1.
Americas
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The Americas, also collectively called America, encompass the totality of the continents of North America and South America. Together they make up most of the land in Earths western hemisphere, along with their associated islands, they cover 8% of Earths total surface area and 28. 4% of its land area. The topography is dominated by the American Cordillera, a chain of mountains that runs the length of the west coast. The flatter eastern side of the Americas is dominated by river basins, such as the Amazon, St. Lawrence River / Great Lakes basin, Mississippi. Humans first settled the Americas from Asia between 42,000 and 17,000 years ago, a second migration of Na-Dene speakers followed later from Asia. The subsequent migration of the Inuit into the neoarctic around 3500 BCE completed what is regarded as the settlement by the indigenous peoples of the Americas. The first known European settlement in the Americas was by the Norse explorer Leif Ericson, however, the colonization never became permanent and was later abandoned. The voyages of Christopher Columbus from 1492 to 1502 resulted in permanent contact with European powers, diseases introduced from Europe and Africa devastated the indigenous peoples, and the European powers colonized the Americas. Mass emigration from Europe, including numbers of indentured servants. Decolonization of the Americas began with the American Revolution in 1776, the population is over 1 billion, with over 65% of them living in one of the three most populous countries. As of the beginning of the 2010s, the most populous urban agglomerations are Mexico City, New York, Sao Paulo, Los Angeles, Buenos Aires and Rio de Janeiro, all of them megacities. The name America was first recorded in 1507 in the Cosmographiae Introductio, apparently written by Matthias Ringmann and it first applied to both North and South America by Gerardus Mercator in 1538. Amerigen means land of Amerigo and derives from Amerigo and gen, America accorded with the feminine names of Asia, Africa, and Europa. When conceived as a continent, the form is generally the continent of America in the singular. However, without a context, singular America in English commonly refers to the United States of America. In some countries of the world, America is considered a continent encompassing the North America and South America subcontinents, the first inhabitants migrated into the Americas from Asia. Habitation sites are known in Alaska and the Yukon from at least 20,000 years ago, beyond that, the specifics of the Paleo-Indian migration to and throughout the Americas, including the dates and routes traveled, are subject to ongoing research and discussion. Widespread habitation of the Americas occurred during the glacial maximum
2.
Central America
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Central America is the southernmost, isthmian portion of the North American continent, which connects with South America on the southeast. Central America is bordered by Mexico to the north, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the east, Central America consists of seven countries, Belize, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Panama. The combined population of Central America is between 41,739,000 and 42,688,190, Central America is a part of the Mesoamerican biodiversity hotspot, which extends from northern Guatemala through to central Panama. Due to the presence of several active faults and the Central America Volcanic Arc. Volcanic eruptions and earthquakes occur frequently, these disasters have resulted in the loss of many lives. In the Pre-Columbian era, Central America was inhabited by the peoples of Mesoamerica to the north and west. Soon after Christopher Columbuss voyages to the Americas, the Spanish began to colonize the Americas, the seven states finally became independent autonomous states, beginning with Nicaragua, Honduras, Costa Rica, and Guatemala, followed by El Salvador, then Panama, and finally Belize. Middle America is usually thought to comprise Mexico to the north of the 7 states of Central America as well as Colombia, usually the whole of the Caribbean to the north-east and sometimes the Guyanas are also included. According to one source, the term Central America was used as a synonym for Middle America as recently as 1962, in Brazil, Central America comprises all countries between Mexico and Colombia, including those in the Caribbean. Mexico, in whole or in part, is included by British people. For the people living in the 5 countries formerly part of the Federal Republic of Central America there is a distinction between the Spanish language terms América Central and Centroamérica, in the Pre-Columbian era, the northern areas of Central America were inhabited by the indigenous peoples of Mesoamerica. Most notable among these were the Mayans, who had built numerous cities throughout the region, and the Aztecs, following Christopher Columbuss voyages to the Americas, the Spanish sent many expeditions to the region, and they began their conquest of Maya territory in 1523. Soon after the conquest of the Aztec Empire, Spanish conquistador Pedro de Alvarado commenced the conquest of northern Central America for the Spanish Empire. Beginning with his arrival in Soconusco in 1523, Alvarados forces systematically conquered and subjugated most of the major Maya kingdoms, including the Kiche, Tzutujil, Pipil, and the Kaqchikel. By 1528, the conquest of Guatemala was nearly complete, with only the Petén Basin remaining outside the Spanish sphere of influence, the last independent Maya kingdoms – the Kowoj and the Itza people – were finally defeated in 1697, as part of the Spanish conquest of Petén. In 1538, Spain established the Real Audiencia of Panama, which had jurisdiction over all land from the Strait of Magellan to the Gulf of Fonseca. This entity was dissolved in 1543, and most of the territory within Central America then fell under the jurisdiction of the Audiencia Real de Guatemala. This area included the current territories of Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, and the Mexican state of Chiapas, the president of the Audiencia, which had its seat in Antigua Guatemala, was the governor of the entire area
3.
