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Unit II - Physical Landscapes of Asia Pacific
Francis Yee
Camosun College
I.
II.
III.
Landforms
Climate
Vegetation
Origin of Yangtze River in Tibetan
Plateau (Photo by F. Yee, 2007)
3 broad divisions of landforms
A.
B.
C.
Chinese Checkerboard (covered most parts
of China)
Alluvial Fan (included Mainland SE Asia)
Island Realms (consisted of Maritime SE
Asia, Taiwan & Japan)
Consists of a mix of different landforms
1.
Mountains
2.
Plateaus
3.
Plains
4.
Basins
A view of Tian Shan Mt. (7,439 metres) with few
settlements & economic activities [Photo by F. Chow 2002]
Xizang (Tibetan) Plateau (>3,000 metres) with
sheep and cattle raising [Photo by F. Yee, 2007]
Extensive farming area in Pearl River Delta, S. China
(Photo by F. Yee, 2005)
Nanshan Pasture (Urumqi, W. China)
for sheep & cattle raising (Photo by
F. Chow 2002)
Alluvial Fan: Lowlands,
fertile soil, flood
plains
e.g.
1.
2.
3.
Lowland farming in Myanmar
(Photo by F. Yee 2005)
Menam (Chao
Phraya) (S. Thailand)
Mekong Delta (S.
Vietnam, Cambodia)
Irrawaddy River
(Myanmar)
Rice farming in Bali, Indonesia (photo by F. Yee 2012)
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Characteristics: young fold mountains
(high elevations, less eroded, unstable,
young age) with large number of islands
An extended Himalaya Mt. System:
◦

extends from China ->Nepal ->Burma>Sumatra->Java->Borneo->Philippines>Taiwan->Japan)
Geological Structure (tectonic plates):
◦
◦
◦
Ring of Fire (Volcanoes)
Earthquakes
Tsunamis (tidal waves)

rigid plates float on top of the Earth’s
mantle with movement of the plates
causing seismic activities

zones of high earthquake and volcanic
activities (>150 active volcanoes in
Asia-Pacific)
Tangkuban Perahu is a dormant volcano 30 km north of the
city of Bandung, last erupted in 1959 (photo by F. Yee 2012)
Photo by F. Yee, Mt. Fuji, Japan, 2013
Major earthquake in Japan 2011 - Magnitude 9.0,
15,000 deaths (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/news/japanearthquake)

Sichuan, China 2008, magnitude 7.9, 87,000
deaths (Details available from :
http://earthquake.usgs.gov/eqcenter/eqinthenews/2008/us2008r
yan/#details)
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Kobe, Japan, 1995, M 6.9, 5,500 deaths
Tangshan, China 1976, M 7.5, 255,000 deaths
Taichung, Taiwan, 1999, M 7.7, 2,400 deaths
Kanto, Japan, 1923, M7.9, 143,000 deaths
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Japan (2011): tsunamis impacted East coast
of Honshu with runup of 37.9 metre high
and caused damage in Indonesia, California,
Ecudaor, and Chile.
Video showing tsunamis hitting Japan.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=80CH_XkpSCE

Quake magnitude - 9.1, Impacts:
227,000 deaths, 1 million people
displaced, 13% coastal coral reefs
damaged
◦ Details from USGS:
http://earthquake.usgs.gov/eqcenter/eqinthenews/2004/usslav/
◦ Tsunami Images on affected areas:
http://www.pdc.org/PDCNewsWebArticles/2004SouthAsiaTsunam
i/InformationProducts/index.htm
A.
B.
C.
D.
Monsoon Climate
Temperature
Precipitation
Typhoons
 Wet
Monsoon: wind pass through
ocean and bring a lot of precipitation
(from SW & SE)

wind pass through continent and bring little
moisture (from NW)
1.
East Asia
a) Summer: little regional variation – high
throughout (200C to 280C)
b) Winter: North-South differences (cold in north
[-100C in NE China], mild in south [100C in S.
China]
2.
Southeast Asia: Equatorial region - little
seasonal variations (high year round)

