Most of the state of Florida is located on a peninsula between the Gulf of Mexico, the Atlantic Ocean, and the Florida Strait. Spanning two time zones, it extends to the northwest to poke along the northern Gulf of Mexico. It is bordered to the north by the states of Georgia and Alabama, and to the west, at the end of the stretch, by Alabama. It's near the Bahamas and some Caribbean countries, especially Cuba. Florida has 131 public airports, and over 700 private airports, airstrips, heliports, and seaplane bases. Florida is one of the largest states east of the Mississippi River, and only Alaska and Michigan are larger in water territory.
Video Geography of Florida
History
The vast Florida coastline made it a perceived target during World War II, so the government built a statewide airstrip; Today, about 400 airports are still operating.
Maps Geography of Florida
Terrain
At 345 feet (105 m) above sea level on average, Britton Hill in north Walton County is the highest point in Florida and the lowest point of any US state. Most of Orlando's southern states are low and fairly flat; However, some places, such as Clearwater, have views that rise 50 to 100 feet (15 to 30 m) above the water. Most of Central and North Florida, usually 25 miles (40 km) or farther from the coastline, have hills ranging in height from 100 to 250 feet (30 to 76 m). The highest point on the Florida peninsula, Sugarloaf Mountain, is the 312-foot peak (95 m) in Lake County. Most of Florida has a height of less than 12 feet (3.7 m), including many populated areas such as Miami located on the coast. Miami and other parts of southern Florida are the most vulnerable regions in the world for rising sea levels linked to climate change. Due to the enormous amount of limestone Florida possesses above, the water is allowed to move relatively freely under dry land and rises to the surface. Water is also likely to stretch from the Atlantic Coast and Gulf Coast, and through the Everglades, endangering plant biomass in the swamp community. Boundary
The country line begins in the Atlantic Ocean, travels west, south, and north to thalweg of the Saint Mary River. At the origin of the river, then follow the straight line almost to the west and slightly to the north, to the point where the confluence of the Flint River (from Georgia) and the Chattahoochee River (down the Alabama/Georgia line) is used to form the Florida River Apalachicola. (Since Woodruff Dam was built, this point has been under Lake Seminole.) The border with Georgia continues north through the lake for short distances to the former thalweg of Chattahoochee, then with Alabama walking west along 31 Â ° N to Perdido River, south along thalweg to the bay via Perdido Bay. Most countries are at or near sea level. Fogida is also 65,755 square miles.
Climate
The Florida climate is influenced by the fact that no part of the country is very far from the ocean. To the north of Lake Okeechobee, the climate is typically temperate subtropical, while the southern coastal areas of the lake (including the Florida Keys) have a true tropical climate. Means high temperatures for late July especially at 90 degrees Fahrenheit low (32-34 Â ° C). Mean low temperatures for early to mid-January range from low 40s Fahrenheit (4-7Ã, Â ° C) in northern Florida to mid 50s (13 13Ã, Â ° C) in southern Florida.
In summer, high temperatures in states rarely exceed 100Ã,  ° F (38Ã,  ° C). During the late fall and winter, Florida has experienced an occasional cold front that can bring strong winds and relatively cooler temperatures to the rest of the state, with high temperatures that can stay in the 40s and 50s (4 to 15  ° C) and lowest in the 20s and 30s (-7 to 4  ° C). Some of the cold maxima records have been in 30s  ° F (-1 to 4  ° C) and record lows have been in the 10s (-12 to -7  ° C). This temperature usually extends at most a few days at a time in northern and central Florida. South Florida, however, rarely finds temperatures well below freezing.
The hottest temperature ever recorded in Florida is 109Ã, Â ° F (43Ã, Â ° C), set on June 29, 1931 in Monticello. The coldest temperature was -2 Â ° F (-19 Â ° C), on February 13, 1899, just 25 miles (40 km) away, in Tallahassee.