Guatemala
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With an estimated population of around 15.8 million, it is the most populated state in Central America. Guatemala is a democracy, its capital and largest city is Nueva Guatemala de la Asunción. The territory of modern Guatemala once formed the core of the Maya civilization, most of the country was conquered by the Spanish in the 16th century, becoming part of the viceroyalty of New Spain. Guatemala attained independence in 1821 as part of the Federal Republic of Central America, from the mid to late 19th century, Guatemala experienced chronic instability and civil strife. Beginning in the early 20th century, it was ruled by a series of dictators backed by the United Fruit Company, in 1944, authoritarian leader Jorge Ubico was overthrown by a pro-democratic military coup, initiating a decade-long revolution that led to sweeping social and economic reforms. A U. S. -backed military coup in 1954 ended the revolution, from 1960 to 1996, Guatemala endured a bloody civil war fought between the US-backed government and leftist rebels, including genocidal massacres of the Maya population perpetrated by the military. As of 2014, Guatemala ranks 31st of 33 Latin American and Caribbean countries in terms of the Human Development Index, Guatemalas abundance of biologically significant and unique ecosystems includes a large number of endemic species and contributes to Mesoamericas designation as a biodiversity hotspot. The country is known for its rich and distinct culture. The name Guatemala comes from the Nahuatl word Cuauhtēmallān, or place of many trees and this was the name the Tlaxcaltecan soldiers who accompanied Pedro de Alvarado during the Spanish Conquest gave to this territory. The first evidence of habitation in Guatemala dates back to 12,000 BC. Evidence, such as obsidian arrowheads found in parts of the country. There is archaeological proof that early Guatemalan settlers were hunters and gatherers, pollen samples from Petén and the Pacific coast indicate that maize cultivation had been developed by 3500 BC. Sites dating back to 6500 BC have been found in the Quiché region in the Highlands, archaeologists divide the pre-Columbian history of Mesoamerica into the Preclassic period, the Classic period, and the Postclassic period. Until recently, the Preclassic was regarded as a period, with small villages of farmers who lived in huts. This period is characterized by urbanisation, the emergence of independent city-states and this lasted until approximately 900 AD, when the Classic Maya civilization collapsed. The Maya abandoned many of the cities of the lowlands or were killed off by a drought-induced famine. The cause of the collapse is debated, but the Drought Theory is gaining currency, supported by such as lakebeds, ancient pollen. A series of prolonged droughts, among other such as overpopulation, in what is otherwise a seasonal desert is thought to have decimated the Maya
4.
Mexico
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Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a federal republic in the southern half of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States, to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean, to the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea, and to the east by the Gulf of Mexico. Covering almost two million square kilometers, Mexico is the sixth largest country in the Americas by total area, Mexico is a federation comprising 31 states and a federal district that is also its capital and most populous city. Other metropolises include Guadalajara, Monterrey, Puebla, Toluca, Tijuana, pre-Columbian Mexico was home to many advanced Mesoamerican civilizations, such as the Olmec, Toltec, Teotihuacan, Zapotec, Maya and Aztec before first contact with Europeans. In 1521, the Spanish Empire conquered and colonized the territory from its base in Mexico-Tenochtitlan, Three centuries later, this territory became Mexico following recognition in 1821 after the colonys Mexican War of Independence. The tumultuous post-independence period was characterized by instability and many political changes. The Mexican–American War led to the cession of the extensive northern borderlands, one-third of its territory. The Pastry War, the Franco-Mexican War, a civil war, the dictatorship was overthrown in the Mexican Revolution of 1910, which culminated with the promulgation of the 1917 Constitution and the emergence of the countrys current political system. Mexico has the fifteenth largest nominal GDP and the eleventh largest by purchasing power parity, the Mexican economy is strongly linked to those of its North American Free Trade Agreement partners, especially the United States. Mexico was the first Latin American member of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development and it is classified as an upper-middle income country by the World Bank and a newly industrialized country by several analysts. By 2050, Mexico could become the fifth or seventh largest economy. The country is considered both a power and middle power, and is often identified as an emerging global power. Due to its culture and history, Mexico ranks first in the Americas. Mexico is a country, ranking fourth in the world by biodiversity. In 2015 it was the 9th most visited country in the world, Mexico is a member of the United Nations, the World Trade Organization, the G8+5, the G20, the Uniting for Consensus and the Pacific Alliance. Mēxihco is the Nahuatl term for the heartland of the Aztec Empire, namely, the Valley of Mexico, and its people, the Mexica and this became the future State of Mexico as a division of New Spain prior to independence. It is generally considered to be a toponym for the valley became the primary ethnonym for the Aztec Triple Alliance as a result. After New Spain won independence from Spain, representatives decided to name the new country after its capital and this was founded in 1524 on top of the ancient Mexica capital of Mexico-Tenochtitlan
5.
