North America occupies the northern portion of the landmass generally referred to the Americas. Mainland North America is shaped roughly like a triangle, with its base in the north and apex in the south. The largest island associated with the continent island is Greenland, and such offshore groups as the Arctic Archipelago, the Bahamas, the Greater and Lesser Antilles, the Queen Charlotte Islands, and the Aleutian Islands.

   North America is bounded on the north by the Arctic Ocean, on the east by the North Atlantic Ocean, on the south by the Caribbean Sea and is connected, to South America at the narrow Isthmus of Panamá. On the west North America is bounded by the North Pacific Ocean and to the north-west is separated from the Asian mainland by the much narrower Bering Strait.

   North America is third in size among the world's continents, lying for the most part between the Arctic Circle and the Tropic of Cancer. It extends for more than 5,000 miles (8,000 kilometres) to within 500 miles of both the North Pole and the Equator and has an east-west extent of 5,000 miles. It covers an area of 9,355,000 square miles (24,230,000 square kilometres).

   To the south-east of this continent rises the ancient Appalachian Mountains and to the west there is the younger and considerably taller Cordilleras, which occupy nearly a third of the continent's land area. In between these two mountain belts are the generally flat regions of the Great Plains in the west and the Central Lowlands in the east. The continent's average elevation is about 2,200 feet (720 m).

   Differing continental climatic regions reflect the considerable amount of Arctic land, the great spread of temperate conditions, and the small but significant tropical area.

Geographic Map

Area: 24.228.917 Km˛
Population: 489.939.000
Density: 20 pop/Km˛

Major City: New York (21.200.000 pop.)
Highest Mountain: Mount McKinley 6194 m
Longest River: Mississipi-Missouri-Red Rock 5970 Km
Largest Lake: Lake Superior 82.100 Km˛
Largest Island: Greenland 2.130.800 Km˛


Countries and Territories

Principal Mountains
Principal Islands
Principal Rivers
Principal Lakes

Major Cities
Order of Area, Population, Density
Demographic Statistics