Physical geography

Meteorology is the scientific study of the Earth's atmosphere and short-term atmospheric phenomena (i.e., weather), with a focus on weather forecasting. It has applications in the military, aviation, energy production, transport, agriculture, construction, weather warnings, and disaster management.

thumb|Thermohaline circulation

thumb|upright=1.3|Rain falling over a drainage basin in [[Scotland. Understanding the cycling of water into, through, and out of catchments is a key element of hydrology.]]

country fully enclosed by land areas, or whose only coastlines lie on closed seas or lakes

thumb|upright=1.5|The Earth captured in the [[Pacific Ocean side]]

one of the two major subfields of geography

thumb|350px|Book frontispiece|Frontispiece to [[Alfred Russel Wallace's book The Geographical Distribution of Animals]]

thumb|upright=1.4|Badlands incised into [[shale at the foot of the North Caineville Plateau, Utah, within the pass carved by the Fremont River and known as the Blue Gate. G. K. Gilbert studied the landscapes of this area in great detail, forming the observational foundation for many of his studies on geomorphology.]] thumb|Surface of Earth, showing higher elevations in red

The Quaternary ( , ) is the current and most recent of the three periods of the Cenozoic Era in the geologic time scale of the International Commission on Stratigraphy (ICS), as well as the current and most recent of the twelve periods of the Phanerozoic eon. It follows the Neogene Period and spans from 2.6 million years ago to the present. The Quaternary Period is divided into two epochs: the Pleistocene (2.6 million years ago to 12 thousand years ago) and the Holocene (12 thousand years ago to today); a proposed third epoch, the Anthropocene, was rejected in 2024 by International Union of Ge

thumb|upright=1.3|Areas of the world with subtropical climates

thumb|right|upright=1.3|Table of geography, hydrography, and navigation, from a 1728 Cyclopaedia, or an Universal Dictionary of Arts and Sciences|Cyclopaedia Hydrography is the branch of applied sciences which deals with the measurement and description of the physical features of oceans, seas, coastal areas, lakes and rivers, as well as with the prediction of their change over time, for the primary purpose of safety of navigation and in support of all other marine activities, including economic development, security and defense, scientific research, and environmental protection.

thumb|upright=1.05|A climber taking the final few steps to the summit of Imja Tse (Island Peak) in [[Nepal, 2004]] thumb|View from the summit of Switzerland's highest peak, [[Monte Rosa]]

thumb|upright=1.3|Land between bodies of water at Point Reyes National Seashore, California|alt=A grassy isthmus running between two bodies of water

thumb|Altitude is a vertical measurement between a reference datum and an object. Altitude is a distance measurement, usually in the vertical or "up" direction, between a reference datum and a point or object. The exact definition and reference datum varies according to the context (e.g., aviation, geometry, geographical survey, sport, or atmospheric pressure). Although the term altitude is commonly used to mean the height above sea level of a location, in geography the term elevation is often preferred for this usage.

thumb|Present-day altimetry and [[bathymetry. Data from the National Geophysical Data Center's TerrainBase Digital Terrain Model.]] thumb|Relief map of Sierra Nevada (Spain)|Sierra Nevada, Spain upright|thumb|A shaded and colored image (i.e. terrain is enhanced) of varied terrain from the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission. This shows an elevation model of New Zealand's [[Alpine Fault, running about long. The escarpment is flanked by a vast chain of hills between the fault and the mountains of the Southern Alps. Northeast is towards the top.]]

thumb|upright=1.2|Paleogeographic reconstruction showing the Appalachian Basin area during the [[Middle Devonian period.]]

measure for the independence of a summit defined as its relative height based on the difference between its absolute elevation and the lowest contour line encircling it but containing no higher summit within it

Sedimentology encompasses the study of modern sediments such as sand, silt, and clay, and the processes that result in their formation (erosion and weathering), transport, deposition and diagenesis. Sedimentologists apply their understanding of modern processes to interpret geologic history through observations of sedimentary rocks and sedimentary structures. Sedimentology is a subdiscipline of geology.

