EARTH’S EXTREMES (PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY)
Highest Points on each Continent
Continent Highest Point
AsiaMt. Everest, China-Nepal (Mountain Range: Himalayas)
AfricaMt. Kilimanjaro, Tanzania (Mountain Range: Pare Mountains)
North AmericaMt. Mckinley, Alaska, US (Mountain Range: Alaska Range)
South AmericaMt. Aconcagua, Argentina (Mountain Range: Andes)
AntarcticaVinson Massif (Mountain Range: Sentinel Range of the Ellsworth Mts.)
EuropeMt. Elbrus, Russia (Mountain Range: Caucasus Mts.)
AustraliaMt. Kosciuszko (Mountain Range: Snowy Mts. of the Great Dividing Range)
OceaniaMt. Wilhelm, Papua New Guinea (Mountain Range: Bismarck Range)
 
Highest Points
Mountain Peak Height
Mount Everest29,035 feet/8850 meters. Highest point above sea level. Summit located in Nepal.
Mount Kilimanjaro19340 feet/5895 meters. An active volcano. Highest point: Uhuru peak on Kibo volcano. Kibo, Mawenzi, and Shira volcanoes make up the mountain.
Mount McKinley6,194 metres/20,320 feet. Also known as Denali. Largest mountain above sea level.
Mount Aconcagua6,959 metres /22,831 feet. Highest mountain in the Americas and the Southern Hemisphere.
Vinson Massif4,897 metres/16,077 feet. Near Ronne Ice Shelf, the highest peak near the South Pole.
Mount Elbrus5,642 meters/18,506 feet. Also known as Strobilus. Highest mountain in the Caucasus.
Mount Kosciuszko2229 meters/7,310 feet . Located near Mt. Townsend, Australia’s second-highest peak.
Puncak Jaya4,884 metres/16,023 feet. Second-highest mountain in Southeast Asia after Myanmar’s Hkakabo Razi. Highest island peak in the world.
 
World's Superlatives
World’s tallest mountain from sea floorMauna Kea, US
World’s largest mountain and volcano (by volume)Mauna Loa, US
World’s most active volcanoKilauea, US
World’s highest peak from the Earth’s centerMount Chimborazo, Ecuador
World’s wettest PlaceMawsynram, India (11.872 meters rainfall/ 39 feet)
World’s driest PlaceAtacama Desert, Chile
Hottest Temperature ever recordedEl Azizia, Libya (136 degrees F)
Coldest Temperature ever recordedVostok Station (Russia), Antarctica (-128.6 degrees F)
Deepest Cave in the WorldVoronya Cave (also known as Krubera-Voronia Cave), Georgia
Northernmost Capital cityRevkjavik, Iceland
Southernmost Capital cityWellington, New Zealand
World’s deepest canyonReported to be Colca Canyon, Peru but not substantiated
World’s Largest GlacierLambert Glacier, Antarctica (flows towards the Amery Ice Shelf)
World’s fastest-moving glacierColumbia Glacier, Alaska (flows towards the Prince William Sound)
World’s deepest lakeLake Baikal
Highest navigable lake in the worldLake Titicaca, Bolivia-Peru, South America
Highest navigable lake in North AmericaYellowstone Lake, Yellowstone NP, US
Largest Lake IslandManitoulin Island (Lake Huron)
World’s Largest Swamp/WetlandPantanal (Brazil-Paraguay-Bolivia)
World’s largest rain forestAmazon Rain forest
World's Largest DesertSahara, Africa
World's Largest PlateauTibet, China, Asia
World's Largest BasinTarim basin
World's Longest RiverNile, Africa
Largest river dischargeAmazon River
 
Lowest Points on each Continent
Continent Lowest Point
AsiaDead Sea, Israel-Jordan
AfricaLake Asal, Djibouti
EuropeCaspian Sea, Russia-Azerbaijan
North AmericaDeath Valley, California, US
South AmericaValdes Peninsula, Argentina
Australia/OceaniaLake Eyre, Australia
AntarcticaBentley Subglacial Trench
 
World’s Tallest Mountains
Mountain
1Mount Everest (China-Nepal)
2K2 or Mount Godwin-Austen (China-Pakistan)
3Kanchenjunga (India-Nepal)
4Lhotse (China-Nepal)
5Makalu (China-Nepal)
6Cho-Oyu (China-Nepal)
7Dhaulagiri (Nepal)
8Manaslu (Nepal)
9Nanga Parbat (Pakistan)
10Annapurna (Nepal)
11Gasherbrum I (Pakistan-China)
12Broad Peak (Pakistan-China)
 
Deepest points in the Oceans
Ocean Deepest Point
Pacific OceanChallenger Deep, Mariana Trench (Philippine Plate and Pacific Plate)
Atlantic OceanMilwaukee Deep, Puerto Rico Trench (Caribbean Plate and North American Plate)
Indian OceanJava Trench
Arctic OceanMolloy Hole
 
World’s largest lakes
Lake
1Caspian Sea
2Lake Superior
3Lake Victoria
4Lake Huron
5Lake Michigan
 
World’s largest freshwater lakes
Lake
1Lake Superior
2Lake Victoria
 
World’s largest lakes by continent
Continent Lake
North AmericaLake Superior
South AmericaLake Titicaca
AsiaCaspian Sea(Lake Baikal is the largest lake entirely within Asia)
AfricaLake Victoria
EuropeCaspian Sea(Lake Ladoga is the largest lake entirely within Europe)
Australia/OceaniaLake Eyre
 
World’s Largest Islands
Island
1Greenland
2New Guinea
3Borneo
4Madagascar
5Baffin
6Sumatra
7Honshu
8Great Britain
9Victoria Island
10Ellesmere Island
 
World’s Largest Oceans
Ocean
1Pacific Ocean
2Atlantic Ocean
3Indian Ocean
4Southern Ocean
5Arctic Ocean
 
World’s longest rivers
River
1Nile
2Amazon
3Yangtze
4Mississippi-Missouri
5Yenisey-Angara
 
World’s longest Rivers on each continent
Continent River
North AmericaMississippi-Missouri
South AmericaAmazon
EuropeVolga
AsiaYangtze (Chang-Jiang)
AfricaNile
Australia/OceaniaMurray-Darling
 
World’s Tallest waterfalls
Waterfall
1Angel Falls, Venezuela
2Tugela Falls, South Africa