Geography of France explained

France
Map:Satellite_image_of_France_in_August_2002.jpg
Continent:Europe
Region:Western Europe
Area Ranking:42nd
Km Area:551,695
Percent Land:99.48
Km Coastline:5,500
Exclusive Economic Zone:In Europe: 334604km2
All overseas territories: 11691000km2
Borders:4176km (2,595miles)
Geographic Center:-->
Highest Point:Mont Blanc 4808m (15,774feet)
Lowest Point:Étang de Lavalduc -10m (-20feet)
Longest River:Loire 1012km (629miles)
Largest Lake:Lac du Bourget 44.5km2
Climate:Oceanic climate, Mediterranean climate (south), mountain climate (Alps and Pyrenees)
Terrain:Plains and hills (north and west), mountainous (south)
Natural Resources:Coal, iron ore, bauxite, zinc, uranium, antimony, arsenic, potash, feldspar, fluorspar, gypsum, timber, fish, gold
Natural Hazards:Flooding, avalanches, midwinter windstorms, drought, forest fires (south)
Environmental Issues:Water pollution, air pollution, agricultural runoff, acid rain

The geography of France consists of a terrain that is mostly flat plains or gently rolling hills in the north and west and mountainous in the south (including the Massif Central and the Pyrenees) and the east (the highest points being in the Alps). Metropolitan France has a total size of 551695km2 (Europe only). It is the third largest country in Europe by area (after Russia and Ukraine) and the largest in Western Europe.

Physical geography of Metropolitan France

Climate

See main article: Climate of France. The French metropolitan territory is relatively large, so the climate is not uniform, giving rise to the following climate nuances:

Climate change in France includes above average heating.[1]

Elevation extremes

See also: Evolution of highest point of France.

Land use

Irrigated land: 26,420 km2 (2007)

Total renewable water resources: 211 km3 (2011)

Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural): 31.62 km3/yr (19%/71%/10%) (512.1 m3/yr per capita) (2009)

Natural resources

Coal, iron ore, bauxite, zinc, uranium, antimony, arsenic, potash, feldspar, fluorspar, gypsum, timber, fish, gold, clay, petroleum, silver

Natural hazards

Flooding, Hailstorms, avalanches, midwinter windstorms, drought, forest fires in the south near the Mediterranean

Environment

The region that now comprises France consisted of open grassland during the Pleistocene Ice Age. France gradually became forested as the glaciers retreated starting in 10,000 BC, but clearing of these primeval forests began in Neolithic times. These forests were still fairly extensive until the medieval era.

In prehistoric times, France was home to large predatory animals such as wolves and brown bears, as well as herbivores such as elk. The larger fauna have disappeared outside the Pyrenees Mountains where bears live as a protected species. Smaller animals include martens, wild pigs, foxes, weasels, bats, rodents, rabbits, and assorted birds.

By the 15th century, France had largely been denuded of its forests and was forced to rely on Scandinavia and their North American colonies for lumber. Significant remaining forested areas are in the Gascony region and north in the Alsace-Ardennes area. The Ardennes Forest was the scene of extensive fighting in both world wars.

The north central part of this region is dominated by the Paris Basin, which consists of a layered sequence of sedimentary rocks. Fertile soils over much of the area make good agricultural land. The Normandy coast to the northwest is characterized by high, chalk cliffs, while the Brittany coast (the peninsula to the west) is highly indented where deep valleys were drowned by the sea, and the Biscay coast to the southwest is marked by flat, sandy beaches.

A recent global remote sensing analysis suggested that there were 1,433 km2 of tidal flats in France, making it the 23rd ranked country in terms of tidal flat area.[2]

Political geography

Internal divisions

See main article: article and Administrative divisions of France.

France has several levels of internal divisions. The first-level administrative division of Integral France is regions. Besides this the French Republic has sovereignty over several other territories, with various administrative levels.

Boundaries

Extreme points

This is a list of the extreme points of France; the points that are farther north, south, east or west than any other location.

France (mainland Europe)

France (metropolitan)

France (including départements d'outre mer)

France (all territory of the French Republic)

Temperature extremes

These are the extreme temperatures in France.

See also

General:

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Climate change in France. 2 June 2021. Climatechangepost.com.
  2. Murray . N.J. . Phinn . S.R. . DeWitt . M. . Ferrari . R. . Johnston . R. . Lyons . M.B. . Clinton . N. . Thau . D. . Fuller . R.A. . The global distribution and trajectory of tidal flats . Nature . 2019 . 565 . 7738 . 222–225 . 10.1038/s41586-018-0805-8 . 30568300 . 56481043 .
  3. Web site: Les collectivités locales en chiffres 2021. 18. Ministère de la Cohésion des territoires et des Relations avec les collectivités territoriales. August 2021. fr.
  4. Web site: Longueur du trait de côte en 2019. eaufrance.fr. fr. 12 July 2024.