Prologue: Introducing Earth p. 2
What is Physical Geography All About? p. 7
The Physical Geography of Our Planet p. 7
Scale p. 8
Physical Geography and the Human Habitat p. 8
Our Place in the Sun p. 13
The Shape of the Earth p. 13
Earth Rotation p. 14
The Geographic Grid p. 15
Global Time p. 19
The Earth's Revolution Around the Sun p. 22
The Earth's Global Energy Balance p. 31
Electromagnetic Radiation p. 31
Insolation over the Globe p. 34
World Latitude Zones p. 37
Composition of the Atmosphere p. 38
Sensible Heat and Latent Heat Transfer p. 39
The Global Energy System p. 39
Net Radiation, Latitude, and the Energy Balance p. 44
Air Temperature and Air Temperature Cycles p. 51
Measurement of Air Temperature p. 51
The Daily Cycle of Air Temperature p. 53
Temperature Structure of the Atmosphere p. 56
The Annual Cycle of Air Temperature p. 60
World Patterns of Air Temperature p. 63
Global Warming and the Greenhouse Effect p. 68
Atmospheric Moisture and Precipitation p. 77
Water--The Global Perspective p. 77
The Global Water Balance p. 79
Humidity p. 79
The Adiabatic Process p. 82
Clouds p. 83
Precipitation p. 86
Winds and Global Circulation p. 107
Atmospheric Pressure p. 107
Winds and Pressure Gradients p. 109
Global Wind and Pressure Patterns p. 113
Local Winds p. 118
Winds Aloft p. 119
Ocean Currents p. 122
Poleward Transport of Heat and Moisture p. 128
Weather Systems p. 135
Traveling Cyclones and Anticyclones p. 135
Tropical and Equatorial Weather Systems p. 145
Cloud Cover, Precipitation, and Global Warming p. 150
Global Climates p. 155
Global Precipitation p. 155
Climate Classification p. 157
Low-Latitude Climates p. 163
Midlatitude Climates p. 176
High-Latitude Climates p. 187
Global Ecosystems p. 197
Energy Flow in Ecosystems p. 197
Organisms and Environment p. 200
Natural Vegetation p. 206
Terrestrial Ecosystems--The Biomes p. 208
Global Soils p. 239
The Nature of the Soil p. 239
Soil Development p. 244
The Global Scope of Soils p. 247
Earth Materials p. 267
The Crust and Its Composition p. 267
Igneous Rocks p. 268
Sediments and Sedimentary Rocks p. 273
Metamorphic Rocks p. 280
The Geologic Time Scale p. 282
The Cycle of Rock Change p. 282
The Lithosphere and Plate Tectonics p. 289
The Structure of the Earth p. 289
Major Relief Features of the Earth's Surface p. 291
Plate Tectonics p. 298
Continents of the Past p. 306
Volcanic and Tectonic Landforms p. 315
Landforms p. 315
Volcanic Activity p. 316
Landforms of Tectonic Activity p. 323
Earthquakes p. 328
Weathering and Mass Wasting p. 339
Slopes and Regolith p. 339
Physical Weathering p. 340
Chemical Weathering and Its Landforms p. 345
Mass Wasting p. 347
Induced Mass Wasting p. 351
Fresh Water of the Continents p. 359
Ground Water p. 360
Limestone Solution by Ground Water p. 362
Problems of Ground Water Management p. 365
Surface Water p. 368
Surface Water as a Natural Resource p. 377
Landforms Made by Running Water p. 383
Fluvial Processes and Landforms p. 383
Slope Erosion p. 384
The Work of Streams p. 386
Stream Gradation p. 388
Fluvial Processes in an Arid Climate p. 398
The Landscape of Mountainous Deserts p. 402
Landforms and Rock Structure p. 409
Rock Structure as a Landform Control p. 409
Landforms of Horizontal Strata and Coastal Plains p. 410
Landforms of Warped Rock Layers p. 413
Landforms Developed on Other Landmass Types p. 416
Landforms Made by Waves and Wind p. 429
The Work of Waves p. 429
Tidal Currents p. 435
Types of Coastlines p. 436
Wind Action p. 442
Sand Dunes p. 445
Loess p. 450
Glacial Landforms and the Ice Age p. 457
Glaciers p. 457
Alpine Glaciers p. 458
Ice Sheets of the Present p. 463
Sea Ice and Icebergs p. 464
The Ice Age p. 465
Landforms Made by Ice Sheets p. 467
Investigating the Ice Age p. 470
Holocene Environments p. 472
Epilogue: News from the Future p. 476
Perspective on the News p. 476
Appendices
More About Maps p. 482
Remote Sensing and Geographic Information Systems p. 488
The Canadian System of Soil Classification p. 496
Glossary p. 502
Photo Credits p. 525
Index p. 527
Conversion Factors p. 537
Relief Surface of the Earth p. 538
Topographic Map Symbols p. 540
Science News p. 544
Visualization 2.0 CD-ROM, Getting Started p. 586