varied from 130 days in NE China and 300
days in S. China
1.
Coastal (abundant) Vs. inland (little)
a) >2000 mm: abundant in coastal areas of China
and Vietnam, and equatorial areas of Indonesia,
Malaysia, Singapore, the Philippines;
b) 500 mm isohyets: scanty in NW China (grasslands
and semiarid areas)
2. Seasonal: Summer (wet monsoon) Vs. winter
(dry monsoon)
a) East Asia - wet monsoon in summer (May – Sep)
and dry monsoon (Oct – April);
b) SE Asia: short dry monsoon in the equatorial
region (only one month in Borneo and peninsular
Malaysia
 how
much rain on average
recorded in Taiwan and Mongolia?
1. Characteristics: atmospheric
instability, warm sea temperatures,
high humidity
2. Season: May to September
3. Typhoon Categories:
i. Tropical storm: 63-87 km/hr.
ii. Typhoon: > 118 -149 km./hr.
iii. Super Typhoon – wind over 185 km/hr
(Hurricane category 3 or 4), e.g. Utor in
August 2013
3 main paths: originate from Pacific
Ocean and move towards
◦ N Philippines  Central China 
Japan / Korea
◦ Central Philippines  Taiwan 
coastal China
◦ S. Philippines  S. China  Vietnam
A #10 typhoon signal was posted in Hong Kong on July 23, 2012 with all air, land, and sea
transport grounded. The Hong Kong International Airport airport was closed for several
hours due to high wind (photo by F. Yee, 2012). Video on typhoon Vincente:
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Tracks of Super Typhoon Utor with sustained winds
over 240 km/hr, causing 25 deaths and 13 missing as
well as US2.3 billion damage in the Philippines, Hong
Kong, Macao, and China. Video showing Typhoon
Utor in the Philippines.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-23680782

Affected by:
1.
2.
3.
climate,
aspects,
altitude
1.
Tropical Rainforest:
◦ dense forests rich in both plant
and animal species
◦ Located in places with high
temperature and abundant
precipitation , e.g. equatorial SE
Asia
◦ rapid lost of rainforest due to
farming and other development
◦ transition between
rainforest and
grassland,
◦ most trees are
deciduous and
use as firewood,
◦ rich collection of
wildlife
◦ locate in Mainland
SE Asia
Monsoon Forest along the
Mekong River in Burma (photo by
F. Yee 2005)
◦
◦
◦
broadleaf
deciduous forests
in mid-latitude,
drop leaves during
winter (e.g. oak,
birch, and elm),
used for making
furniture and
other products
Located in NE
China, Japan,
Korea
Forested area near Mt. Fuji, Japan
(photo by F. Yee 2013)
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coastal plants in tropical and
subtropical inter-tidal
regions (Vietnam,
Cambodia, Philippines)
plants adapted to saline
conditions,
generate large amount of
organic matters, rich in fish
and bird species,
help to reduce coastal
erosion, tsunami impacts,
and maintain water quality
Coastal plants along the Mekong
Delta (photo by F. Yee 2010)
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Grasslands in places
with low precipitation,
e.g. NW China, Inner
Mongolia,
important grazing
land
Soil erosion due to
over grazing
Grassland in Tibet Plateau (photo
by F. Yee 2007)
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Cold deserts:
◦ in high elevation with
little moisture
◦ cold year round e.g. Tibet
Plateau
◦ Gobi desert (1.3 million
sq. km.) in Mongolia and
China with cold winter
and hot summer
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Hot Deserts:
◦ rainfall below 2.5 cm;
◦ high temperature 2426C;
◦ xeophytic vegetation,
◦ wildlife present but wind
erosion severe
Desert area in Gansu (photo by F.
Chow 2001)
◦ altitudinal zonation of vegetation,
◦ ranging from tropical in the lower altitude
to deciduous and grasslands in higher
altitude until the tree line,
◦ e.g. Himalaya Mt.
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Weightman ch. 2