Know Your Continents — Asia

The word ‘continent’ is used to differentiate between various large land areas of Earth into which all the land surface of the planet is divided. All continents of the Earth together make up about one-third of the total surface of the planet. The fact is, more than two-thirds of the Earth's surface is covered by water. The landmasses of the Earth are unequally distributed, two-thirds of the continental landmass is located in the Northern Hemisphere (the upper half of the globe, north of the equator). This might be just a feature of our current point in geological time because some million years ago, the bulk of the planet's landmass was in the Southern Hemisphere.

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ASIA: The biggest continent

Asia is the largest continent of our planet, both in size and also when we consider the population. The Asian continent includes 48 countries, that are members of the United Nations. The continent is located mainly in the eastern hemisphere and in the northern hemisphere.

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Geographical significance

• Asia is located primarily in the Eastern and Northern Hemispheres. The Equator, Tropic of Cancer and Arctic Circle passes through it. It is separated from Africa by the Red Sea and Suez Canal.
• 14 of the tallest mountains in the world can be found in Asia, and they are all over 8000 meters above the sea.
• It is separated from North America by Berling Strait.
• Arabian Peninsula is the largest Peninsula in the World. The deepest trench of the world: Mariana Trench lies in the Pacific Ocean near Philippines.
• Pamir Plateau is known as 'Roof of the World' situated in the Central Asia.

Let’s see how well you know your continent

1. The highest point in Asia is:

A. Mt Kangchenjunga        B. Mt Kula Kangri

C. Mt Everest                     D. Mt K2

2. Which is the largest country in Asia?

A. China                             B. India

C. Russia                           D. Saudi Arabia

3. Name the largest island in Asia?

A. Honshu                          B. Borneo

C. Sumatra                         D. Hokkaido

4. Which country is the southernmost in Asia?

A. Indonesia                       B. Thailand

C. Myanmar                       D. Malaysia

5. Which of these is an island nation in Asia?

A. Sri Lanka                        B. Cuba

C. Madagascar                   D. New Zealand

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Answers 1. C | 2. A | 3. B | 4. A | 5. A