The 35 most impressive geographical curiosities of the world
Our planet is exciting and although we think we know it thoroughly, the reality is that it hides countless secrets.
In these paragraphs we will try to make a compendium of some of the most fascinating facts about Earth's geography. Some of them are popularly known, but the rest will surprise even the most well-versed in this field.
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List of 35 geographical curiosities of the world
It is difficult to gather in a single list all the surprises that our planet hides. Even so, next we will be able to review The most amazing geographical curiosities of the world, although they are not the only ones that exist.
1. What is the longest river in the world
The longest river in the world is the Nile, which measures 6,695 kilometers from its source to its mouth, in the Mediterranean Sea. There are discrepancies among some experts, who point out that the Amazon River is actually the longest of all, although official measurements place the length of this watercourse at 6,400 kilometres.
2. What is the largest river in the world
In the case of the largest river in the world, it is the Amazon that wins the competition, without any doubt compared to the rest of the existing rivers on our planet. And it is that the Amazon ejects every second the unattainable figure of 200,000 m3 of water into the Atlantic Ocean.
3. What is the highest mountain in the world
Among the 35 geographical curiosities of the world, one of the most popularly known is that of the highest peak of the planet, which is Mount Everest, rising to 8,849 meters above sea level, in the middle of the Cordillera del Himalayas.
4. What is the largest ocean in the world
The Pacific is the largest ocean in the world, without a doubt, since no less than a third of the surface of our world is occupied by this body of water.
5. What is the deepest point in the ocean
If we could dive into the oceans and dive to the deepest point, we would find it in the Mariana Trench, 11,034 meters below the surface. This place is located precisely in the Pacific Ocean.
6. What is the world's largest country
The country with the largest area on Earth is Russia. occupying a land of more than 17 million square kilometers.
7. What is the smallest country in the world
The opposite case to the previous one, within the 35 geographical curiosities of the world, corresponds to the Vatican State, which is undoubtedly the smallest country of all, occupying only 0.44 km2.
8. What is the most populated city in the world
If we ask ourselves which is the city with the largest population on the planet, we will place it in Tokyo, the capital of Japan, although it is true that this is a data that varies constantly. In 2020, Tokyo had a population of just over 40 million people.
9. What is the most populous country in the world
As in the previous case, the figure must be taken into account with the year of registration. The data for the most populous country in the world in 2020 corresponds to China, with the unbeatable figure of 1439 million people.
10. What is the highest waterfall in the world
Angel Falls or Kerepakupai Merú, with 979 meters high, is the highest waterfall in the world. It is located in the Canaima National Park, in Venezuela.
11. What is the largest island in the world
The largest island in the world is none other than Greenland, an autonomous Danish territory, within the Arctic Circle.
12. What is the country with the longest coastline in the world?
Another of the 35 geographical curiosities of the world corresponds to the country with the longest coastline in the world. In this case, said nation is Canada, which has 265,523 kilometers of coastline, a figure unattainable by any other country.
13. What is the most isolated island in the world?
Advancing in the list of geographical curiosities, we now find out which is the most remote island in the world. This is the Tristán de Acuña archipelago, a territory of the United Kingdom that is located in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean.
14. What is the largest peninsula in the world
The Arabian peninsula, or simply Arabia, is the territory that makes up the largest peninsula on planet Earth. Its surface exceeds 3 million square kilometers.
15. What is the lowest point in the world
To answer what is the deepest point in the world, without taking into account those that are covered by the oceans, we must take into account if we refer to an exposed area, in which case we would speak of the land adjacent to the Dead Sea, which is 413 meters below sea level. sea.
But if we include those that are covered by ice, the correct answer would be the land under Denman Glacier, Antarctica, since it is 3,500 meters below sea level.
16. What is the hottest point on Earth
The warmest place in the world, if we talk about the surface (since the Earth's core is at about 6,000ºC), is Death Valley, in California, where 56.7ºC has been reached.
17. What is the coldest point on Earth
Continuing with our 35 geographical curiosities of the world, we come to the coldest place on Earth. If it is an inhabited place, then the answer is the town of Oymyakon, in Siberia, where -71.2ºC was recorded in 1926.
