Geo Mapping World 1

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About this book?

• Book contains 2 sections:


- Section A – World Mapping
- Section B – Indian Mapping
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INDEX

WORLD GEOGRAPHY -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1


CHAPTER 1 GENERAL INFORMATION------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 1
CHAPTER 2 IMPORTANT ISLANDS ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2
CHAPTER 3 IMPORTANT WATER BODIES OF THE WORLD ---------------------------------------------------------------------- 6
CHAPTER 4 IMPORTANT STRAITS--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 16
CHAPTER 5 MAJOR PHYSICAL FEATURES OF THE WORLD -------------------------------------------------------------------- 24
CHAPTER 6 OTHER MISCELLANEOUS PHYSICAL FEATURES------------------------------------------------------------------- 28
CHAPTER 7 ARCTIC CIRCLE ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 38
CHAPTER 8 ANTARCTICA ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 39
CHAPTER 9 NORTH AMERICA ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 42
CHAPTER 10 SOUTH AMERICA ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 48
CHAPTER 11 CENTRAL AMERICA --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 56
CHAPTER 12 AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 57
CHAPTER 13 OCEANIA ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 62
CHAPTER 14 CENTRAL ASIA ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 63
CHAPTER 15 MIDDLE EAST ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 65
CHAPTER 16 EAST ASIA --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 68
CHAPTER 17 SOUTH EAST ASIA ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 71
CHAPTER 18 AFRICA ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 74
CHAPTER 19 EUROPE ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 89
CHAPTER 20 RUSSIA ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 98
CHAPTER 21 MISCELLANEOUS INFORMATION -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 104
INDIAN GEOGRAPHY ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 113
CHAPTER 1 MAJOR PORTS OF INDIA -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 113
CHAPTER 2 MAJOR CROPS OF INDIA --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 117
CHAPTER 3 SOILS IN INDIA --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 126
CHAPTER 4 MINERALS -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 129
CHAPTER 5 MOUNTAIN SYSTEM IN INDIA -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 142
CHAPTER 6 PASSES------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 151
CHAPTER 7 THE RIVER SYSYTEM -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 159
CHAPTER 8 INDUSTRIES ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 169
CHAPTER 9 DEDICATED FREIGHT CORRIDOR ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 166
CHAPTER 10 WATERWAYS --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 181
CHAPTER 11 PLATEAUS OF INDIA ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 185
CHAPTER 12 LAKES IN INDIA ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 193
CHAPTER 13 IMPORTANT BAYS AND GULFS IN INDIA ----------------------------------------------------------------------- 205
CHAPTER 14 IMPORTANT ISLANDS OF INDIA ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 207
CHAPTER 15 IMPORTANT BEACHES OF INDIA --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 214
CHAPTER 16 MISCELLANEOUS ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 216

PLEASE COMPLIMENT THIS WITH SUNYA IAS “SAMADHAAN” so as to cover the CURRENT AFFAIRS ELEMENTS
WORLD GEOGRAPHY

CHAPTER 1: GENERAL INFORMATION

CONTINENTS OF THE WORLD


• Total Continents: There are 7 continents.
• Size: Largest to smallest: Asia>Africa> North America>South America,
Antarctica>Europe> Australia.
• Largest Country (Area wise): Russia
• Smallest City (area wise): Vatican City-(an independent city-state, microstate and
enclave within Rome, Italy).
• Largest Democracy of The World: India
• Oldest Democracy of The World: USA (1788)
• Largest City (Population wise): Tokyo(Japan)- 37,435,191 people
• Largest city (Area wise): Chongqing-(China)-82,403 km²
• Highest city: Wen Chuan (Tibet). It is located at an altitude of 16732 feet.
• Largest Ocean(Deepest Also): Pacific Ocean

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CHAPTER 2: IMPORTANT ISLANDS

Island Information Location/Map


Greenlan • Size: The world’s
d largest island.
• Location:
Located between
the Arctic and
Atlantic oceans.
• Sovereign Part:
It is an
autonomous
territory within
the Kingdom of
Denmark.
• Feature:
Greenland
contains the
world's largest
and northernmost
national park,
Northeast
Greenland
National Park

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New • Size: It is the
Guinea world's second-
largest island, and,
the largest island in
Southern
Hemisphere.
• Location: Located
in Oceania in the
southwestern
Pacific Ocean, it is
separated by
Torres Strait from
Australia.

