Geography. Козлова Е.П. - 75 стр.

15.3 Read and translate the text

                                        Europe

      Europe, second smallest of the world’s continents (after Australia), composed of
the westward-projecting peninsulas of Eurasia, occupies nearly one-fifteenth of the
world’s total area. The territory of Europe – 10,400,000 sq km, population –
718,500,000 people. Europe is bordered on the west by the Atlantic Ocean, on the
north by the North Sea, Baltic Sea, and English Channel, on the south by the
Mediterranean Sea.
      The continent’s eastern boundary runs along the eastern Ural Mountains and the
Emba River. Europe’s islands and archipelagoes include Novaya Zemlya, Iceland, the
British Isles, Corsica, Sardinia, Sicily, Crete, Malta. Its major peninsulas include the
Scandinavian, Iberian, Italian, Balkan, Jutland.
      Europe can be divided into two major parts –western peninsular Europe, and
eastern continental Europe. And it can be divided into several distinct physiographic
regions - the central uplands and plateaus, the south-central mountains and the
southern fringe. The varied landscape includes the majestic beauty of the Alps, the
frightening silence of the sparsely populated British uplands, the almost desolate
stretches of the northern tundra, and the flat plains that have been reclaimed from the
sea. The mountain ranges include (from west to east) the Sierra Nevada, Pyrenees,
Alps, Apennines, Carpathians, and the Balkan Mountains.
      Europe is well-watered continent with many rivers but relatively few sizable
lakes. The river systems may be divided into three groups: the members of the first
drain west and north directly into the Atlantic and its marginal seas (the North and
Baltic seas); those of the second drain south into the Mediterranean; and those of the
third drain east and south-east into the Black and Caspian seas. The Volga River is
the longest river (3,529 km). Other major rivers are the Danube, Dnieper, Don,
Rhine, Vistula, Elbe and Oder. Lakes covering less then 2 percent of Europe’s
surface, are mostly of glacial origin (f. ex. Lake Ladoga).
      Lying south of the Arctic Circle and north of the tropics, Europe exhibits a wide
range of climates: the maritime climate of the west (abundant rainfall, mild
temperatures, both in winter and summer); the transitional climate of Central Europe
(500 to 1,000 mm of annual rainfall, cold winters, and warm summers); the
continental climate of the north-east (250 to 500 mm of annual rainfall, long and cold
winters, and hot summers); the Mediterranean climate of southern coastal Europe
(moderate rainfall, mild and wet winters, hot and dry summers). Strong winds
occasionally blow over the area of Southern Europe. In winter the mistral – a cold dry
wind often damage sensitive crops. In summer hot winds called siroccos bring hot,
dry, and dusty air from North Africa’s deserts.
      The continent can be divided into five major vegetation belts; tundra zone,
coniferous taiga or boreal zone, deciduous mixed forest zone, the steppe zone, the
Mediterranean zone.

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