with good
reason: the Australian Outback is one of the world’s driest and hottest
regions. Along with extreme climate and geography, Australia is known for its
spectacular and often deadly wildlife.
5. Brazil
The largest country in South America at over 8.51 million
square kilometers, Brazil claims to be home of much of
the world’s largest rainforest, the Amazon. The Amazon is so dense and
vast that explorers and scientists have found human civilizations within—small
tribes—that had never made contact with the outside world. Even still, some
researchers believe there may be more undiscovered tribes living there unfound
still. Brazil also has a lengthy Atlantic coastline on the eastern
side, which stretches approximately 8,000 km. Most of its major cities,
including Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo, are built along this coastline.
4. People’s Republic of China
China, the United States of America,
and Canada each occupy about seven percent of the globe’s
surface. Out of these three, China is the smallest that barely claims an
approximately 9.6 million square kilometers of land area. It shares borders with
14 different countries, including Afghanistan to the East, Russia to
the North, and Vietnam to the South. Its climate and its people vary
dramatically. In the north, temperatures drop to subarctic levels, in the
centre of the China is the Gobi Desert, the world’s
4th largest desert, and in the South temperatures reach tropical levels
regularly. With over 1.35 billion citizens, China is home to 56 recognized
ethnic groups, has the world’s 18th largest Muslim population, the
19th largest Christian population, and with 1.9 doctors per
1000 people, China has more doctors than the entire population of Qatar.
3. United States of America
The United States, is little bigger than China but
slightly smaller than Canada, occupies 9.63 million square
kilometers. Bordered by Mexico to the South, and Canada
to the North, the United States is home to a diverse array of geography and
wildlife. Two North-South features split the nation into three distinct pieces.
West of the Rocky Mountains, the Pacific states are known for year around
temperate weather and long expanses of beach along the California coast. The Great
Plains present between the Rockies and the Mississippi River,
stretching from Canada to Mexico, gives the United States one of the world's
most fertile growing areas. Lastly, the USA is considered as the economic and
industrial hub of the world.
2. Canada
Canada’s 9.984 million square kilometers
makes it the largest country in the western hemisphere, and its 202,080
kilometer long coastline means that it has a longer shoreline than any other
nation. With a population density of 4 people per square kilometer, means that
each of Canada's 35 million people could have 61 acres for themselves. Positioned
between the Arctic and the United States, Canada’s massive
frozen tundra extends into the Arctic Circle. Split similar to the USA; in the
western half of the country, the Rocky Mountains run north to south, and plains
provide huge grain and canola growing areas. Eastern Canada is the traditional
heart of the nation, with Toronto, Montreal, and the national
capital of Ottawa, all located in the East.
1. Russia
Russia’s 17.1 million square kilometers claim
easily makes it the world’s largest country by area. It’s interesting to know
that, if Russia were to lop off 7 million square kilometers of its territories,
it would still be the largest country of the globe and the lopped-off section
would rank seventh overall. Like China, Russia borders 14 different
countries. Unlike China, none of Russia is tropical, though humid summers
prevail in much of southern Russia. Massive oil reserves exist underneath
Russia’s frozen forests and tundra; however, due to the expense and difficulty
of extracting it, much of Russia’s oil wealth remains untapped.
.jpg)
0 comments:
Post a Comment