Geography

Geography is the scientific study of the locational variations of both the physical and the human aspects of the Earth. The word derives from the Greek γη or γαια ("Earth") and γραφειν ("to describe"). Physical geography focuses on Earth science (and is so sometimes called Earth System Science). It provides an understanding of the physical, meteorological and ecological patterns of the Earth. Human geography includes economic, political and cultural geography and focuses on the social science or the non-physical aspects of the world. It examines how human beings adapt themselves to the land and how they impact the physical world.

Geographers not only study the human and natural features of the Earth but also its place in the Solar System and Universe.

A fjord is normally a glacially overdeepened valley, usually narrow and steep-sided, extending below sea level and filled with salt water. A fjord is shaped when a glacier retreats after carving its typical U-shaped valley and the sea fills the resulting valley floor. This forms a narrow, steeply sided inlet (sometimes as deep as 1401m) connected to the sea. This shallow threshold and the protection afforded by the valley's sides generally means that fjords are excellent natural harbours. Consequently fjords often provide a home-port to fishing fleets and, in industrialised locations, have come to be used for fish farming and shipbuilding.

Other articles of interest; Development geography, Weathering, Demographic transition, Tectonic plate.