natural zoning. Zoning of the earth What is altitudinal zoning

In addition to territorial differentiation in general, the most characteristic structural feature of the geographic envelope of the Earth is a special form of this differentiation - zonality, i.e. a regular change in all geographic components and geographic landscapes in latitude (from the equator to the poles). The main reasons for zoning are the shape of the Earth and the position of the Earth relative to the Sun, and the prerequisite is the incidence of sunlight on the earth's surface at an angle gradually decreasing on both sides of the equator. Without this cosmic prerequisite, there would be no zoning. But it is also obvious that if the Earth were not a ball, but a plane, arbitrarily oriented to the flow of solar rays, the rays would fall on it equally everywhere and, consequently, would heat the plane equally at all its points. There are features on Earth that outwardly resemble latitudinal geographic zoning, for example, the successive change from south to north of the belts of terminal moraines, piled up by the retreating ice sheet. They sometimes talk about the zonality of the relief of Poland, because here from north to south stripes of coastal plains, finite moraine ridges, Orednepol lowlands, uplands on a folded-block base, ancient (Hercynian) mountains (Sudet) and young (tertiary) folded mountains replace each other (Carpathians). They even talk about the zonality of the Earth's megarelief. However, only that which is directly or indirectly caused by a change in the angle of incidence of the sun's rays on the earth's surface, and can be referred to as truly zonal phenomena. What is similar to them, but arises for other reasons, should be called differently.

G.D. Richter, following A.A. Grigoriev, proposes to distinguish between the concepts of zonality and zonation, while subdividing the belts into radiation and thermal. The radiation belt is determined by the amount of incoming solar radiation, which naturally decreases from low to high latitudes.

This is influenced by the shape of the Earth, but does not affect the nature earth's surface, because the boundaries of the radiation belts coincide with the parallels. The formation of thermal belts is controlled not only by solar radiation. Here, the properties of the atmosphere (absorption, reflection, scattering of radiant energy), and the albedo of the earth's surface, and the transfer of heat by sea and air currents are important, as a result of which the boundaries of thermal zones cannot be combined with parallels. As for geographical zones, their essential features are determined by the ratio of heat and moisture. This ratio depends, of course, on the amount of radiation, but also on factors that are only partially related to latitude (the amount of advective heat, the amount of moisture in the form of precipitation and runoff). That is why the zones do not form continuous bands, and their extension along the parallels is rather special case than the general law.

If we summarize the above considerations, then they can be reduced to the thesis: zonality acquires its specific content in special conditions geographic envelope of the earth.

To understand the very principle of zonality, it is rather indifferent whether we call a belt a zone or a zone a belt; these shades have more taxonomic than genetic significance, because the amount of solar radiation equally forms the foundation for the existence of both belts and zones.

Everyone knows that the distribution of solar heat on Earth is uneven due to the spherical shape of the planet. As a result, different natural systems are formed, where in each of them all components are closely connected with each other, and a natural zone is formed, which is found on all continents. If you follow the animal and in the same zones, but on different continents, you can see a certain similarity.

Law of geographic zoning

Scientist V.V. Dokuchaev at one time created the doctrine of natural areas ah, and expressed the idea that each zone is a natural complex where living and inanimate nature are closely interconnected. Later, on this basis of the teaching, the first qualification was created, which was finalized and more specified by another scientist L.S. Berg.

The forms of zoning are different due to the diversity of the composition of the geographic envelope and the influence of two main factors: the energy of the Sun and the energy of the Earth. It is with these factors that natural zoning, which manifests itself in the distribution of the oceans, the diversity of the relief and its structure. As a result, various natural complexes were formed, and the largest of them is the geographical zone, which is close to the climatic zones described by B.P. Alisov).

The following geographic regions are distinguished by two subequatorial, tropical and subtropical, temperate, subpolar and polar (Arctic and Antarctic). subdivided into zones, which are worth talking about more specifically.

What is latitudinal zoning

Natural zones are closely connected with climatic zones, which means that zones, like belts, gradually replace each other, moving from the equator to the poles, where solar heat and changing precipitation. Such a change of large natural complexes is called latitudinal zonality, which manifests itself in all natural zones, regardless of size.

What is altitudinal zoning

The map shows, if you move from north to east, that in each geographical zone there is a geographical zonality, starting from Arctic deserts, moving on to the tundra, then to the forest-tundra, taiga, mixed and broad-leaved forests, forest-steppe and steppes, and, finally, to the desert and subtropics. They stretch from west to east in stripes, but there is another direction.