Borneo • Size: It is the third-


largest island in the
world.
• Rank In Asia:
Largest island in
Asia.
• Political Division:
The island is
politically divided
among three
countries:
Malaysia and
Brunei in the north,
and Indonesia to
the south.
Madagasc • Location:
ar Madagascar is a
large island in the
Indian Ocean off
the eastern coast of
southern Africa.
• Size: Madagascar
is the fourth largest
island and the 2nd
largest island
country in the
world.

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Baffin • Location: Baffin
Island Island, in the
Canadian
territory of
Nunavut, is the
largest island in
Canada and the
fifth-largest island
in the world.

Sumatra • Part of Sunda


Island: Sumatra is
one of the Sunda
Islands of western
Indonesia.
• Size: It is the
largest island that
is fully within
Indonesian
territory.

Honshu • Size: It is the 7th


largest island in the
world, and the 2nd
most populous
after the
Indonesian island
of Java.
• Country: It is the
largest and most
populous main
island of Japan.
• Location: The
island separates the
Sea of Japan from
the North Pacific.

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Victoria • Location: It is a
Island large island in the
Arctic Archipelago
that straddles the
boundary between
Nunavut and the
Northwest
Territories of
Canada.
• Size: It is the
eighth largest
island in the world

Great • Location: Great


Britain Britain is an island
in the North
Atlantic Ocean
• Size: It is the
largest of the
British Isles, the
largest European
island, and the
ninth-largest island
in the world

Ellesmere • Size/Location:
Island Ellesmere Island is
Canada's
northernmost and
third largest island,
and the tenth
largest in the
world.
• The Arctic
Cordillera
Mountain system
covers much of
Ellesmere Island.

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CHAPTER 3: IMPORTANT WATER BODIES OF THE WORLD

Seas Information Location/Map


Red Sea • Location: It is a seawater
inlet of the Indian Ocean,
lying between Africa and
Asia.
• Locational Feature: Its
connection to the ocean is in
the south, through the Bab-
el-Mandeb strait and the
Gulf of Aden.
• Bordering Countries:
Saudi Arabia, Yemen,
Egypt, Sudan, Eritrea,
Djibouti

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Arabian • Location: It is a region of
Sea the northern Indian Ocean.
• Inflowing River: The
biggest river flowing into
the sea is the Indus River.
• Branches:
§ The Gulf of Aden: In
the southwest,
connecting with the
Red Sea through
strait of Bab-el-
Mandeb.
§ Gulf of Oman: In the
northwest, connecting
with the Persian Gulf.

Andaman • Location: It is a marginal


Sea sea of north-eastern Indian
Ocean.
• Surrounded By: The
coastlines of Myanmar and
Thailand along the Gulf of
Martaban and west side of
the Malay Peninsula and
separated from the Bay of
Bengal by the Andaman
Islands and the Nicobar
Islands.

South • Location: It is a marginal


China Sea sea of the Western Pacific
Ocean.
• Importance: Has
tremendous economic and
geostrategic importance.
§ One-third of the
world's maritime
shipping passes
through it

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East • Location: The East China
China Sea Sea is an arm of the
Western Pacific Ocean,
located directly offshore
from East China.
• Largest Inflowing
River: The Yangtze
River (Chang Jiang) is the
largest river flowing into
the East China Sea.
Yellow Sea • Location: It is a marginal
sea of the Western Pacific
Ocean located between
mainland China and the
Korean Peninsula.
• Feature(Yellow
Colour): It is one of four
seas named after common
colour terms (others -
Black Sea, Red Sea and
White Sea), and its name
is descriptive of golden-
yellow colour of silt-
laden water discharged
from major rivers.
• Strategic Significance:
Since 2018, it has also
served as the location of
"peace zones" between
North and South Korea.
Sea of • Location: It is the
Japan marginal sea between the
Japanese archipelago,
Sakhalin, the Korean
Peninsula, and the
mainland of the Russian
Far East.
• Feature: The Japanese
archipelago separates the
sea from the Pacific
Ocean.

