Korea comprises the Korean Peninsula (the mainland) and 3,960 nearby islands. The peninsula is located in Northeast Asia, between China and Japan. To the northwest, the Yalu River separates Korea from China and to the northeast, the Tumen River separates Korea from China and Russia. The Yellow Sea lies to the west, the East China Sea and Korea Strait to the south, and the Sea of Japan (East Sea) to the east. [1] Notable islands include Jeju, Ulleung, and the Liancourt Rocks.
At 223,179 km2, the area of Korea is similar to the area of the United Kingdom (244,100 km2) or the U.S. state of Minnesota (225,171 km2). Excluding the islands, the area of the Korean Peninsula is 220,847 km2. The peninsula measures approximately 1,000 km (620 mi) from north to south and 300 km (190 mi) from east to west. [2]
Mountains cover 70 percent of Korea, especially in the eastern and northern parts. Well-developed arable plains, mostly in southern and western parts of the peninsula, are generally small and separated by successive mountain ranges.
The highest mountains are in the northeast. Mount Paektu, a dormant volcano on the border with China, is the highest mountain in Korea at 2,744 m (9,003 ft). [2] The southern extension of Mount Paektu, a highland called Kaema Plateau, was mainly raised during the Cenozoic orogeny and partly covered by volcanic matter. It is bounded by the Rangnim Mountains to the west and the Hamgyong Mountains to the east.
The principal drainage divide (named Baekdu-daegan) runs north to south, beginning with the Rangnim Mountains bisecting the north and continuing down the eastern side of the peninsula as the Taebaek Mountains. Several lower, secondary mountain ranges, including the Kangnam Mountains and Sobaek Mountains run southwest from the main dividing range. [3] They developed along the tectonic line of Mesozoic orogeny. Some significant mountains include Mount Sobaek (1,439 m or 4,721 ft), Mount Kumgang (1,638 m or 5,374 ft), Mount Seorak (1,708 m or 5,604 ft), Mount Taebaek (1,567 m or 5,141 ft), and Mount Jiri (1,915 m or 6,283 ft).
Unlike most ancient mountains on the mainland, many important islands in Korea were formed by volcanic activity in the Cenozoic orogeny. Jeju Island, situated off the southern coast, is a large volcanic island whose main mountain, Mount Halla (1,950 m or 6,398 ft), is the highest in South Korea. [2] Ulleung Island is a volcanic island in the Sea of Japan whose composition is more felsic than Jeju. The volcanic islands tend to be younger, the more westward.
Because the mountainous region is mostly on the eastern part of the peninsula, the main rivers tend to flow westwards. Two exceptions are the southward-flowing Nakdong River and Seomjin River. Important rivers running westward include the Amnok River, the Chongchon River, the Taedong River, the Han River, the Geum River, and the Yeongsan River. [4] These rivers have extensive alluvial plains and provide an ideal environment for wet-rice cultivation.
The peninsula has 8,460 km (5,260 mi) of coastline. The southern and southwestern coastlines of Korea are particularly irregular, forming a well-developed ria coastline, and most of Korea's small islands are found here. This convoluted coastline results in mild seas and a calm environment allowing for safe navigation, fishing, and seaweed farming. The Yellow Sea on the western coast has an extremely high tidal range – at Incheon, around the middle of the western coast, it can get as high as 9 m (30 ft). This has led to broad mudflats along the south and west coasts. [4] In contrast, the east coast facing the Sea of Japan (East Sea) is steep and mostly straight, with sandy beaches. [5]
The terrain of Korea is rumpled, covered with low mountains. Most rocks are of Precambrian origin, although isolated pockets of Paleozoic, Mesozoic, and Cenozoic rock can also be found.
There are no active volcanoes on the peninsula. However, Baekdu Mountain in the north and Hallasan in the south have crater lakes, indicating that they were active not long ago. Furthermore, hot springs indicative of low-level volcanic activity are widespread throughout the peninsula. Roughly two earthquakes are recorded per year, but few have any major impact.
The climate of Korea differs dramatically from north to south. The southern regions experience a relatively warm and wet climate similar to that of Japan, affected by warm ocean waters including the East Korea Warm Current. The northern regions experience a colder and to some extent more inland climate, in common with Manchuria. For example, the annual precipitation of the Yalu River valley (600 mm or 24 in) is less than half of that on the south coast (1,500 mm or 59 in). [6] Likewise, there is a 20 °C (36 °F) difference in January temperature between the peninsula's southern and northern tips.