Caribbean Sea
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The Caribbean Sea is a sea of the Atlantic Ocean in the tropics of the Western Hemisphere. The entire area of the Caribbean Sea, the islands of the West Indies. The Caribbean Sea is one of the largest seas and has an area of about 2,754,000 km2, the seas deepest point is the Cayman Trough, between the Cayman Islands and Jamaica, at 7,686 m below sea level. The Caribbean coastline has many gulfs and bays, the Gulf of Gonâve, Gulf of Venezuela, Gulf of Darién, Golfo de los Mosquitos, Gulf of Paria, the Caribbean Sea has the worlds second biggest barrier reef, the Mesoamerican Barrier Reef. It runs 1,000 km along the coasts of Mexico, Belize, Guatemala, the name Caribbean derives from the Caribs, one of the regions dominant Native American groups at the time of European contact during the late 15th century. During the first century of development, Spanish dominance in the region remained undisputed, from the 16th century, Europeans visiting the Caribbean region identified the South Sea as opposed to the North Sea. The Caribbean Sea had been unknown to the populations of Eurasia until 1492, at that time the Western Hemisphere in general was unknown to Europeans. Following the discovery of the islands by Columbus, the area was colonised by several Western cultures. As of 2015 the area is home to 22 island territories, the International Hydrographic Organization defines the limits of the Caribbean Sea as follows, On the North. In the Windward Channel – a line joining Caleta Point and Pearl Point in Haïti, in the Mona Passage – a line joining Cape Engano and the extreme of Agujereada in Puerto Rico. From Galera Point through Trinidad to Galeota Point and thence to Baja Point in Venezuela, note that, although Barbados is an island on the same continental shelf, it is considered to be in the Atlantic Ocean rather than the Caribbean Sea. The Caribbean Sea is an oceanic sea largely situated on the Caribbean Plate, the Caribbean Sea is separated from the ocean by several island arcs of various ages. The youngest stretches from the Lesser Antilles to the Virgin Islands to the north east of Trinidad, the larger islands in the northern part of the sea Cuba, Hispaniola, Jamaica and Puerto Rico lie on an older island arc. The geological age of the Caribbean Sea is estimated to be between 160 and 180 million years and was formed by a fracture that split the supercontinent called Pangea in the Mesozoic Era. It is assumed the proto-caribbean basin existed in the Devonian period, in the early Carboniferous movement of Gondwana to the north and its convergence with the Euramerica basin decreased in size. The next stage of the Caribbean Seas formation began in the Triassic, powerful rifting led to the formation of narrow troughs, stretching from modern Newfoundland to the west coast of the Gulf of Mexico which formed siliciclastic sedimentary rocks. In the early Jurassic due to powerful marine transgression, water broke into the present area of the Gulf of Mexico creating a vast shallow pool, the emergence of deep basins in the Caribbean occurred during the Middle Jurassic rifting. The emergence of these marked the beginning of the Atlantic Ocean
6.
