Geography of England
By: Emmaline
The Topography of England
England is low in elevation for the most part, but the ground is almost never flat. The east part of England is the flattest part of the country while the north, northwest, and southwest have the highest elevations.
Scaffel Pike
Scaffel Pike is the highest point in England at a height of 978 meters (3,209 feet). Scaffel Pike is located in Lake District National Park Cumbria, England. Scaffel Pike also forms part of the inactive Scaffel volcano. The mountain also holds the highest body of water in England, it is about 820 meters (2,700 feet) high. The mountain also has the deepest body of water in England, Wastwater, is 1609 meters long (3 miles) long, about 804 meters (half a mile) wide, and about 86 meters (258 feet) deep.
Cliffs of Dover
The cliffs of Dover are a natural formation due to mud forming into chalk when England was still under water. The shaping of these cliffs most likely was during the last Ice Age. The cliffs stand over 90 meters (300 feet) high. The cliffs have seen many historic battles and have provided protection for England for centuries. The earliest battle it saw was the attack from the Spanish in 1588. The cliffs are slowly receding due to erosion.
Bodies of Water Bordering England
English Channel
The English channel is located in between France and England and provides the separation of England to Europe. The width of it goes from 180 kilometers (120 miles) to 33 kilometers (21 miles). The depth on average decreases from 133 to 50 meters (400 to 150 feet) likewise. The greatest depth is 172 meters (565 feet) in the Hurd Deep. Earlier names have been Oceanus Britannicus or the British Sea.
North Sea
The North Sea is located between England and Norway. The North Sea covers an area of 570,000 km (220,000 sq miles). It has given many countries the ability to trade or use it as a method to launch invasions in other countries. It has also proved valuable in trade and the development of countries. The North Sea's depth never goes deeper than 90 meters (300 feet). The Norwegion Trench is the deepest part reaching up to 700 meters (2,300 feet) at a time.
Irish Sea
The Irish Sea is the body of water that separates England from Ireland. The Irish Sea's width spans from 240 to 210 km (150 to 130 feet). The total area it covers is 100,000 square kilometers or 40,000 square miles. The Sea's main use is fishing for cod and flatfish or tourism. There are many ports along both countries coastline. The greatest depth in the Irish Sea is 175 meters or 576 feet. In past times the sea was known as Oceanus Hibernicus.
Natural Disasters in England
Tornadoes
England has about 30 tornadoes a year. These tornadoes are usually small and short-lived. If they pass over well populated areas then they can cause structural damages but they don't cause damage most of the time.
Floods
Floods in England are common because they are an island and with global temperatures rising the sea level also rises. Floods occur mostly around springtime when the snow and water are melting. The weather may also come into play when floods happen.
Earthquakes
England is near a tectonic plate so it has had earthquakes but they are mostly low magnitude ones. The tectonic plate is the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. England's last 6.1 magnitude earthquake was in 1931 near the Dogger Bank.
Tsunami
England has never had a real tsunami, it has had meteotsunamis though. Most of them are just large waves though. The most recent meteotsunami was in 2011 in Southern England. The wave was small and the place it struck wasn't that populated so there was no damage.