The entire peninsula, however, is affected by similar climatic patterns, including the East Asian Monsoon in midsummer and frequent typhoons in autumn. The majority of rainfall takes place during the summer months, with nearly half during the monsoon alone. Winters are cold, with January temperatures typically below freezing outside of Jeju Island. Winter precipitation is minimal, with little snow accumulation outside of mountainous areas.
Surveys of Korean flora have identified more than 3,000 species on the peninsula, of which more than 500 are endemic. The peninsula's floristic provinces are commonly divided between warm-temperate, temperate, and cold-temperate zones. The warm-temperate zone prevails over the southern coast and islands, including Jeju-do. It is largely typified by broad-leaved evergreens.
The temperate zone covers the great majority of the peninsula, away from the southern coast and high mountains. It is dominated by the Korean pine and various broad-leaved deciduous trees. Cold-temperate vegetation is found along the peninsula's northern fringe and in the high mountains, including the upper reaches of Hallasan on Jeju. Evergreens in this area include larch and juniper. Much of this vegetation is shared with Manchuria.
According to the World Wide Fund for Nature, Korea consists of several ecoregions. The Southern Korea evergreen forests occupy the southernmost portion of the peninsula, as well as the island of Jeju. The Central Korean deciduous forests occupy the more temperate central portion of the peninsula. Manchurian mixed forests occupy the northern lowlands and low hills of the peninsula, and extend north into Manchuria as far as the Amur River on the Russia-China border. The Changbai Mountains mixed forests include the higher elevation mountain region along the North Korea-China border, where forests are dominated by conifers, with alpine meadows and rock slopes on the highest peaks. [7]
Korea is a peninsular region in East Asia consisting of the Korean Peninsula, Jeju Island, and smaller islands. Since the end of World War II in 1945, it has been politically divided at or near the 38th parallel; in 1948, two states declared independence, both claiming sovereignty over the entire region: North Korea in its northern half and South Korea in the south, which fought the Korean War from 1950 to 1953. The region is bordered by China to the north and Russia to the northeast, across the Amnok (Yalu) and Duman (Tumen) rivers, and is separated from Japan to the southeast by the Korea Strait.
North Korea is located in East Asia in the Northern half of Korea, partially on the Korean Peninsula. It borders three countries: China along the Yalu (Amnok) River, Russia along the Tumen River, and South Korea to the south.
Russia is the largest country in the world, covering over 17,125,191 km2 (6,612,073 sq mi), and encompassing more than one-eighth of Earth's inhabited land area. Russia extends across eleven time zones, and has the most borders of any country in the world, with sixteen sovereign nations.
South Korea is located in East Asia, on the southern portion of the Korean Peninsula located out from the far east of the Asian landmass. The only country that shares a land border with South Korea is North Korea, lying to the north with 238 kilometres (148 mi) of the border running along the Korean Demilitarized Zone. South Korea is mostly surrounded by water and has 2,413 kilometres (1,499 mi) of coast line along three seas; to the west is the Yellow Sea, to the south is the East China Sea, and to the east is the Sea of Japan. Geographically, South Korea's landmass is approximately 100,364 square kilometres (38,751 sq mi). 290 square kilometres (110 sq mi) of South Korea are occupied by water. The approximate coordinates are 37° North, 128° East.
Portugal is a coastal nation in western Europe, located at the western end of the Iberian Peninsula, bordering Spain. The Portuguese territory also includes a series of archipelagos in the Atlantic Ocean, which are strategic islands along the North Atlantic. The extreme south is not too far from the Strait of Gibraltar, leading to the Mediterranean Sea. In total, the country occupies an area of 92,090 square kilometres (35,560 sq mi) of which 91,470 square kilometres (35,320 sq mi) is land and 620 square kilometres (240 sq mi) water.
Iceland is an island country at the confluence of the North Atlantic and Arctic oceans, east of Greenland and immediately south of the Arctic Circle, atop the constructive boundary of the northern Mid-Atlantic Ridge. The island country is the world's 18th largest in area and one of the most sparsely populated. It is the westernmost European country when not including Greenland and has more land covered by glaciers than continental Europe. Its total size is 103,125 km2 (39,817 sq mi) and possesses an exclusive economic zone of 751,345 km2 (290,096 sq mi).
