The entire surface of the planet Earth consists of the water spaces of the oceans and the land of the mainland continents. Continents in terms of total area are significantly inferior to the seas and oceans. Four oceans - Pacific, Arctic North, Indian and Atlantic - occupy about 71% of the planet's surface, and the area of the continents is, respectively, 29%. The land consists of vast zones that form parts of the world. There are only six of them: Asia, Africa, America, Europe, Antarctica and Australia with Oceania. The first five parts of the world represent countries with a certain status, having demarcated, officially recognized borders, which have received international recognition. Part of the world Australia is complemented by Oceania, an island nation that, in its own right, could not be considered part of the world.
Parts of the world are divided into continents or mainlands. America, as part of the world, is divided into two continents - North America and South. Europe and Asia, on the contrary, united in continental status and a mainland appearedEurasia. Africa - it is Africa and remains, whether it is at least part of the world, even the mainland. It's the same with Antarctica. But Australia is called the mainland already without the island Oceania. Continents often do not include islands, although if you sum up the area of \u200b\u200ball the islands, you get an impressive figure. And besides, an island, large or small, is essentially part of the mainland.
Immediately after the division of the entire land of the Earth into parts of the world, there was a secondary division of parts of the world into continents. As a result, there are both continents and parts of the world on the planet. The largest continent is Eurasia, with an area of 55 million square kilometers. kilometers. Then comes the African continent, 30 million. In third place is North America, which has an area of 20 million square meters. km. South America has a slightly smaller area, 18 million square meters. km. Antarctica - 14 and Australia - 8.5 million square meters. kilometers, respectively. In addition to the area, the continents differ in height above sea level, there is a significant variation in this indicator. The highest continent on earth is Antarctica at 2200 meters above sea level, Asia at 950 meters, Africa at 750, America at 650, Australia at 340 and Europe at 300 meters above sea level.
Asia is the largest part of the world, its area is over 43 million square meters. kilometers. With the accession of Europe, Asia lost its status as a part of the world and became a mainland. On the territory of Asia there are several dozen countries with a population of more than 4 billion people. Asiaincludes almost all climatic zones, from the equatorial in the south to the arctic in the northern zone. Together with Europe, Asia forms the continent of Eurasia. The relief of the mainland is diverse, along with vast plains in Eurasia there are huge mountain ranges, the Himalayas, the Tien Shan and the Pamirs.
In contrast to the mountainous uplands, there are also deep depressions in Eurasia. For example, the Dead Sea, on Israel's border with Jordan, is located more than 400 meters below sea level. The Eurasian continent is a kind of champion in geographical sights. In Eurasia there is the largest lake in the world - the Caspian, Lake Baikal - a natural reservoir with the purest fresh water, Everest - the highest mountain on the planet, the Arabian Peninsula, unsurpassed in size, the Oymyakon cold pole and, finally, the largest natural zone of the Earth - Siberia.