thumb|Confluence of the Bhagirathi and [[Alaknanda Rivers at the Ganges in Devprayag, India]] thumb|The same confluence viewed from upstream at a different time; note the swirl of sediment from the Alaknanda River

300px|thumb|Soil Profile on Chalk at Seven Sisters Country Park, England

In geography, the antipode () of any spot on Earth is the point on Earth's surface diametrically opposite to it. A pair of points antipodal () to each other are situated such that a straight line connecting the two would pass through Earth's center. Antipodal points are as far away from each other as possible. The North and South Poles are antipodes of each other.

thumb|Livanjsko Polje in Bosnia is the largest polje in the world (Mount [[Dinara visible in the background).]] A polje, also called karst polje or karst field, is a large flat plain found in karstic geological regions of the world, with areas usually in the range of 5–400 km2 (2–154 sq mi). The name derives from the Slavic languages, where polje literally means 'field', whereas in English polje specifically refers to a karst plain or karst field.

thumb|upright=1.4|Vertical distance comparison

tangent of the angle of a surface to the horizontal

Edaphology (from Greek , edaphos 'ground' + , -logia) is concerned with the influence of soils on living beings, particularly plants. It is one of two main divisions of soil science, the other being pedology. Edaphology includes the study of how soil influences humankind's use of land for plant growth as well as people's overall use of the land. General subfields within edaphology are agricultural soil science (known by the term agrology in some regions) and environmental soil science. Pedology deals with pedogenesis, soil morphology, and soil classification.

study of the region between the sea and the land

study of physical conditions and physical processes within the ocean

minimum great-circle distance to a point of equal elevation, representing a radius of dominance in which the peak is the highest point

process in which the value of the biophysical environment is affected by a combination of human-induced processes acting upon the land

branch of geography that describes and explains the spatial aspects of interactions between human individuals or societies and their natural environment

Hypsometry () is the measurement of the elevation and depth of features of Earth's surface relative to mean sea level.

hypothesis about migration of species between Africa and Eurasia

measure of the branching complexity of a mathematical tree or a river system

movement of solid particles, typically by gravity and fluid entrainment

map visually representing the submerged terrain

hemispheres on the Earth containing the largest possible total areas of land and ocean respectively

climate zone of highest average temperatures

mode of representing relief on a map

thumb|The three types of talik: closed, open and through. A talik is a zone of year-round unfrozen ground located in the middle of a permafrost area. In regions of continuous permafrost, taliks often occur underneath shallow thermokarst lakes and rivers, where the deep water does not freeze in winter and thus the soil underneath does not freeze either. Sometimes closed, open, and through taliks are distinguished. These terms refer to whether the talik is surrounded by permafrost, open at the top (e.g. a thermokarst lake), or open both at the top and above an unfrozen layer beneath the permafro

interdisciplinary field of hydrology, mechanics and meteorology

compass direction that a slope faces

three-dimensional object representing a real terrain

Telmatology is a branch of physical geography concerned with the study of wetlands, such as marshes or swamps.

adverse geologic conditions capable of causing damage or loss of property and life

thumb|right|Portaging a tandem Prospector canoe in Algonquin Park thumb|Canoe rest along a portage trail Portage or portaging (CA: ; ) is the practice of carrying water craft or cargo over land, either around an obstacle in a river, or between two bodies of water. A path where items are regularly carried between bodies of water is also called a portage. The term comes from French, where means "to carry", as in "portable".

use of color to mark elevation in a map

16th century division of the world into four continents; Africa, America, Asia and Europe

comparatively straight part of a river or channel between two bends

cartographic representation of elevation on maps in terrain cartography

erosion of sediment near bridge foundations by water

mid-level region in the Fenneman model of physiographic regionalization

Water vapor transfer from the Amazon Basin

mountain or hill with two adjacent summits of approximately equal height, separated by a col or a saddle

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