Many people know that the higher you climb the mountains, the more the ratio of heat and moisture changes towards low temperature and precipitation in solid form, as a result of which the vegetation and animal world. Scientists and geographers gave this direction their name - altitudinal zonality (or zonality), when one zone replaces another, encircling mountains at different heights. At the same time, the change of belts occurs faster than on the plain, one has only to climb 1 km, and there will be another zone. The lowest belt always corresponds to where the mountain is located, and the closer it is to the poles, the fewer these zones can be found at a height.

The law of geographical zoning also works in the mountains. From geographical latitude seasonality, as well as the change of day and night. If the mountain is close to the pole, then you can also meet the polar night and day there, and if the location is near the equator, then the day will always be equal to the night.

ice zone

Natural zonality adjacent to the poles the globe is called ice. Harsh climate where snow and ice lie all year round, and in the warmest month the temperature does not rise above 0°. Snow covers the entire earth, even though the sun shines around the clock for several months, but does not warm it at all.

Under harsh conditions in ice zone few animals live polar bear, penguins, seals, walruses, arctic fox, reindeer), even fewer plants can be found, since the soil-forming process is at the initial stage of development, and mostly unorganized plants (lichen, moss, algae) are found.

tundra zone

cold zone and strong winds where long long winter and short summer, because of which the soil does not have time to warm up, and a layer of perennial frozen soils is formed.

The zoning law works even in the tundra and divides it into three subzones, moving from north to south: arctic tundra, where mainly moss and lichens grow, typical lichen-moss tundra, where shrubs appear in places, is common from Vaigach to Kolyma, and Southern shrub tundra, where vegetation consists of three levels.

Separately, it is worth mentioning the forest-tundra, which stretches in a thin strip and is a transition zone between the tundra and forests.

taiga zone

For Russia, the Taiga is the largest natural area, which extends from western borders to Okhotsk and Seas of Japan. Taiga is two climatic zones, resulting in differences within it.

This natural zoning concentrates a large number of lakes and swamps, and it is here that the great rivers in Russia originate: the Volga, Kama, Lena, Vilyui and others.

The main thing for flora - coniferous forests where larch dominates, spruce, fir, and pine are less common. The fauna is heterogeneous and the eastern part of the taiga is richer than the western.

Forests, forest-steppes and steppes

In the mixed zone, the climate is warmer and wetter, and here one can clearly see latitudinal zonality. Winters are less severe, summers are long and warm, which contributes to the growth of trees such as oak, ash, maple, linden, and hazel. Thanks to complex plant communities this zone has a diverse fauna, and, for example, bison, muskrat, wild boar, wolf, and elk are common on the East European Plain.

Zone mixed forests richer than in conifers, and there are large herbivores and a wide variety of birds. Geographical zonality is distinguished by the density of river reservoirs, some of which do not freeze at all in winter.

The transitional zone between the steppe and the forest is the forest-steppe, where there is an alternation of forest and meadow phytocenoses.

steppe zone

This is another species that describes natural zoning. It differs sharply in climatic conditions from the above-mentioned zones, and the main difference is the lack of water, as a result of which there are no forests and cereal plants and all the various grasses that cover the earth with a continuous carpet predominate. Despite the fact that there is not enough water in this zone, the plants tolerate drought very well, often their leaves are small and can curl up during the heat to prevent evaporation.

The fauna is more diverse: there are ungulates, rodents, predators. In Russia, the steppe is the most developed by man and the main zone of agriculture.

Steppes are found in the Northern and Southern Hemispheres, but gradually they disappear due to plowing, fires, and animal grazing.

Latitudinal and altitudinal zoning is also found in the steppes, so they are divided into several subspecies: mountainous (for example, Caucasian mountains), meadow (typical for Western Siberia), xerophilous, where there are many soddy cereals, and desert (the steppes of Kalmykia became them).

Desert and tropics

Abrupt changes climatic conditions due to the fact that evaporation exceeds many times precipitation (7 times), and the duration of such a period is up to six months. The vegetation of this zone is not rich, and mostly there are grasses, shrubs, and forests can be seen only along the rivers. The animal world is richer and a bit similar to that found in steppe zone: many rodents and reptiles, and ungulates roam in nearby areas.

The Sahara is considered the largest desert, and in general this natural zonality is characteristic of 11% of the entire earth's surface, and if we add to it arctic desert, then 20%. Deserts are found in temperate zone northern hemisphere, as well as in the tropics and subtropics.

There is no unambiguous definition of the tropics, they distinguish geographic zones: tropical, subequatorial and equatorial, where there are forests similar in composition, but with certain differences.