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Sea of • Location: It is a marginal
Okhotsk sea of the western Pacific
Ocean.
• Connectivity: It is
connected to the Sea of
Japan on either side of
Sakhalin: on the west
through the Sakhalin Gulf
and the Gulf of Tartary;
on the south through the
La Pérouse Strait.

Caspian • Size: It is the world's


Sea/ largest inland body of
Mazandar water.
om

an Sea/ • Location: It is an
Hyrcania endorheic basin, it lies
l.c

Sea/Khaza between Europe and Asia


r Sea • Inflowing Rivers:
ai

Europe's longest river, the


m

Volga, enters it. Also,


Ural river flows into it.
ag

• Significance: The
Caspian Sea is home to a
w

wide range of species and


ok

may be best known for its


caviar and oil industries.
kd

• Bordering Countries:
Azerbaijan, Iran,
m

Kazakhstan, Russia,
Turkmenistan [TARIK]

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Black Sea • Location: It is a marginal
Mediterranean Sea of the
Atlantic Ocean lying
between Europe and Asia.
• Inflowing Rivers:
Principally the Danube,
Dnieper, and Don.
• Bordering Countries:
Bulgaria, Georgia,
Romania, Russia, Turkey,
and Ukraine.(GURRBT)

Sea of • Location: It is a sea in


Azov Eastern Europe connected to
the Black Sea by the narrow
(about 4 km or 2.5 mi)
Strait of Kerch, and is
sometimes regarded as a
northern extension of the
Black Sea.
• Inflowing Rivers: The Don
and Kuban are the major
rivers that flow into it.
• NOTE-There is a constant
outflow of water from the
Sea of Azov to the Black
Sea.
• Specific Feature: The Sea
of Azov is the shallowest
sea in the world.

Mediterra • Connectivity: It is a sea


nean- Sea connected to the Atlantic
Ocean
• Primary Inflows: Atlantic
Ocean, Sea of Marmara,
Nile, Ebro, Rhône, Chelif,
Po.
• Bordering Countries
(Clockwise): Spain, France,
Monaco, Italy, Slovenia,

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Croatia, Bosnia and
Herzegovina, Montenegro,
Albania, Greece, Turkey,
Syria, Lebanon, Israel,
Egypt, Libya, Tunisia,
Algeria, and Morocco.
• Island Countries in The
Sea: Malta and Cyprus.

Aegean • Location: It is an elongated


Sea embayment of the
Mediterranean Sea between
Europe and Asia.
• Connectivity: In the north,
the Aegean is connected to
the Marmara Sea and the
Black Sea by the straits of
the Dardanelles and the
Bosphorus.

Ionian Sea • Location: It is an


elongated bay of
Mediterranean Sea.
• Bordering countries:
Albania, Greece, and Italy

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Adriatic • Location: The Adriatic is
Sea the northernmost arm of
the Mediterranean Sea.
• Separates: The Italian
Peninsula from the
Balkans.
• Bordering Countries:
Italy, Albania, Croatia,
Greece, Montenegro,
Slovenia, and Bosnia and
Herzegovina.
Tyrrhenia • Location: It is part of the
n Sea Mediterranean Sea off the
western coast of Italy.
• Geological Features:
The Tyrrhenian Sea is
situated near where the
African and Eurasian
Plates meet; therefore,
mountain chains and
active volcanoes such as
Mount Marsili are found
in its depths.
Ligurian • Location: It is an arm of
Sea the Mediterranean Sea.
• Lies Between: The
Italian Riviera (Liguria)
and the island of Corsica.
Balearic • Location: It is a body of
Sea water in the
Mediterranean Sea near
the Balearic Islands.
• Inflowing River: The
Ebro River flows into
this small sea.

