Landforms 1
Islands
A piece of land completely surrounded by water
Peninsula
A large piece of land surrounded by water on three sides.
A large landform that is higher than the surrounding land. A continuous chain of this land form is called a range
Mountains
a long basin in the land, can be V or U shaped
Valley
An area of the sea surrounded by land on three sides. It forms the shape of an arc. A bay is similar but smaller
Gulf
An area of land lower than the surrounding area. Sometimes formed from the erosive action of a river. In other cases, they are the result of shifting tectonic plates
Basin or Depression
Part of the land that projects out into the sea.
Cape
A large open area of flat or slightly undulating land.
Plain
A large underwater mountain range
Oceanic Ridge
A thin channel of water that goes inland from the sea. Some are created by glaciation and are called fjords and are usually found on mountainous coastlines.
Inlet
A flat area of land at an altitude above sea level.
Plateau
Part of the land that projects out into the sea.
Continental slope
A long basin on the ocean floor that often reaches depths of 6 000 metres, and sometimes 11 000 metres.
Oceanic Trench
undersea extension of a continent that descends gradually to depths of around 400 metres. They can extend for many kilometres out to sea
Continental shelf
A flat area of ocean floor, found at depths of between 3 000 and 7 000 metres.
Abyssal Plain