| Continent: North America Population: 528,720,58 Surface: 24,490,000(km2) / 9,460,000 (mi2) Highest Point: Mount McKinley (6,198m / 20,335f) Lowest Point: Jakobshavn Isbræ (-1,512m / −4,961f) | |
North America is the world’s third largest continent with a surface area of 24.346.000 square kilometers. It lies between the Pacific, the Atlantic and the Arctic Ocean. It is separated from South America by the Panama Canal. The largest countries (in population) in North America are the United States (>300 million), Mexico (>100 million) and Canada (>30 million). The total population of North America is estimated to be over 520 million. Because the continent is less than 10° away from both the North Pole and the equator, it has an enormous diversity in climate. There are rain forests and savannas in Central America and regions that are permanently covered in ice in Central Greenland. The tundra’s in the north of Canada and Alaska have a subarctic climate. However, a large part of the continent has a land or sea climate, which is very favorable for agriculture | |
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It is supposed that the first human inhabitants of North America where from Asian origin. They crossed Alaska 20.000 years ago and then moved south through the valley of the Mackenzie river. The European discovery and settlement came only in the 10th century, when the Normans ruled Greenland. Proof is snippy but it appears that they reached East Canada around the year 1000, lead by Leif Eriksson. Better known is the story of Christopher Columbus. The explorer that thought he had discover a route to India in 1492 but in fact found a ‘new world’. There are two great open waters that are enclosed (largely) by the continent’s land: the Gulf of Mexico and the Hudson Bay. The first is still notorious for the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in 2010. In the second tourists can go for a swim with Beluga whales. Even more famous is the 6020 km long Missouri-Mississippi river system. The state of Mississippi is very popular amongst tourists because of all possible activities like biking, fishing, hiking, hunting and kayaking on the Mississippi River. In the west of the continent the famous Rocky Mountains are located, where tourists can take helicopter tours. Other mountain ranges are the Coast Mountains, the Alaska Range, the Sierra Nevada and the Sierra Madre. The highest point in North America is the top of Mount McKinley (6194 meter), in the Alaska Range. The lowest point, 86 meter below sea level, is found in Death Valley, California, which is a very popular National Park. Besides all natural beauty that can be found in North America, it is probably even more famous for its cities. Most metropolises are situated in the United States, like New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Miami. But there is also Mexico City (Mexico) and Toronto (Canada). For gamblers Las Vegas is a real must-have-been. Also skyscrapers like the Empire State Building in New York City are real tourist attractions. So what it all comes down to is that North America has almost everything. Many different climates, the most immense cities and the greatest national parks. | |
CountriesAnguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Aruba, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Bermuda, British Virgin Islands, Canada, Cayman Islands, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominica, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Greenland, Grenada, Guadeloupe, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Martinique, Mexico, Montserrat, Netherlands Antilles, Nicaragua, Panama, Puerto Rico, Saint Barthélemy, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Martin, Saint Pierre and Miquelon, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Trinidad and Tobago, Turks and Caicos Islands, United States Minor Outlying Islands, United States of America, Virgin Islands, | |