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Sargasso • Location/Region: It is a
Sea region of Atlantic Ocean
bounded by four currents
forming an ocean gyre.
• Boundaries:
§ West: Gulf Stream
§ North: North
Atlantic Current
§ East: Canary Current
§ South: North
Atlantic Equatorial
Current.
Together they form a
clockwise-circulating system
of ocean currents termed the
North Atlantic Gyre.
Caribbean • Location: It is a sea of the
Sea Atlantic Ocean in the
tropics of Western
Hemisphere.
• Feature: It has world's
second largest barrier
reef, the Mesoamerican
Barrier Reef.

Gulf of • Location: It is an ocean


Mexico basin and a marginal sea
of the Atlantic Ocean.
• Largely surrounded by
the North American
continent.

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Labrador • Location: It is an arm of
Sea the North Atlantic Ocean
between Labrador
Peninsula and Greenland
and is a marginal sea of
the Atlantic.
• Connectivity: It connects
to the north with Baffin
Bay through the Davis
Strait.
• Currents: Northwest
Atlantic Mid-Ocean
Channel (NAMOC).

North Sea • Location: It is a sea of the


Atlantic Ocean between
Great Britain (specifically
England and Scotland),
and Norway, Denmark,
Germany, Netherlands,
Belgium and France.

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Norwegian • Location: It is a marginal
Sea sea in the Atlantic
Ocean.

Coral Sea • Location: It is a marginal


sea of the South Pacific
off the northeast coast of
Australia, and classified
om

as an interim Australian
bioregion.
l.c

• Significance: It is the
world's largest reef
ai

system, the Great Barrier


m

Reef (GBR) [A World


Heritage Site by
ag

UNESCO]
Tasman • Location: It is a marginal
w

Sea sea of the South Pacific


ok

Ocean, situated between


Australia and New
kd

Zealand.
m

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CHAPTER 4: IMPORTANT STRAITS
Straits: A natural narrow strip of water which connects two larger bodies of water. This also
separates two large landmasses. Some of the busiest and most important straits of the world are:
Strait Connecting Connecting Map/Location
Countries Water Bodies
Strait of Spain and Atlantic
Gibraltar Morocco Ocean and the
Mediterranean
Sea

Hormuz Iran and Gulf of Oman


Strait Oman and the
Persian Gulf

Bab-el- Djibouti, Gulf of Aden


Mandeb Yemen, and and the Red
Eritrea of Sea
the Somali
Peninsula

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Bering Asia from Arctic Ocean
Strait America and East
Pacific Ocean

Strait of Malaysia Pacific Ocean


Malacca and to the east
Sumatra with the
Indian Ocean
to the west

Other Straits
Strait Connecting Connecting Map/Location
Countries Water Bodies
Palk Strait India and The Bay of
Sri Lanka Bengal in the
northeast with
the Palk
Bay/Arabian
Sea in the
southwest

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Sunda Strait Java island Java Sea to
of Indonesia Indian Ocean
with its
Sumatra
island

Torres Strait Papua New Arafura Sea &


Guinea — Gulf of Papua
Australia

Bass Strait Mainland Tasmania Sea


Australia and South
and Ocean
Tasmania

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Cook Strait North New Tasman Sea
Zealand and and South
South New Pacific Ocean
Zealand

Foveaux Stewart Tasman Sea


Strait Island from and South
the South Pacific Ocean
Island of
New
Zealand

Tsugaru Honshu and Japan Sea and


Strait Hokkaido in Pacific Ocean
northern
Japan

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Formosa China and The South
Strait/Taiwan Taiwan China Sea and
Strait the East China
Sea

Kerch Strait Crimea and Black Sea and


mainland Sea of Azov
Russia

Bosporus Sea of
Strait Marmara and
Black Sea
Dardanelles Black Sea and
Strait Sea of Aegean

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Otranto Italy and Adriatic Sea
Strait Albania and Ionian
Sea

Messina Italy and The


Strait Sicily Tyrrhenian
Sea and the
Ionian Sea,
within the
central
Mediterranean

