Physical geography: the global environment

670 Pages·2016·164.124 MB·English

by  Mason, Joseph A

PHYSICAL GEOGR APHY
THE GLOBAL ENVIRONMENT
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JOSEPH A. MASON PETER O. MULLER
UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN–MADISON UNIVERSITY OF MIAMI
JAMES E. BURT H. J. de BLIJ
UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN–MADISON MICHIGAN STATE UNIVERSITY
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P H Y S I C A L   G EO G R A P H Y
T HE GLOBA L EN V IRONMEN T
F IF T H EDI T ION
New York Oxford
OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Mason, Joseph A.
Physical geography : the global environment / Joseph A. Mason, University of Wisconsin-Madison, James E. Burt,
University of Wisconsin-Madison, Peter O. Muller, University of Miami, H.J. de Blij, Michigan State University. -- Fifth
edition.
pages cm
H. J. de Blij is listed as the first author of the fourth edition.
ISBN 978-0-19-024686-0 (acid-free paper) 1. Physical geography. I. Title.
GB55.D34 2016
910'.02--dc23
2015030031
Printing number: 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Printed in the United States of America
on acid-free paper
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With great admiration for his remarkable and wide-ranging contributions to American geography,
we proudly dedicate this edition to the memory of our founding co-author
HARM J. dE BLIJ (1935-2014)
Harm will long be remembered for his accomplishments during his highly successful career as a
scholar, educator, and communicator—all of which were harnessed in his passionate, lifelong
crusade to advance the cause of geography in the public arena.
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BRIEF TABLE OF CONTENTS
UNIT 1 Introducing Physical Geography 1
PART fIvE The Restless Crust
UNIT 27 Minerals and Igneous Rocks 346
PART ONE A Planetary Perspective
UNIT 28 Sedimentary and Metamorphic Rocks 355
UNIT 2 The Planet Earth 14 UNIT 29 Planet Earth in Profile: The Layered Interior 366
UNIT 3 Mapping Earth’s Surface 27 UNIT 30 Plates of the Lithosphere 376
UNIT 4 Earth–Sun Relationships 44 UNIT 31 Plate Movement: Causes and Effects 387
UNIT 5 Radiation and the Heat Balance of Planet UNIT 32 volcanism and Its Landforms 397
Earth 55
UNIT 33 Earthquakes and Landscapes 410
UNIT 34 faults, folds, and Landscapes 421
PART TWO Atmospheric and Oceanic Processes
UNIT 6 Composition and Structure of the PART SIX Sculpting the Surface: Weathering,
Atmosphere 68 Mass Movements, and flowing Water
UNIT 7 Temperatures of the Lower Atmosphere 85
UNIT 35 The formation of Landforms and
UNIT 8 Air Pressure and Winds 97 Landscapes 432
UNIT 9 Circulation Patterns of the Atmosphere 108 UNIT 36 Weathering Processes 440
UNIT 10 Circulation of the World Ocean 121 UNIT 37 Mass Movements 449
UNIT 11 Atmospheric Moisture and the Water UNIT 38 Water in the Lithosphere 460
Balance 134
UNIT 39 Slopes and Streams 471
UNIT 12 Precipitation, Air Masses, and fronts 150
UNIT 40 Landscapes Shaped by Stream Erosion 484
UNIT 13 Weather Systems 164
UNIT 41 Landforms of the fluvial System 496
UNIT 42 Karst Processes and Landforms 508
PART THREE Climate and Climate Change
UNIT 14 Climate Classification and Regionalization 180 PART SEvEN Sculpting the Surface: Ice, Wind,
and Coastal Processes
UNIT 15 Tropical (A) and Arid (B) Climates 191
UNIT 16 Mild Midlatitude (C) Climates 204 UNIT 43 Glacial Erosion and deposition 520
UNIT 17 Higher-Latitude (d, E) and High-Altitude (H) UNIT 44 Landforms and Landscapes of Continental
Climates 216 Glaciation 531
UNIT 18 Natural Climate Change 229 UNIT 45 Landforms and Landscapes of Mountain
UNIT 19 Global Warming and Human Impacts Glaciers 544
on Climate 242 UNIT 46 Periglacial Environments and Landscapes 554
UNIT 47 Wind as a Geomorphic Agent 562
PART fOUR The Biosphere UNIT 48 Coastal Processes 572
UNIT 49 Coastal Landforms and Landscapes 583
UNIT 20 Biogeochemical Cycles 260
UNIT 21 formation of Soils 271
UNIT 22 Properties of Soil 281
UNIT 23 Classification and Mapping of Soils 290
UNIT 24 Biogeographic Processes 305
UNIT 25 The Global distribution of Plants 319
UNIT 26 Zoogeography: Spatial Aspects of Animal
Populations 331
BRIEf TABLE Of CONTENTS vii
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
UNIT 1 Introducing Physical Geography 1
UNIT 7 Temperatures of the Lower
Geography 2 Atmosphere 85
Physical Geography and the Scientific
What Is Temperature? 86
Method 4
Temperature in the Troposphere 87
Systems and Models in Physical
The Horizontal Distribution
Geography 5
of Temperature 91
Geographic Magnitude 11
UNIT 8 Air Pressure and Winds 97
Atmospheric Pressure 98
PART ONE A Planetary Perspective Air Movement in the Atmosphere 99
Large-Scale Wind Systems 102
Small-Scale Wind Systems 103
UNIT 2 The Planet Earth 14
UNIT 9 Circulation Patterns of the
Earth’s Shape and Size 15 Atmosphere 108
Spheres of the Earth System 16
A Model of the Surface Circulation 109
Earth’s Hemispheres 19
The Actual Surface Circulation Pattern 111
Continents and Oceans 20
Secondary Surface Circulation: Monsoonal
UNIT 3 Mapping Earth’s Surface 27 Wind Flows 115
Circulation of the Upper Atmosphere 117
Location on Earth 28
Depicting Earth: Map Projections 30 UNIT 10 Circulation of the World Ocean 121
Map Interpretation: Isolines 34
The Coupled Ocean–Atmosphere System 122
Evolving Cartographic Technology 38
Generation of Ocean Currents 123
UNIT 4 Earth–Sun Relationships 44 Wind-driven Flow 124
The Geography of Ocean Currents 126
Earth’s Planetary Motions 45
El Niño–Southern Oscillation 129
Seasonality 46
Insolation and Its Variation 49 UNIT 11 Atmospheric Moisture and the Water
Balance 134
UNIT 5 Radiation and the Heat Balance
of Planet Earth 55 The Physical Properties of Water 135
Measuring Water Vapor 135
Energy and Heat Transfer 56
The Hydrologic Cycle 136
Global Energy Balance 58
Evaporation 138
Making Sense of Global Energetics 64
Condensation and Clouds 141
Precipitation 142
PART TWO Atmospheric and The Surface Water Balance 145
Oceanic Processes UNIT 12 Precipitation, Air Masses, and fronts 150
Air Masses in the Atmosphere 151
Lifting Mechanisms That Produce
UNIT 6 Composition and Structure of the
Precipitation 151
Atmosphere 68
Atmospheric Constituents 69 UNIT 13 Weather Systems 164
The Origin, Evolution, and Maintenance Low-Latitude Weather Systems 165
of the Atmosphere 70 Weather Systems of the Middle and Higher
Contents and Arrangement of the Latitudes 171
Atmosphere 73 Energy and Moisture Within Weather
The Layered Structure of the Atmosphere 79 Systems 174
CONTENTS ix
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