Landforms and Bodies of Water

Physical Features

• Physical Features such as rivers, mountains, and deserts play an important role in the geography of an area. Listed below are some of the major landforms found around the world.

Africa

Nile River

• The Nile River is the longest river in the world. It flows north from Lake Victoria through Uganda, Sudan, and Egypt into the Mediterranean Sea.

Sahara Desert

• Sahara Desert—Covering most of northern Africa, the Sahara Desert is the largest desert in the world.

Asia

Himalayas

• Himalayas—The Himalayas are the world's highest mountain range. Mount Everest, the world's highest mountain is in this mountain range.

Ganges River

• Ganges River—A sacred river in India, the Ganges starts in the Himalayas, flows through India, and is joined by the Brahmaputra River before emptying into the Bay of Bengal in Bangladesh.

Yellow River

• Yellow River—(Huang He) The Yellow River flows east through China to the Yellow Sea.

Europe

Volga River

• Volga River—The Volga River is the longest river in Europe. It flows through Russia to the Caspian Sea.

Danube River

• Danube River—The source of the Danube is in the Alps. The Danube flows through central and eastern Europe. It empties into the Black Sea in Romania.

Rhine River

• Rhine River— The Rhine River also has its source in the Alps. It flows north through Germany and the Netherlands to the North Sea.

Seine River

• Seine River—The Seine River starts in the Alps and flows west across France through Paris to the English Channel.

Thames River

• Thames River—The Thames River flows east across Great Britain through London to the North Sea.

Alps

• Alps-The Alps are a mountain range in central Europe. Mont Blanc is the highest mountain in this range.

Ural Mountains

• Ural Mountains— Located in Russia, the Ural Mountains are considered to be the east-west divide of Europe and Asia.

Middle East

Tigris River

• Tigris River— The Tigris River has its source in Turkey. It flows east through Iraq where it joins the Euphrates River to form the Shatt-al-Arab, which then flows into the Persian Gulf.

Euphrates River

• Euphrates River— The Euphrates River has its source in Turkey. It flows east through Syria and then through Iraq where it joins the Tigris River to form the Shatt-al-Arab, near the Persian Gulf.

North America

Mississippi River

• Mississippi River— The Mississippi River is one of the longest rivers in the United States. It flows south from Minnesota and empties into the Gulf of Mexico near New Orleans, Louisiana.

Rocky Mountains

• Rocky Mountains—The Rocky Mountains, located in the western part of North America, extend from Alaska, through Canada to the southern part of the United States.

Great Plains

• Great Plains— The Great Plains are located in the central part of the United States and Canada to the east of the Rocky Mountains. The region is made up of prairies, which are grasslands with few trees.

South America

Amazon River

• Amazon River—Starting in the Andes Mountains in Peru, the Amazon River flows east across South America through Brazil to the Atlantic Ocean. The world's largest tropical rain forest is located in the Amazon River Basin.

Andes Mountains

• Andes Mountains—The Andes Mountains are the longest mountain range in South America. Located in the western part of the continent, the mountains extend through the countries of Colombia, Venezuela, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Chile, and Argentina.