Physical Geography of South East Asia, Oceania, and Antarctica

pgs. 689-692
1. What is an archipelago and identify an example?
An archipelago is a set of closely grouped island which can sometimes form a
curved arc. An example of an archipelago is the Malay Archipelago which consists
of the Philippians, the islands of Indonesia, and more.
2. What rivers and resources exist in South East Asia? Why is this important?
The Mekong River is a highly populated river that runs through China and
crosses several Southeastern countries. Millions of people rely on the Mekong for
their source of income including fishing and farming. Fertile soil, plentiful fish,
petroleum, tin, and gems are among their resources.
3. What is Oceania? About how many islands exist in Oceania?
Oceania is the name given to the group of Pacific islands and geographers
estimate there are more than 20,000 islands.
4. What are high islands? What are low islands?
High lands are islands that are composed of volcanos, while low lands are
islands composed of coral reefs.
5. What resource problem exists in Oceania?
Oceania is not rich in resources and many of their low lands have poor soil.
Also, many of the islands lack minerals. The resources they do have are scarce and
because of this make it hard for them to industrialize.
6. Describe the difference in the North and South Islands of New Zealand. Even
though it has limited natural resources, what has allowed New Zealand to thrive?
The North islands of New Zealand have hilly ranges, a volcanic plateau, but
are much less mountainous than the South islands of New Zealand. The North
islands have fertile farmland and a dense forest that supports the lumber industry.
They also have natural coastlines that are used for seaports. The islands of New
Zealand have been able to thrive off of dams that generate electricity and
underground volcanic steam that powers generators.

7. How is Australia different from New Zealand? (Be specific. What is found here
that is not found in New Zealand?)
Australia has very few rivers, but its the worlds leader supplier of
diamonds, opals, lead, coal, and bauxite. Also, where in New Zealand the lumber
industry is vast in Australia the forestry industry is not major.
8. The 5th largest continent is Antarctica. Compare East and West Antarctica
(underneath the ice).
East Antarctica is a plateau surrounded by mountains and West Antarctica is
a group of separate islands linked only by the ice that covers them.
9. What is interesting about Antarctica's ice sheet? What resources may lie
beneath?
Antarctica ice sheet is the largest supply of fresh water in the world and
geologists believe that coal, minerals, and perhaps even petroleum are among the
recourses beneath the ice.
Climate and Vegetation
pgs. 694-701
1. What sort of climate exists in most of South East Asia and Oceania?
Tropical climate is the most common throughout South East Asia and Oceania.
2. What are the two categories that exist in the climate of South East Asia and
Oceania?
Year-round rains which include very high temperatures, more than 100 inches of
rain per year, and is usually fairly consistent. Wet and Dry seasons is the other
category which includes monsoons, consistently hot temperatures, rainfall
variation, and typhoons.
3. Describe a monsoon.
Monsoons are winds that cause wet and dry seasons. Monsoons tend to shape
the weather in the tropical wet and dry climates.

4. How does the climate affect the tropical plants and vegetation that exists in
South East Asia and Oceania?
Oceania does not have diverse vegetation. The low lands have very poor soil
which does not allow for a lot of growth and high lands allow the growth of an
abundance amount of flowers and trees.
5. Look at the 5 Themes Box (Human-Environment Interaction). What is
Terraced Farming? Why would this be interesting to historians?
Terrace farming is the act of cutting and filling on a hill to produce multiple
flat surfaces...... the hill, once terraced, will look like a giant set of stairs. Terrace
farming prevents erosion and it would be interesting to historians because it allows
for more crops to be grown and on a continent with not a lot of land it allows more
area of farming.
6. Describe the climate in Australia and New Zealand. How is Australias climate
similar to South East Asia and also New Zealand?
The northern part of Australia has a humid sub-tropical climate with hot
summers, mild winters, and heavy rainfall. New Zealand and the southern part of
Australia both have a marine west coast climate. The seasons have moderate
temperatures and New Zealand receives rain-fall year-round.
7. Why is of Australia a dry desert? What is the outback?
Because Australia lies in the tropics and subtropics, has very high
temperatures, and has fast evaporation of rain results in 1/3 of Australia being a
dry desert. The outback is the dry, unpopulated inland area of Australia.
8. What is the White Desert? What sorts of life lives in it?
The White Desert is another name for the continent of Antarctica. Plants
such as lichens and mosses and animals such as sea life, birds, and different
species of penguins are the White Deserts only inhabitants.