Subdivide all forests into savannas, forest subtropics and their common feature in that the trees are always green, and these zones differ in the duration of dry and rainy periods. In the savannas, the rainy period lasts 8-9 months. Forest subtropics are characteristic of the eastern outskirts of the continents, where there is a change in the dry period of winter and wet summer with monsoon rains. Rainforests are characterized by a high degree of moisture, and precipitation can exceed 2000 mm per year.

« The world» Grade 2 Author: Lemeshko Irina Ivanovna, Secondary School No. 141 Remembering what we know Why is it warmer at the equator than at the pole? The steep (direct) rays of the sun fall there, in contrast to the gentle (oblique) rays in the polar regions. Discovering new knowledge Select real ecosystems from the list (textbook, § 19). Garden Oakwood Swamp Field City What natural ecosystems most common in our area? Climate Central Russia moderately warm and humid. It is suitable for many woody plants. Therefore, forest ecosystems predominate in Central Russia. This natural area is called FOREST. We are going to the south of Russia. In the south of Russia, more warm climate. Spring comes early there. The summer in that region is dry, so the trees cannot grow. In the south of Russia, large areas are occupied by grassy ecosystems - steppes. This is the STEPPE zone. We are going to the north of Russia. The north of Russia is in a colder climate. Spring comes later there, summer is short, cold prevents trees from growing. Treeless ecosystems are TUNDRA. They are covered with snow most of the year. We visited the TUNDRA zone. CONCLUSIONS To the north the climate is colder, and to the south it is warmer. The scenery of nature is also changing. There are no forests in the south and north. Large areas with similar natural conditions, soil, flora and fauna are called natural zones. What natural areas in Russia did you learn about? In the cold belt of Russia there is a natural tundra zone. In the temperate zone of Russia there is a natural forest zone. In the temperate zone of Russia there is a natural steppe zone. The law of natural zonation. In the direction from the pole to the equator, natural zones replace each other in a certain order. This order is the same on all continents. What shape do natural areas have on a map or globe? The climate depends on the distribution of heat and moisture on Earth, so natural zones are in the form of belts. Why are there more natural zones on Earth than belts? Even in one belt, the conditions are diverse: in the temperate zone there is both a forest and a steppe, so there can be several natural zones in one zone. What natural areas did you learn about today? In which one does spring come first? Tundra, forest and steppe zones. In the steppe zone, spring comes earlier. How are natural areas different from ecosystems? The main difference is the size. Several ecosystems can exist in a natural area. Living and non-living nature is the same. Work on the map: determine in which belt the natural zones are located. Zone Belt Tundra cold Forest temperate Steppe temperate Climate cold humid moderate humid moderate dry What do trees lack in the tundra? In the steppe? In the tundra - there is not enough heat, in the steppe - moisture. Sources of information: 1. Texts, assignments and illustrations from the textbook for the 2nd grade “The world around. Our planet Earth” A.A. Vakhrusheva, O.V. Bursky, A.S. Rautiana. 2. Tasks from methodological recommendations for the teacher on the course "The world around" for the 2nd grade A.A. Vakhrusheva, E.A. Samoilova, O.V. Chikhanova.

A region in a broad sense, as already noted, is a complex territorial complex, which is delimited by specific homogeneity. various conditions, including natural, geographical. This means that there is a regional differentiation of nature. The processes of spatial differentiation of the natural environment are greatly influenced by such a phenomenon as zonality and azonality of the geographic envelope of the Earth.

According to modern concepts, geographical zonality means a regular change in physical and geographical processes, complexes, components as you move from the equator to the poles. That is, zonality on land is a successive change of geographical zones from the equator to the poles and a regular distribution of natural zones within these zones (equatorial, subequatorial, tropical, subtropical, temperate, subarctic and subantarctic).

The reasons for zoning are the shape of the Earth and its position relative to the Sun. The zonal distribution of radiant energy determines the zoning of temperatures, evaporation and cloudiness, salinity of the surface layers sea ​​water, the level of its saturation with gases, climates, processes of weathering and soil formation, flora and fauna, water networks, etc. Thus, the most important factors determining geographic zoning are the uneven distribution of solar radiation over latitudes and climate.

Geographic zoning is most clearly expressed on the plains, since it is when moving along them from north to south that climate change is observed.

Zoning is also manifested in the World Ocean, and not only in the surface layers, but also on the ocean floor.

The doctrine of geographical (natural) zonality is perhaps the most developed in geographical science. This is due to the fact that it reflects the earliest patterns discovered by geographers, and the fact that this theory forms the core of physical geography.

