Geography and the Attributes of Places
Geography provides for the comparison of diverse locations of the world, increasing one's understanding of their environment. The place, which relates to the physical and human features of a region, is one of the geographical attributes that allow comprehension of distinct areas (World Atlas, 2016). Furthermore, each region has a distinct set of physical qualities that separates it from other places, and these characteristics play an important role in the activities that take place in the region (World Atlas, 2016).
Physical Characteristics of Russia and Europe
Similarly, an examination of Russia's physical characteristics reveals a plethora of variations from the parts of Europe mentioned in this study paper. Both Russia and Europe form part of the Eurasia, which consists of Asia and some portions of Europe. However, it is the Russian state that has some of its parts overlapping into the Asian continent while Europe is entirely on the European continent and the latter consists of 47 states, which are small in sizes (NGS, n.d). On the other hand, Russia is large, and scientists perceive it as the greatest country in the world. In particular, Russia extends into the Asian continents to cover the Ural Mountain, which is the border between Asia and Europe. According to NGS (n.d), the eastern edge of Europe comprises of the Ural Mountains and the European plains. The east of Ural Mountains is the Russia's Asian part, and the region is famous as the Siberian plains. The Siberian steppe is one of the largest plains in the world but has little population size because of the harsh climatic conditions that are unfavorable for human survival (Blinnikov, 2011).
River Systems and their Differences
An examination of the river systems also shows a set of differences between Europe and Russia. In particular, one of Europe's rivers is the Rhine River which originates from the melting glaciers in Switzerland and empties its waters in the North Sea thus serving as a major highway in Europe. Russia, on the other hand, has river Volga which empties its waters into the Caspian Sea. Unlike Europe's Rhine River, the Russia's Volga River is not navigable because it freezes thrice in a year thereby inhibiting transport activities. Blinnikov (2011) opines that Russia lies in the Arctic Ocean, but its western parts share the northern tundra with Europe. According to Ostergren and Le (2011), much of Europe is farther north in comparison to the location of United States, but Russia's land mass is more in the northern regions compared to other parts of the European nations.
Relative Locations of Russia and Europe
Scholars argue that the attributes of an area aid in the determination of the place's relative location, which refers to the aspects that a given region possesses in comparison to other parts of the world (World Atlas, 2016). Similarly, the physical attributes of Russia and Europe significantly impact on their relative locations with each other and the rest of the world. In particular, the site of Russia in the Arctic Ocean plays a crucial role in relating it to Europe and the rest of the world. Besides, the position of Russia and Europe in the Eurasia landmass is pivotal in their comparison to other regions in the world. Finally, the rivers Volga and Rhine which are in Russia and Europe respectively play a critical role in the determination of relative locations of the landmasses mentioned above. Therefore, the analysis of Europe and Russia show a myriad of different physical attributes which play a crucial role in their relative locations to one another and the rest of the world.
References
Blinnikov, M. S. (2011). Geography of Russia and its neighbors. New York: Guilford Press.
National Geography Society, NGS. (n.d).Unit 4: Europe-Why It Is Important. Retrieved from http://pacificschoolserver.org/content/_public/Environment/Geography/History%20and% 20Social%20Science/EuropeTextbook.pdf
Ostergren, R. C., & Le, B. M. (2011). The Europeans: Geography of people, culture, and environment. New York: Guilford Press.
World Atlas. (2016, June 21). The Five Themes in Geography. Retrieved from http://www.worldatlas.com/the-five-themes-in-geography.html accessed May 22, 2017
