Asia: The Largest Continent

Asia: The Largest Continent

• Asia is the largest continent, covering about one-third of Earth's total land area.
• It is known for its river valley civilizations, natural diversity, and vast resources.
• Asia contains the highest mountains and plateaus, the largest lowlands, and a wide range of climates and population densities.
• It is considered the cradle of human civilization.

Location and Extent

• Asia is surrounded by the Indian Ocean to the south, the Pacific Ocean to the east, and the Arctic Ocean to the north.
• Europe lies to the west of Asia.
• The Ural Mountains, Ural River, and Caspian Sea form the boundary between Europe and Asia.
• The combined land mass of Asia and Europe is called Eurasia.
• A narrow isthmus of Suez and the Red Sea link Asia with Africa.
• Asia extends from approximately 10°S to 80°N latitudes and from 24°4'E to 169°40'W.
• This gives Asia a span of 77° of latitude and 195° of longitude.
• Asia's wide latitudinal extent results in a variety of climate types, from equatorial to arctic.
• It also has the greatest number of time zones due to its vast longitudinal extent.

Key Facts About Asia

• Area: 44.58 million sq km
• Highest Mountain: Mount Everest in the Himalayas
• Longest River: Yangtze River
• Population: 4.4 billion
• Largest Country: Russia

Political Divisions

• Asia contains many countries, some of the largest being Russia, China, and India.
• Maldives, Bahrain, Singapore, and Lebanon are among the smallest.
• Russia is the largest country in Asia, and Maldives is the smallest.
• The "Far East" refers to East Asian countries, including Japan, North Korea, South Korea, China, Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan, and Mongolia.
• Southeast Asian countries include Myanmar, Malaysia, Thailand, Singapore, Cambodia, Vietnam, Laos, Indonesia, East Timor, the Philippines, and Brunei.
• South Asian countries include India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bhutan, and Maldives.
• The "Middle East" refers to Southwest Asian countries, including Saudi Arabia, Iran, Turkey, Yemen, Oman, Bahrain, UAE, Kuwait, Iraq, Jordan, Syria, Israel, Lebanon, Qatar, Georgia, Azerbaijan, and Armenia.
• Central Asia consists of Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan, which were formed after the collapse of the USSR in 1991.

Physiography

• Asia can be divided into the following major physical divisions:
  • Central Highlands
  • Northern Lowlands
  • Plateaus
  • River Basins
  • Islands

Central Highlands

• These are a vast area of mountains and plateaus with rugged terrain, extending from the Pamir Knot.
• Major mountain ranges include the Himalayas, Karakoram, Hindukush, Kunlun, and Tien Shan.
• The Himalayas have the highest elevations, with peaks exceeding 8,000 m above sea level.
• High plateaus are enclosed by mountain ranges, such as the Plateau of Tibet, also known as the "Roof of the World", which lies between the Himalayas and the Kunlun Ranges.
• Plateaus surrounded by mountains are called intermontane plateaus, examples of which include the Plateau of Iran and the Anatolian Plateau in Turkey.

Northern Lowlands

• These are located north of the Central Mountain Belt and consist of two subdivisions.
• The northern part is known as the Great Siberian Plain, which is drained by the Ob, Yenisey, and Lena Rivers that flow into the Arctic Ocean.
• The region between the Ural Mountains and the Yenisey River is almost level, while the region between the Yenisey and Lena Rivers is an undulating upland.
• The Central Asian lowlands lie to the south of the Siberian Plains and feature inland drainage.
• The Caspian Sea and the Aral Sea are two large inland lakes in this area.
• The Amu Darya and Syr Darya rivers originate in the Central Asian mountains and flow to the Aral Sea.

Plateaus

• Asian plateaus are relatively old and stable landforms made of old rocks.
• This area contains three plateaus, as well as the Arabian, Deccan, and Yunnan-Guizhou Plateaus.
• The Arabian Plateau slopes steeply to the west, facing the Red Sea, and gently slopes east towards the Persian Gulf.
• The Deccan Plateau has a steep slope to the west along the Arabian Sea and slopes gently east towards the Bay of Bengal.
• The Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau covers parts of South China, Thailand, Myanmar, Laos, and Vietnam.
• These plateaus contain valuable mineral deposits.

River Basins

• These are located mainly between the Central Mountain Belt and the Southern Plateaus.
• The river valleys have fertile alluvial soils and abundant water:
  • The Mesopotamian lowland in Iraq is drained by the Euphrates and Tigris Rivers.
  • The Indo-Gangetic Plain covers parts of Pakistan, India, and Bangladesh.
  • The Indus, Ganga, and Brahmaputra rivers and their tributaries drain this lowland.
  • The Irrawaddy River flows in Myanmar, and the Menam and Mekong Rivers flow in Indo-China.
  • The Hwang Ho, Yangtze, and Si Kiang Rivers flow in China.
• These rivers are used for irrigation, power generation, and navigation.

Islands

• Numerous islands exist on the east coast of Asia, including Japan, the Philippines, and Indonesia.
• These islands have active volcanoes such as Krakatau (Indonesia) and Mt. Mayon (Philippines).

Climate

• Asia experiences great extremes of climate, including some of the hottest and coldest places in the world.
• Jacobabad in Pakistan is one of the hottest places.
• Verkhoyansk in Siberia is one of the coldest.
• Cherrapunji and Mawsynram in India are among the wettest places; Mawsynram receives almost 1,100 cm of annual rainfall.
• Arabia, Tibet, Gobi, and Mongolia are extremely dry, receiving less than 25 cm of annual rainfall.

Factors Affecting the Climate of Asia

• Latitudinal Extent: the large latitudinal extent from 10°S to 80°N incorporates equatorial, tropical, temperate, and frigid climates.
• Continentality: most of central Asia is landlocked, resulting in a continental climate.
• Relief Features: mountains prevent moisture-bearing winds from bringing rainfall, and the Central Highlands act as a barrier to warm influences from the south.
• Presence of Low-Pressure Trough: the low-pressure trough over Arabia, Baluchistan, northwest India, and Tibet causes winds from the Indian and Pacific Oceans to bring rainfall to India and east China.
• Jet Streams: subtropical westerly jet streams in winter cause westerly depressions in northern India, and tropical easterly jet streams in summer influence the movement of monsoon winds.