Continents and Oceans
Continents
A continent is defined as 'a large continuous area of land on Earth.'
The 7 continents are, from largest to smallest:
Coastlines, however, do not indicate the actual boundaries of the continents. Continents are defined by their continental shelves. A continental shelf is a gently sloping area that extends outward from the beach far into the ocean. A continental shelf is part of the ocean, but also part of the continent.
Europe and Asia
To geographers, continents are also culturally distinct. The continents of Europe and Asia, for example, are actually part of a single, enourmous piece of land called Eurasia. But linguistically and ethnically, the areas of Asia and Europe are distinct. Because of this, most geographers divide Eurasia into Europe and Asia. An imaginary line, running from the northern Ural Mountains in Russia south to the Caspian and Black Seas, separates Europe, to the west, from Asia, to the east.
Australia/Oceania
Recognising the contradiction within the definition of a continent and the existence of Australia, not to mention the existence of several surrounding countries and islands, which needed a more defined continental region, geographers coined the term Oceania. This is a region, which includes Australia, and it’s island state Tasmania, but which also includes countries such as New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Fiji, Kiribati, Marshal Islands, Micronesia, Nauru, Palau, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu and Vanuatu. In addition to including these established countries, there are also several dependent territories, which are islands off the coast of these countries. Many of these belong to another country of the world (such as France or the USA), but due to their location, are considered part of Oceania.
The argument and uncertainty between Australia and Oceania and which is a continent or country, still exists in part because Oceania is an artificial construct: it was created simply to be able to contain a large selection of island states and be able to include them all under one title based purely on their geographical location. At the root of it, many people argue, it does not meet the definition of a continent at all, as it is not a single landmass. Oceania is instead a region which encompasses a selection of several islands and selected countries.
Where then, does that leave Australia? In many cases, you will regularly see the continent of Australia defined as “Australia/Oceania.” Fundamentally, Australia itself is both a continent and a country: Australia is a country that is part of a continent also called Australia, all of which is part of a region known as Oceania.
(National Geographic Society. Continent. https://www.nationalgeographic.org/encyclopedia/Continent/)
The 7 continents are, from largest to smallest:
- Asia
- Africa
- North America
- South America
- Antarctica
- Europe
- Australia
Coastlines, however, do not indicate the actual boundaries of the continents. Continents are defined by their continental shelves. A continental shelf is a gently sloping area that extends outward from the beach far into the ocean. A continental shelf is part of the ocean, but also part of the continent.
Europe and Asia
To geographers, continents are also culturally distinct. The continents of Europe and Asia, for example, are actually part of a single, enourmous piece of land called Eurasia. But linguistically and ethnically, the areas of Asia and Europe are distinct. Because of this, most geographers divide Eurasia into Europe and Asia. An imaginary line, running from the northern Ural Mountains in Russia south to the Caspian and Black Seas, separates Europe, to the west, from Asia, to the east.
Australia/Oceania
Recognising the contradiction within the definition of a continent and the existence of Australia, not to mention the existence of several surrounding countries and islands, which needed a more defined continental region, geographers coined the term Oceania. This is a region, which includes Australia, and it’s island state Tasmania, but which also includes countries such as New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Fiji, Kiribati, Marshal Islands, Micronesia, Nauru, Palau, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu and Vanuatu. In addition to including these established countries, there are also several dependent territories, which are islands off the coast of these countries. Many of these belong to another country of the world (such as France or the USA), but due to their location, are considered part of Oceania.
The argument and uncertainty between Australia and Oceania and which is a continent or country, still exists in part because Oceania is an artificial construct: it was created simply to be able to contain a large selection of island states and be able to include them all under one title based purely on their geographical location. At the root of it, many people argue, it does not meet the definition of a continent at all, as it is not a single landmass. Oceania is instead a region which encompasses a selection of several islands and selected countries.
Where then, does that leave Australia? In many cases, you will regularly see the continent of Australia defined as “Australia/Oceania.” Fundamentally, Australia itself is both a continent and a country: Australia is a country that is part of a continent also called Australia, all of which is part of a region known as Oceania.
(National Geographic Society. Continent. https://www.nationalgeographic.org/encyclopedia/Continent/)
Oceans
There are 5 oceans:
The Atlantic and Pacific oceans are sometimes categorised into northern and southern oceans:
Depth of Oceans
Watch the video called 'Ocean Depth Comparison (3D Animation) by MetaBallStudios [5:11]
- Arctic Ocean
- Pacific Ocean
- Atlantic Ocean
- Indian Ocean
- Southern Ocean
The Atlantic and Pacific oceans are sometimes categorised into northern and southern oceans:
- North Atlantic Ocean and South Atlantic Ocean
- North Pacific Ocean and South Pacific Ocean
Depth of Oceans
Watch the video called 'Ocean Depth Comparison (3D Animation) by MetaBallStudios [5:11]