The Coast Mountains are a major mountain range in the Pacific Coast Ranges of western North America, extending from southwestern Yukon through the Alaska Panhandle and virtually all of the Coast of British Columbia south to the Fraser River. The mountain range's name derives from its proximity to the sea coast, and it is often referred to as the Coast Range. The range includes volcanic and non-volcanic mountains and the extensive ice fields of the Pacific and Boundary Ranges, and the northern end of the volcanic system known as the Cascade Volcanoes. The Coast Mountains are part of a larger mountain system called the Pacific Coast Ranges or the Pacific Mountain System, which includes the Cascade Range, the Insular Mountains, the Olympic Mountains, the Oregon Coast Range, the California Coast Ranges, the Saint Elias Mountains and the Chugach Mountains. The Coast Mountains are also part of the American Cordillera—a Spanish term for an extensive chain of mountain ranges—that consists of an almost continuous sequence of mountain ranges that form the western backbone of North America, Central America, South America and Antarctica.
Jeju Province, officially Jeju Special Self-Governing Province, is the southernmost province of South Korea, consisting of eight inhabited and 55 uninhabited islands, including Mara Island, Udo Island, the Chuja Archipelago, and the country's largest island, Jeju Island. The province is located in the Korea Strait, with the Korean Peninsula to the northwest, Japan to the east, and China to the west. The province has two cities: the capital Jeju City, on the northern half of the island and Seogwipo, on the southern half of the island. The island is home to the shield volcano Hallasan, the highest point in South Korea. Jeju and Korean are the official languages of the province, and the vast majority of residents are bilingual.
The geology of Great Britain is renowned for its diversity. As a result of its eventful geological history, Great Britain shows a rich variety of landscapes across the constituent countries of England, Wales and Scotland. Rocks of almost all geological ages are represented at outcrop, from the Archaean onwards.
Temperate rainforests are rainforests with coniferous or broadleaf forests that occur in the temperate zone and receive heavy rain.
The Taebaek Mountains (Korean: 태백산맥) are a mountain range that stretches across North Korea and South Korea. They form the main ridge of the Korean peninsula.
Hallasan (Korean: 한라산) is a shield volcano on Jeju Island in South Korea. Its summit, at 1,947 m (6,388 ft), is the highest point in the country. The area around the mountain is a designated national park, named Hallasan National Park. Hallasan is commonly considered to be one of the three main mountains of South Korea, along with Jirisan and Seoraksan.
Jeju City is the capital of the Jeju Province in South Korea and the largest city on Jeju Island. The city is served by Jeju International Airport.
Jeju Island is South Korea's largest island, covering an area of 1,833.2 km2 (707.8 sq mi), which is 1.83% of the total area of the country. Alongside outlying islands, it is part of Jeju Province and makes up the majority of the province.
The Jeju Volcanic Island and Lava Tubes is a World Heritage Site in South Korea. It was inscribed as one of the UNESCO World Heritage Sites in 2007 because of the Geomunoreum Lava Tube System and the exhibition of diverse and accessible volcanic features which are considered to demonstrate a distinctive and valuable contribution to the understanding of global volcanism.
The geology of England is mainly sedimentary. The youngest rocks are in the south east around London, progressing in age in a north westerly direction. The Tees–Exe line marks the division between younger, softer and low-lying rocks in the south east and the generally older and harder rocks of the north and west which give rise to higher relief in those regions. The geology of England is recognisable in the landscape of its counties, the building materials of its towns and its regional extractive industries.
The Liancourt Rocks, also known by their Korean name of Dokdo or their Japanese name of Takeshima, are a group of islets in the Sea of Japan between the Korean peninsula and the Japanese archipelago administered by South Korea. The Liancourt Rocks comprise two main islets and 35 smaller rocks; the total surface area of the islets is 0.187554 square kilometres and the highest elevation of 168.5 metres (553 ft) is on the West Islet. The Liancourt Rocks lie in rich fishing grounds that may contain large deposits of natural gas. The English name Liancourt Rocks is derived from Le Liancourt, the name of a French whaling ship that came close to being wrecked on the rocks in 1849.
The Southern Korea evergreen forests is a temperate broadleaf and mixed forests ecoregion at the southern end of the Korean Peninsula.
The wildlife of South Korea includes 8,271 plant species, 18,117 animal species and 3,528 species of fungi and others. 30,000 species are known to exist in South Korea, but it is estimated that there are more than 100,000 species.
Primorsky Krai is located in the southern far east, in the south-eastern part of Russia. In the north it borders with Khabarovsk Krai, in the west with the Chinese Provinces of Jilin and Heilongjiang, in the south-west with North Korea and at the south-east with the Sea of Japan. The total length of the borders is 3,000 km and the coastline is 1,500 km. The total area is 165,900 km2 which is 0.97% of the total area of Russia, which makes it 23rd largest federal subject of Russia. The total length of the krai is 900 km and the width is 280 km.