LandformsWestern Mountains and Plateaus

Pacific Coastal RangesSierra NevadaCascade RangeCoast RangeAlaska Range:Mt. McKinleyTallest Point in N. AmericaRocky MountainsLink the US and Canada, over 3,000 miles long

Cascade Range

Sierra Nevada

Alaska Range

Mt. McKinley20,320 ft.

Great BasinDeath Valley: Lowest pt. in N. America

Great BasinDeath Valley-282 ft.

Sierra Nevada Range Cascade Range

Rocky MountainsRocky Mountains

Great Basin and

Death Valley, CA

Death Valley

Interior LowlandsThe Great PlainsAka- interior Plains, they can reach up to 6,000 ft of elevation.They may seem flat, but actually slope gradually (10ft/mi) down to the Mississippi River Valley.

BreadbasketThis is the main grain-growing region of N. America

The Great Plains

Eastern MountainsEastern Mountains and Lowlandsand Lowlands

Appalachian MountainsAppalachian MountainsOld worn-down mountains.Extend north into Canada

Canadian ShieldCanadian ShieldArea of Bedrock surrounding Hudson Bay

Coastal PlainsCoastal PlainsAtlantic and Gulf

Appalachian Mountains

Appalachian Mountains

CanadianCanadianShieldShield

Coast Ranges

Alaska Range and Mt. McKinley

IslandsIslandsManhattan Island: NYUS and World Economic Center

Hawaiian IslandsVolcanic Archipelago in the Pacific Ocean

GreenlandWorld’s largest Island that is not a continent

Manhattan

Hawaiian IslandsHawaiian Islands

WaterRivers from the Rockies

Continental Divide

Also called the Great Divide. E. of the Divide rivers flow toward the Arctic, Hudson Bay, the Atlantic and the Mississippi River into the Gulf of Mexico.To the west rivers flow into the Pacific Ocean

The Mississippi River System2,350 miles long, it begins in Minnesota and empties into the Gulf of Mexico. It drains 1,200,000 mi2

of land.

Tributaries of the Miss.Ohio and Missouri Rivers.

Mississippi River

Ohio RiverMissouri River

Gulf of Mexico

Colorado River

Columbia

Rio Grande

MISSISSIPPI RIVER

• Mississippi River

• One of the largest river systems in the world

RIO GRANDE• Forms the international boundary

between United States and Mexico

• Rio Grande

• Located in Southern Texas

• Illegal immigrants attempting to cross into the United States

•Rio Grande

• Columbia River

• Northwestern US

COLORADO RIVER

• Southwestern US

• Formation of the Grand Canyon

COLORADO RIVER• Main source of irrigation and

hydroelectric power for much of the western United States

Eastern Rivers

St. Lawrence RiverOne of Canada’s most important rivers, it forms part of the U.S./Canadian border.

Pittsburgh, PAA place where several rivers merge is called a:Confluence Site Monongahela, Allegheny, and Ohio Rivers

St. Lawrence River

*Pittsburgh

Confluence: where two bodies of water meet

Three Rivers Stadium in Pittsburgh isan area of confluence

• St. Lawrence River

• Located In Eastern Canada

ST. LAWRENCE RIVER• Useful for trade as a link between the

Atlantic Ocean and the Great Lakes

Fall Line CitiesFall Line CitiesThe boundary where the higher land of the Piedmont drop to the lower Atlantic Coastal Plain, here rivers break into rapids and waterfalls making ship travel impossible.

Philadelphia, PABaltimore, MD and Washington D.C.

Niagara FallsOn the Niagara River which forms part of the border between Ontario, Canada and New York State in the U.S. it provides a lot of Hydroelectric power for the region.

From Glaciers to LakesThe Great LakesFormed by glaciers during the last ice age about 14,000 years ago.

St. Lawrence SeawayA series of canals, rivers, and inland waterways linking the Great Lakes with the Atlantic.

Lake Superior

Lake Michigan

Lake Huron

L. Erie

L. Ontario