USDA Plant resistance zone for the country range from zone 8a (not colder than 10 ° F (-12 ° C)) in Crestview to zone 10b (not colder than 35 ° F (2 ° C)) at Southeast Florida.
During El Nino there is greater rainfall between November and March. At the end of El Nino in 1998 480 fires occurred.
The season in Florida is more determined by rainfall than temperature, with hot springs, wet and summer that make up the rainy season, and cool to cold, and the winters and dry, dry season make the drought dry. Falling foliage appears in Central and North Florida starting around late November, and being winter.
The Florida Keys, as they are completely surrounded by water, have a lower variability in temperature. In Key West, temperatures rarely exceed 95Ã, Â ° F (35Ã, Â ° C) in summer or fall below 55Ã, Â ° F (13Ã, Â ° C) in winter, and frost is never reported in Keys.
Bad weather
The Florida nickname is "Sunshine State", but bad weather is a regular occurrence in the state. Central Florida is known as the lightning capital of the United States, having experienced more lightning strikes than anywhere else in the country. Florida has the highest average rainfall in any state, largely because the afternoon lightning storms often occur in most states from spring to early fall. A fair day can be disturbed by a storm, only to return to sunlight an hour or more later. This lightning storm, caused by a land crash from the humid air mass of the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic Ocean, appears in the afternoon and can bring heavy rain, strong winds, and sometimes, tornadoes. Florida leads the United States in tornadoes per square mile (when including waterspouts), but they usually do not reach their intensity in the Midwest and Great Plains. Hail often accompanies the most severe storms.
The narrow east of the country including Orlando and Jacksonville receives between 2,400 and 2,800 hours of sunshine each year. Other states, including Miami, receive between 2,800 and 3,200 hours per year.
Snow in Florida is a rare occurrence, especially on the peninsula. During the Great Blizzard of 1899, Florida experienced blizzard conditions; the Tampa Bay area has a "snow-effect" of snow, similar to lake-effect snow in the Great Lakes region. During 1899 the snow storm was the only time the temperature in Florida was known to have fallen below 0 degrees Fahrenheit (-18 Â ° C). The most extensive snowfall in Florida's history occurred on January 19, 1977, when it snowed in most states, flooding to the south like Homestead. Snow flurries also crashed in Miami Beach for the only time in recorded history. A violent freeze in 2003 brought "snowfall" to the Atlantic coast as far south as Cape Canaveral. Superstorm 1993 brought the conditions of a snowstorm to the surface, while heavy rains and tornadoes struck the peninsula. This storm is believed to have similar compositions to storms, some of the Gulf coast areas even seeing a storm surge of six feet or more. Recently, trails of snow and hail fell in central and southern Florida during a violent freezing event in January 2010. There is little accumulation in the north of the I-4 corridor, mostly in the form of hail.
Hurricanes
The storm poses a severe threat during the hurricane season, which runs from June 1 to November 30, although some storms have been known to form in the off-season. Florida is the most storm-prone US state, with subtropical or tropical water on long coastlines. From 1851 to 2006, Florida has been hit by 114 storms, 37 of which are the main categories 3 and above. Very rarely the hurricane season passes without any impact in the state at least by tropical storms. For storms, category 4 or higher, 83% have hit Florida or Texas. August to October is the most probable period for hurricanes in Florida.
In 2004, Florida was hit by a record of four storms. Hurricanes Charley (Aug. 13), Frances (Sept. 4-5), Ivan (16 September), and Jeanne (September 25-26) cumulatively weighed on the country's $ 42 billion economy. In addition, four storms caused damage of about $ 45 billion. In 2005, Hurricane Dennis (July 10) became the fifth storm to attack Florida within eleven months. Later, Hurricane Katrina (25 August) passes through South Florida and Hurricane Rita (Sept. 20) sweeps the Florida Keys. Hurricane Wilma (October 24) made a landing near Cape Romano, just south of Marco Island, completing another very active storm season. Wilma is the second most expensive storm in Florida's history, partly because of the five-year window for filing claims.
