Transcript Chapter 1, Section 2

Chapter 9, Section 1
Latin
America:
Physical
Features
Latin America
• Latin America
includes Mexico,
Central America, the
Caribbean and all of
South America.
• All of Latin America
is located in the
western
hemisphere.
Latin America
• Around 500 years ago,
Europeans sailed to Latin
America, bringing their
language and customs with
them.
• Because most of the explorers
who came here spoke
Spanish and Portuguese (and
both these languages have
their roots in Latin), almost all
Latin Americans speak these
languages today.
Major Landforms of Middle America
• Middle America
(Mexico and Central
America) stretches
2500 miles from the
U.S. border to
Panama.
• Mountains dominate
this region (they are
part of the Rocky
Mountain chain.)
The Central Plateau
• Between the mountains
is Mexico’s Central
Plateau.
• A plateau is a large,
mostly flat highland area.
• The Central Plateau is
important because it
contains most of the
country’s important cities
and best farmland.
Central America
• Central America is an isthmus.
• An isthmus is a narrow strip of land that has
water on both sides.
• Like in Mexico, Central America’s beaches quickly
rise into mountains and volcanoes.
• Volcanic ash has made the soil good for farming.
The Caribbean
• The second region of Latin
America is the Caribbean.
• The Caribbean is made up
of two types of islands.
• The smaller ones were
formed by the skeletons of
tiny sea animals.
• Over hundreds of years, the
skeletons formed a rocklike
substance called coral.
The Caribbean
• The larger islands
of the Caribbean
are the tops of
huge underwater
mountains.
• Most people make
their living there by
farming.
South America
• The third region of Latin
America is South America.
• South America is a region
of great variety and
contrast.
• South America’s greatest
landform are the Andes
Mountains, which stretch
along the entire western
side of the continent.
South America
• The Andes are steep and
treacherous, but their rich soil
has drawn farmers to the
area.
• East of the Andes are rolling
highlands in Brazil and
Venezuela.
• Farther south are the
Pampas, a large plains area.
The Rivers of Latin America
• Latin America’s rivers
and lakes are some of
the longest and largest
in the world.
• They serve as
transportation corridors
where it is hard to build
roads, and provide water
for farming, fishing and
hydroelectricity.
Amazon: The Ocean River
• The Amazon is the
second longest river
in the world.
• It is called “The
Ocean River”
because it carries
more water than any
other river in the
world and contains
1/5 of all fresh water
on the earth.
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=2958148748917673625&ei=0uXbSpu1IpzcqgKNyKDjAQ&q=angel+falls+base+jump&hl=en#
Other Rivers
• The Amazon has
over 1,000
tributaries.
• A tributary is a river
that flows into a
larger river.
• The next largest river
system in Latin
America is the Rio
de la Plata in
Argentina and
Uruguay.
Chapter 9, Section 2
Latin
America:
Humans and
the Physical
Environment
Climate
• The climate of the Caribbean is usually
sunny and warm.
• However, from June to November, the
region is hit with fierce hurricanes.
• Winds hundreds of miles fast tear apart
houses, rip trees from the ground and
create giant waves along the beach.
Climate Regions of Latin America
• Many parts of Latin
America have a
tropical wet climate,
with hot, humid,
rainy weather all
year around.
• Other areas have
both a tropical wet
and dry climate.
(Like Mexico, for
example.)
Climate Regions
• South America has a very
diverse climate.
• Much of Argentina, Uruguay
and Paraguay has a humid
subtropical climate (like the
southern U.S.) with hot, wet
summers and cool winters.
• Farmers in this area can
raise crops like wheat and
apples, which need a cold
season to grow.
Climate Regions
• In southern South
America, the climate
turns arid (dry.)
• Farmers raise sheep on
the plains of this cold, dry
area called Patagonia.
• South America also
contains the Atacama
Desert in Chile, one of
the driest places on
earth.
What Affects Climate?
• Elevation (the height of
land above sea level)
greatly affects climate.
• The higher on goes up in
elevation, the colder and
windier it typically gets.
• The crops grown by
farmers in the Andes
Mountains are greatly
affected by elevation.
Coffee!!!
Climate Regions
• Another climate factor is how close an
area is to the equator. Why?
• Wind patterns also affect climate. The
Andes mountains block moist winds
from crossing to the west. Rain falls
only on the eastern slopes of the
Mountains.
• The Amazon rain forest is moist and
hot, and the vegetation there is dense.
Sunlight doesn’t even touch the ground
in the rain forest.