It is known that the hypothesis of latitudinal thermal zones arose in ancient times. But it began to turn into a scientific direction only at the end of the 18th century, when naturalists became participants in circumnavigations around the world. Then, in the 19th century, a great contribution to the development of this doctrine was made by A. Humboldt, who traced the zonality of flora and fauna in connection with climate and discovered the phenomenon of altitudinal zonality.

However, the doctrine of geographical zones in its modern form originated only at the turn of the XIX-XX centuries. as a result of research by V.V. Dokuchaev. He is admittedly the founder of the theory of geographic zoning.

V.V. Dokuchaev substantiated zonality as a universal law of nature, manifesting itself equally on land, sea, and mountains.

He came to understand this law from the study of soils. His classic work "Russian Chernozem" (1883) laid the foundations of genetic soil science. Considering soils as a “mirror of the landscape”, V.V. Dokuchaev, when distinguishing natural zones, named the soils characteristic of them.

Each zone, according to the scientist, is a complex formation, all components of which (climate, water, soil, soil, flora and fauna) are closely interconnected.

L.S. Berg, A.A. Grigoriev, M.I. Budyko, S.V. Kalesnik, K.K. Markov, A.G. Isachenko and others.

The total number of zones is defined in different ways. V.V. Dokuchaev singled out 7 zones. L.S. Berg in the middle of the 20th century. already 12, A.G. Isachenko - 17. In modern physical and geographical atlases of the world, their number, taking into account subzones, sometimes exceeds 50. As a rule, this is not a consequence of any errors, but the result of a passion for too detailed classifications.

Regardless of the degree of fragmentation, the following natural zones are represented in all options: arctic and subarctic deserts, tundra, forest-tundra, temperate forests, taiga, mixed forests temperate zone, broadleaf forests temperate climate, steppes, semi-steppes and deserts of the temperate zone, deserts and semi-deserts of the subtropical and tropical zones, monsoon forests of the subtropical forest, forests of the tropical and subequatorial zones, savanna, humid equatorial forests.

Natural (landscape) zones are not ideally correct areas that coincide with certain parallels (nature is not mathematics). They do not cover our planet with continuous stripes, they are often open.

In addition to zonal patterns, azonal patterns were also revealed. An example of it is the altitudinal zonality (vertical zonality), which depends on the height of the land and changes in the heat balance with height.

In the mountains, a regular change in natural conditions and natural-territorial complexes is called altitudinal zonality. It is also explained mainly by climate change with height: for 1 km of ascent, the air temperature drops by 6 degrees C, air pressure and dust content decrease, cloudiness and precipitation increase. A unified system of altitudinal belts is being formed. The higher the mountains, the more fully expressed altitudinal zonality. The landscapes of altitudinal zonation are basically similar to the landscapes of natural zones on the plains and follow each other in the same order, with the same belt located the higher, the closer the mountain system is to the equator.

There is no complete similarity between natural zones on the plains and vertical zonality, since landscape complexes change vertically at a different pace than horizontally, and often in a completely different direction.

In recent years, as the humanization and sociologization of geography geographical areas are increasingly being referred to as natural-anthropogenic geographic zones. The doctrine of geographic zoning is of great importance for regional studies and country studies analysis. First of all, it allows you to reveal the natural prerequisites for specialization and management. And in the conditions of modern scientific and technological revolution, with a partial weakening of the dependence of the economy on natural conditions and natural resources, its close ties with nature, and in some cases even dependence on it, continue to be preserved. The remaining important role of the natural component in the development and functioning of society, in its territorial organization is also obvious. Differences in the spiritual culture of the population also cannot be understood without referring to natural regionalization. It also forms the skills of adapting a person to the territory, determines the nature of nature management.

Geographic zonality actively influences regional differences in the life of society, being an important factor in zoning, and, consequently, in regional policy.

The doctrine of geographic zonality provides a wealth of material for country and regional comparisons and thus contributes to the clarification of country and regional specifics, its causes, which, ultimately, is the main task of regional studies and country studies. So, for example, the taiga zone in the form of a plume crosses the territories of Russia, Canada, and Fennoscandia. But the degree of population, economic development, living conditions in the taiga zones of the countries listed above have significant differences. In regional studies, country studies analysis, neither the question of the nature of these differences, nor the question of their sources can be ignored.

In a word, the task of regional studies and country studies analysis is not only to characterize the features of the natural component of a particular territory ( theoretical basis it is the doctrine of geographical zonality), but also the identification of the nature of the relationship between natural regionalism and the regionalization of the world according to economic, geopolitical, cultural, civilizational, etc. grounds.