Florida is the second most expensive weather disaster site in US history, Hurricane Andrew, which caused more damage than 25 billion US dollars when it occurred on August 24, 1992. In the long list of famous storm strikes are Miami storm 1926, 1928 Okeechobee hurricane, Hurricane Labor Day 1935, Hurricane Donna in 1960, and Hurricane Opal in 1995. The 2005 US government report shows that the storm is part of the natural cycle and not the result of global warming, but the report has been criticized for being politicized.
Florida Animals
Florida is host to many types of wildlife including:
- Marine mammals: bottle nose dolphins, short-finned pilot whales, North Atlantic whales, Indian West manatees
- Reptiles: crocodiles and American crocodiles, east diamondbacks, and poisonous snakes, gopher turtles, green turtles and starfruit, east indigo snakes
- Mammals: Florida panther, northern river otters, mink, eastern cottontail rabbit, rabbit bunny, raccoon, striped skunk, squirrel, white-tailed deer, Key deer, bobcats, gray fox, coyote, wild boar, Florida black bear , nine banded armadillos
- Birds: bald eagles, northern ceremonies, snail kites, osprey, white and brown pelicans, sea gulls, whooping cranes and sandhill, spoonbill rides, Florida scrub jay (country endemic), and others. A subspecies of wild turkey, Meleagris gallopavo , ie subspecies osceola , is only found in the state of Florida. This state is the winter location for many species of eastern North American birds.
- Invertebrates: carpenter, termite, and American cockroach.
The only known calving area for the northern whale is off the coast of Florida and Georgia.
Since unintentional imports from South America to North America in the 1930s, the red-imported fire ant population has increased its territorial reach to cover much of South America, including Florida. They are more aggressive than the original ant species and have a painful sting.
A number of non-native snakes have been released in the wild. In 2010, the country created a hunting season for Burmese and Indian pythons, African rock snakes, green anaconda, and Nile monitor lizards.
Geology
The Florida peninsula is a highland of karst limestone located above the bedrock known as the Florida Platform. The emerging part of the platform created during the Eocene to Oligocene as Trough Bay is filled with mud, clay, and sand. Flora and fauna began to appear during Miocene. No land animals were present in Florida before the Miocene.
The largest deposit of potassium in the country is found in Florida.
Underwater cave systems, drain holes, and springs are found throughout the state and supply most of the water used by residents. The limestone is topped by sandy soil that has been kept as an ancient beach for millions of years as global sea levels rise and fall. During the last glacial period, lower sea levels and drier climates reveal a much wider peninsula, mostly savanna. The Everglades, a vast and sluggish river, covering the southern tip of the peninsula.
While there are drain holes in many states, modern sinkholes tend to be in West-Central Florida.
Florida is bound for last place (with North Dakota) as having the fewest earthquakes from the US state. Since Florida is not located near the boundary of the tectonic plate, earthquakes are very rare, but not entirely unknown. In January 1879, a surprise occurred near St. Augustine. There were reports of severe shocks that hit plaster from walls and items from the shelves. Similar effects were recorded in Daytona Beach 50 miles (80 km) south. The vibrations are felt in the south as far as Tampa and as far north as Savannah, Georgia. In January 1880, Cuba was the center of two powerful earthquakes that sent a severe shock wave through the city of Key West, Florida. (See List of earthquakes in Cuba) Another earthquake centered outside Florida was the 1886 earthquake in Charleston. The surprise was felt throughout northern Florida, ringing church bells at St. Augustine and deeply rocked other cities along the eastern coast of Florida. The inhabitants of Jacksonville felt many strong aftershocks that occurred in September, October, and November 1886. Recently in 2006, a magnitude 6.0 quake centered about 260 miles (420 km) southwest of Tampa in the Gulf of Mexico sent shockwaves through the west power and central Florida. The quake was too small to trigger a tsunami and no damage was reported.
See also
- List of districts in Florida
- List of Florida country parks
- Florida bay list
References
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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