Geography

The Sahara is the largest hot desert on Earth, stretching across much of northern Africa.

Antarctica holds most of the world's fresh water, though it is locked away in ice.

Mount Everest rises higher above sea level than any other mountain on the planet.

The Amazon River carries more water into the ocean than any other river.

Australia is the only country that occupies an entire continent by itself.

Russia covers eleven time zones, more than any other country on Earth.

The Dead Sea sits beside the lowest exposed land on the planet.

Vatican City is the smallest country in the world by both area and population.

Canada contains more lakes than any other country, according to most estimates.

The Nile is often called the longest river, though its true length is disputed.

Iceland sits on a ridge where two tectonic plates are slowly pulling apart.

Madagascar separated from the African mainland long ago, leaving its animals to evolve alone.

The Great Barrier Reef is the largest living structure on Earth, built by tiny coral animals.

Mount Kilimanjaro is a dormant volcano that rises alone above the plains of Tanzania.

The equator crosses more than a dozen countries spread across three continents.

Lake Baikal is the deepest lake on Earth and holds very ancient water.

Greenland is the largest island in the world, though ice covers most of it.

Nepal has no coastline, yet it holds some of the tallest mountains on Earth.

Panama connects the two American continents while separating two great oceans, the Atlantic and Pacific.

The Danube flows through more countries than any other river in Europe.

Death Valley has recorded some of the hottest air temperatures ever measured on Earth.

South Africa has three capitals, each serving a different branch of government.

The Atacama Desert is among the driest places on Earth, with some spots almost rainless.

Istanbul is a city with districts on two different continents, Europe and Asia.

Bhutan is one of the few countries that was never colonized by an outside power.

The Mariana Trench contains the deepest known point in the ocean floor.

Chile stretches so far north to south that its climate ranges from desert to glaciers.

Quito sits very close to the equator, yet its altitude keeps the air mild.

Paraguay is landlocked, but it still maintains a navy that patrols its rivers.

The Caspian Sea is often called the world's largest lake because it has no outlet.

Norway's coastline is so deeply cut by fjords that its full length is extraordinary.

Singapore sits just over one degree north of the equator, keeping it hot and humid.

The Andes is the longest mountain range on land, running down western South America.

Monaco is the second smallest country, packed onto a narrow strip of coast.

Ethiopia uses a calendar that runs several years behind the one most countries follow.

The Gobi Desert spreads across parts of China and Mongolia, far inland from any ocean.

Hawaii is one of the most isolated island groups on Earth, far from any mainland.

The Black Sea is so deep in places that its lower waters hold almost no oxygen.

Lake Superior is the largest freshwater lake by surface area in the world.

Mount Fuji is a symmetrical volcano that has become a symbol of Japan.

Kenya sits on the equator, yet a few of its highest peaks still carry snow.

The Rocky Mountains run from Canada down through the western United States.

Uzbekistan and Liechtenstein are both surrounded entirely by other landlocked countries, a rare situation.

Angel Falls drops from a cliff in Venezuela, making it one of the tallest waterfalls.

The Strait of Gibraltar separates Europe from Africa by only a few kilometres of water.

Bangkok has a ceremonial name so long that almost no one uses it in full.

The Amazon rainforest spreads across several countries, though most of it lies in Brazil.

Deserts cover roughly a fifth of the Earth's land, and they exist on every continent.

Mountains appear on every continent, including ranges hidden beneath the Antarctic ice.

Rivers rarely run straight, because erosion constantly bends their channels into curves.

Cartographers usually put north at the top of maps, but that is only a convention.

Medieval mapmakers sometimes drew sea monsters in unknown regions as a warning to sailors.