And if we talk about places where human beings do not live permanently, then the record is held by the Vostok base, in Antarctica, with -89.2ºC, in the year 1983.
18. What is the largest lake in the world
The largest lake in the world, taking into account only freshwater surfaces, is Lake Superior, which occupies part of the territory of Canada and the United States. This lake has an extension of more than 82,000 km2.
- You may be interested in: "The 6 types of ecosystems: the different habitats we find on Earth"
19. Which is the largest desert in the world
When we think of desert, landscapes of sand and sweltering heat often come to mind. But if we stick to the strict definition, the largest desert in the world would be the Antarctic desert. With its almost 14 million square kilometers, no other comes close in this competition.
20. What is the largest canyon in the world
The deepest canyon in the world is Yarlung Tsangpo, a cleft in the earth that reaches 5,590 meters and is located in Nyingchi, China.
21. What is the longest mountain range in the world
This is another of the 35 geographical curiosities of the world that can be shocking, because when we think in the longest mountain range in the world, places like the Himalayas or the Andes will surely come to mind. The latter would be the longest on the surface, with about 7,000 km in length.
But actually, the longest is underwater, as it is the mid-oceanic ridge. It measures no less than 80,000 km, and crosses our entire planet, under the oceans.
22. What are the highest cliffs in the world
The highest cliff in the world does not face the sea, but rather an inland valley, in Yosemite National Park, in the USA. It is the Half Dome, with a height of 1,440 meters.
23. What is the largest plain in the world
The answer corresponds to the West Siberian Plain, which covers an area of 2.7 million km2.
24. What is the deepest cave in the world
The deepest cave in the world, of those that have been explored so far, is the Veryovkina cave in the Western Caucasus. Its deepest point is 2,212 meters below the surface.
25. What is the largest glacier in the world
The largest glacier in the world is Lambert, located in East Antarctica.. It has an extension of 400 by 100 kilometers, and an approximate depth of 2.5 kilometers.
26. What is the largest inland sea in the world
The largest inland sea in the world, and also the largest saltwater lake, is the Caspian Sea, in the Middle East area, occupying 371,000 km2.
27. What is the largest volcano in the world
Going further into the 35 geographical curiosities of the world, we answer what is the largest volcano in the world. It's Mauna Loa, in Hawaii. It is estimated that its total area would be around 75,000 km3. Its altitude is 4,169 meters.
28. What is the largest crater in the world
The largest crater that has been found on the earth's surface is Vredefort, in South Africa, with an age of more than 2,000 million years. The diameter would be around 300 kilometers.
29. What is the largest beach in the world
The longest beach in the world is Praia do Cassino, in Brazil and part of Uruguay. This coastal extension reaches 250 kilometers.
30. What is the widest river in the world
We have already seen which is the longest river. But the widest of all is the Río de la Plata, in Argentina, which at its widest reaches 221 kilometers between both banks.
31. What is the largest forest in the world
Reaching the end of the list of geographical curiosities, we now discover what is the largest forest in the world, and it is none other than the Amazon, with its 6 million km2, including territory from eight different countries of South America.
32. Where is the tallest tree in the world?
The tallest tree in the world is a sequoia located in Redwood National Park, in the United States. It is known by the name of Hyperion. Its height is 115.55 meters.
33. What is the diameter of the Earth
The diameter of our planet is 12,742 kilometers, which means that its radius is 6,371 km.
34. What is the circumference of the Earth
The circumference of the Earth is 40,075 kilometers.
35. What is the tilt of the Earth's axis
The last of the 35 geographical curiosities of the world refers to the tilt of the Earth's axis. Said inclination is 23.5º on the plane of the ecliptic.
Bibliographic references:
- López Palomeque, F., Plaza Gutiérrez, J.I. (2019). Geography of Europe. Valencia: Tirant lo Blanch.
- Piqueras, J. (2013). Introduction to Geography. University of Valencia.
- Rosselló, V.M., Panareda, J.M., Pérez Cueva, A. (1994). Manual of Physical Geography. University of Valencia.
