landmasses
Earth's major lands
Landmasses are large continuous areas of land, typically referring to continents or major portions of continents: The supercontinent Pangaea eventually broke apart into the landmasses we know today.
The term emphasizes scale and geographic unity, distinguishing major land areas from islands or smaller territories.
Second-largest continent
- AntarcticaSouthernmost continental landmass
- AsiaLargest continental landmass
- EuropeSmallest inhabited continent
- North AmericaWestern Hemisphere's northern continent
South America · Oceania · Australia · Eurasia · subcontinent · Pangaea · Gondwana · supercontinent
Chain of scattered islands
- atollRing-shaped reef island
- isleSmall water-encircled land
- isletVery small land mass
- caySmall coral island
key · skerry · barrier island · coral island · volcanic island · peninsula · cape · reef
Spatial representation of terrain
- atlasBound collection of charts
- projectionSomething that extends outward
- globeSpherical representation of landmasses
- coordinatesLocation-specifying number pairs
longitude · latitude · scale · legend · geospatial · GIS · surveying · Mercator
Flat highland area
- mountain rangeSeries of connected peaks
- valleyLow ground between heights
- plainBasic and unremarkable
- canyonDeep river-cut gorge
basin · highland · lowland · terrain · elevation · escarpment · mesa · butte
Earth's crust mobility theory
- continental driftGradual landmass repositioning
- lithosphereCrust plus upper mantle
- crustHard outer layer
- tectonic platesMobile crustal sections
subduction · orogeny · mountain building · collision zone · fault lines · volcanic arc · mid-ocean ridge · convergent
Africa
Second-largest continent
- AntarcticaSouthernmost continental landmass
- AsiaLargest continental landmass
- EuropeSmallest inhabited continent
North America · South America · Oceania · Australia · Eurasia · subcontinent · Pangaea · Gondwana · supercontinent · Afro-Eurasia
archipelago
Chain of scattered islands
cay · key · skerry · barrier island · coral island · volcanic island · peninsula · cape · reef · lagoon
map
Spatial representation of terrain
- atlasBound collection of charts
- projectionSomething that extends outward
- globeSpherical representation of landmasses
coordinates · longitude · latitude · scale · legend · geospatial · GIS · surveying · Mercator · topographic map
plateau
Flat highland area
- mountain rangeSeries of connected peaks
- valleyLow ground between heights
- plainBasic and unremarkable
canyon · basin · highland · lowland · terrain · elevation · escarpment · mesa · butte · cliff
plate tectonics
Earth's crust mobility theory
- continental driftGradual landmass repositioning
- lithosphereCrust plus upper mantle
- crustHard outer layer
tectonic plates · subduction · orogeny · mountain building · collision zone · fault lines · volcanic arc · mid-ocean ridge · convergent · divergent
- Worldearth, globe, planet, continents, continent
- regionsregion, regions, area, areas, zone
- ancient mapsold maps, nautical charts, world maps, ancient maps, portolan charts
landmassesoceans
Vast saltwater bodies
seas · bodies of water · water bodies · water · waters