Bonifacio Corse Both sides


Strait (France) and Mediterranean
Sardinia Sea
(Italy)

Yucatan Mexico and Gulf of


Strait Cuba Mexico and
the Caribbean
Sea

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Florida Strait USA and Gulf of
Cuba Mexico and
the Atlantic
Ocean

Magellan Divides two Atlantic and


Strait regions in Pacific Ocean
Chile

Hudson Baffin Hudson Bay


Strait Island and and Labrador
Labrador Sea
peninsula

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Davis Strait Canada and Baffin Bay
Greenland and Labrador
(Denmark) Sea
Denmark Iceland and North Atlantic
Strait Greenland Ocean to
Arctic Ocean

Dover Strait Great English


Britain and Channel and
France North Sea

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CHAPTER 5: MAJOR PHYSICAL FEATURES OF THE WORLD

MAJOR GRASSLANDS OF THE WORLD

TEMPERATE GRASSLANDS OF THE WORLD

MAJOR PLATEAUS OF THE WORLD

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MAJOR MOUNTAINS OF THE WORLD

MAJOR DESERTS OF THE WORLD

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MAJOR RIVERS OF THE WORLD

VOLCANIC BELTS

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MAJOR LAKES

MAJOR PENINSULAS OF THE WORLD

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CHAPTER 6: OTHER MISCELLANEOUS PHYSICAL FEATURES
LANDLOCKED COUNTRIES
• A landlocked country is a country that does not have territory connected to an ocean or
whose coastlines lie on endorheic basins.
• There are currently 44 landlocked countries and four partially recognized landlocked
states.
• Kazakhstan is the world's largest landlocked country.

Important Trivia
Facts Location
Doubly Land-
Locked Countries
Landlocked
Countries
surrounded by
countries which
are themselves
landlocked.
• Example-
Uzbekistan,
Liechtenstein

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Enclave
A country
completely
surrounded by
another country
Example-
• Lesotho
[enclaved by
S. Africa]
• St. Marino
and Vatican
City
[enclaved by
Italy]

Largest Dam –
Grand Coulee, on
the Columbia
River in the U.S.
state of
Washington.

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Largest Delta –
Sunderban Delta
shared by India and
Bangladesh
formed by river
Ganga and
Brahmaputra.

Largest Desert –
Sahara

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Largest Island –
Greenland

Largest artificial
lake
Lake Volta, Ghana

Largest
freshwater Lake-
Lake Superior,
shared by USA and
Canada

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Largest saltwater
lake – Caspian Sea

Highest Mountain
Range –
Himalayas

Largest mountain
peak – Mt. Everest
in Nepal [8851 m]

Longest
Mountain range –
Andes, South
America [roughly
7000 km length]
Highest Volcano
Ojos Del Salado, in
Andes. It is shared
by Argentina and
Chile. It is at a
height of 6885 m.

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Deepest and
largest ocean –
Pacific Ocean

Deepest Point on
Earth – Mariana
Trench, Pacific
Ocean

Largest Peninsula
– Arabia
om
l.c
ai
m
ag
w
ok
kd

Coldest Place –
m

Vostok
(Antarctica).
It has a peak
temperature of -89
degree Celsius.

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Driest place on
Earth
Atacama Desert,
Chile

Largest and
Busiest Port –
Euro port and
Rotterdam
Port[combined],
both in
Netherlands.

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Longest River –
River Nile [6690
km]

Largest river in
volume
River Amazon,
South America

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Largest River
Dam
Hirakud Dam on
River Mahanadi,
Odisha

Largest Volcano
Mouna Loa,
Hawaii, USA

Highest Waterfall
– Angel Falls,
om

Venezuela
l.c
ai
m
ag
w
ok

Broadest Strait
Davis Strait
between Baffin
kd

Island (Canada)
and Greenland
m

(Denmark).

Largest Bay
Hudson Bay

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Largest Gulf Gulf
of Mexico.

Largest
Archipelago
Indonesia [roughly
300 islands]

Biggest and
Deepest canyon of
the world –
Yarlung Tsangpo
Grand Canyon,
Tibet.

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