Geography Terms
This is the exact position of a place on Earth, given as an address or coordinates
Absolute Location
What is the name of the large area of the U.S., including Texas, known for its warm climate that attracted many new residents?
Sunbelt
What word describes an increase in people living or working in cities?
Urbanization
These resources are easily replaced by Earth’s natural processes
Renewable resources — sunshine and wind (also trees)
What is the difference between climate and a weather forecast? Give a short definition for each.
Climate — an area’s pattern of weather over a long period of time. Weather forecast — a short-term scientific prediction of atmospheric conditions (temperature, rain, wind, humidity) for a specific place and time.
Tributary
A smaller stream or river that flows into a larger one
The Dallas–Fort Worth area is often called this, because its culture is shaped by the nearness of two large cities.
Metroplex
In 2010 more than 9.4 million people from this broad ethnic group lived in Texas, making up over 37% of the state population. Name the group.
Hispanics
What is the Caprock?
a hard bed of rock below the soil
What is a habitat?
an organism’s environmental home
Define “demography.”
a branch of geography that studies human populations
The High Plains and the Edwards Plateau
Two subregions of the Great Plains
Describe Population
Term for the number of people living in a region
Explain why the Ogallala Aquifer is important for agriculture.
The Ogallala Aquifer is the largest underground water source in North America and provides water used mainly for irrigation, supporting farming across multiple states.
Explain why barrier islands along the Gulf Coast matter for the mainland (one sentence).
Barrier islands protect the mainland from direct storm waves and help form shallow bays that buffer the coast.
Extinct
To die out completely
Which Texas subregion is covered by pine forests, has rolling hills, and is one of the wettest subregions?
The Piney Woods
Explain why local ranches in the Mountains and Basins region must be large.
Desert grasses and plants are sparse, so ranches must cover large areas to provide enough food for cattle, sheep, and goats
Name a renewable energy resource Texas leads the country in producing.
Wind energy
How much of the Ogallala Aquifer’s pumped water is used for irrigation.
Almost 96 percent
Name the slow-moving, swampy section of a river or lake often found in low, marshy areas.
Bayou
Describe the landscape and one key feature of the Gulf Coast Plain.
Gulf Coast Plain — low, flat land along the Gulf of Mexico with a chain of barrier islands and shallow bays separating islands from the mainland
Define “urbanization” and give one reason why the Sunbelt has experienced
Urbanization — an increase in people living or working in cities. Reason: The warm climate of the Sunbelt has attracted new residents (and economic opportunities), causing urban growth.
What makes the Blackland Prairie especially good for farming? Give at least one reason.
The Blackland Prairie has rich black soils that are fertile and ideal for farming (and rolling prairies suitable for crops like cotton)
Give two physical features used to define a natural region.
ypes of climate and landforms (also plant life and soil)