7 Geography Facts Everyone Keeps Getting Wrong
Check these 7 geography facts everyone keeps getting wrong
1 - Mistake: Antarctica has no time zones
It’s a common misconception that the frozen continent at the South Pole had no time zones. But as we know from the science stations located in various parts of the massive ice shelf, there are nine different time zones in use in Antarctica.
2 - Mistake: Russia and Turkey are the only countries on two continents
You might think that Russia and Turkey are the only two countries that lie in two continents. But according to geologists, the Asia-Europe boundary is the Caucasus watershed, which means the border also cuts through Georgia, Azerbaijan, and Kazakhstan.
3 - Mistake: The Statue of Liberty is in New York
If you want to start an argument between New Yorkers and New Jerseyans, bring up this bone of contention. Even though the U.S. Geological Survey has placed Liberty Island in New York’s 8th Congressional District, the island actually resides in New Jersey’s waters, and is much closer to Jersey’s mainland than New York’s.
4 - Mistake: The Nile is the world’s longest river
That’s what it always said in our geography books, so this myth is pretty pervasive. But if you consider, as many studies do, the tributaries, multiple channels of a river, and cutoffs that eliminate longer river bends, the Amazon River beats out the Nile nowadays by a whisker—4,345 miles to 4,258
5 - Mistake: The Mississippi River is the longest in the U.S.
The Mississippi may have Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn. But despite that fiction, the Missouri River has this fact: At 2,341 miles, it is it 139 miles longer than the Mighty Mississippi.
6 - Mistake: Florida is our southernmost state
The Florida Keys are a picturesque haven for tourists who flock to the southernmost geographical marker in Key West. But it’s the southernmost continental point. Hawaii, in fact, reaches down nearly to the 21st latitude, only 1,465 miles from the equator
7 - Mistake: Norway is the northernmost country in the world
Sorry to disappoint all you Norse scholars, but the Kingdom of Norway is only the fourth most northern nation. Russia, Canada, and Greenland all reach closer to the North Pole, with Greenland’s Kaffeklubben Island being the world’s most northern land.
Thanks for sharing the interesting facts, Favcau. I enjoy reading educational facts like these.