Belize River
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The Belize River runs 290 kilometres through the center of Belize. It drains more than one-quarter of the country as it winds along the edge of the Maya Mountains to the sea just north of Belize City. The Belize river valley is largely tropical rain forest, also known as the Old River, the Belize River begins where the Mopan River and Macal River join just east of San Ignacio, Belize. The Belize River – Mopan River Catchment contains over 45 percent of the population of Belize, the Belize River, in spite of 78 runs or rapids, is passable via the Mopan to the Guatemalan border. Early on, loggers using the river encountered the Maya and had conflicts with them, in 1807 there was a request for “arms and ammunitions” for the loggers. In the late 1820s, the Methodist minister Thomas Wilkinson found three to four men working at camps most of the year. By the late 19th century there were over 130 small settlements along the river, burrell Boom just above Belize Town served as a catch-point for logs. The major source of degradation is the deforestation in the upper reaches of the Mopan River. Traditional slash and burn agricultural practices also contribute to watershed degradation, there are a number of Maya archaeological sites in the watershed of the Belize River and its tributaries, Mopan River, Macal River, and Chaa Creek. These sites include Xunantunich, Chaa Creek, and Cahal Pech
7.
Belize
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Belize, formerly British Honduras, is an independent country on the eastern coast of Central America. Belize is bordered on the north by Mexico, on the south and west by Guatemala and its mainland is about 290 km long and 110 km wide. Belize has an area of 22,800 square kilometres and a population of 368,310 and it has the lowest population density in Central America. The countrys population growth rate of 1. 87% per year is the second highest in the region, Belizes abundance of terrestrial and marine species and its diversity of ecosystems gives it a key place in the globally significant Mesoamerican Biological Corridor. Belize has a society, composed of many cultures and languages that reflect its rich history. English is the language of Belize, with Belizean Kriol being the unofficial language. Over half the population is multilingual, with Spanish being the second most common spoken language, Belize is considered a Central American and Caribbean nation with strong ties to both the Latin American and Caribbean regions. Belize is a Commonwealth realm, with Queen Elizabeth II as its monarch, Belize is known for its September Celebrations, its extensive coral reefs, and punta music. The origin of the name Belize remains unclear, the earliest known record of the name appears in the journal of the Dominican priest Fray José Delgado, dating to 1677. Delgado recorded the names of three rivers that he crossed while travelling north along the Caribbean coast, Rio Soyte, Rio Xibum. The names of these waterways, which correspond to the Sittee River, Sibun River and it is likely that Delgados Balis was actually the Mayan word belix, meaning muddy-watered. Others have suggested that the name derives from a Spanish pronunciation of the name of the Scottish buccaneer Peter Wallace, there is no proof that Wallace settled in this area and some scholars have characterized this claim as a myth. Writers and historians have suggested other possible etymologies, including postulated French. Many aspects of this culture persist in the area despite nearly 500 years of European domination, prior to about 2500 BC, some hunting and foraging bands settled in small farming villages, they later domesticated crops such as corn, beans, squash, and chili peppers. A profusion of languages and subcultures developed within the Maya core culture, between about 2500 BC and 250 AD, the basic institutions of Maya civilisation emerged. The peak of this occurred during the classic period, which began about 250 AD. The Maya civilisation spread across what is now Belize around 1500 BC, the recorded history of the middle and southern regions is dominated by Caracol, an urban political centre that may have supported over 140,000 people. North of the Maya Mountains, the most important political centre was Lamanai, in the late Classic Era of Maya civilisation, as many as 1 million people may have lived in the area that is now Belize
8.
Equator
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The Equator usually refers to an imaginary line on the Earths surface equidistant from the North Pole and South Pole, dividing the Earth into the Northern Hemisphere and Southern Hemisphere. The Equator is about 40,075 kilometres long, some 78. 7% lies across water and 21. 3% over land, other planets and astronomical bodies have equators similarly defined. Generally, an equator is the intersection of the surface of a sphere with the plane that is perpendicular to the spheres axis of rotation. The latitude of the Earths equator is by definition 0° of arc, the equator is the only line of latitude which is also a great circle — that is, one whose plane passes through the center of the globe. The plane of Earths equator when projected outwards to the celestial sphere defines the celestial equator, in the cycle of Earths seasons, the plane of the equator passes through the Sun twice per year, at the March and September equinoxes. To an observer on the Earth, the Sun appears to travel North or South over the equator at these times, light rays from the center of the Sun are perpendicular to the surface of the Earth at the point of solar noon on the Equator. Locations on the Equator experience the quickest sunrises and sunsets because the sun moves nearly perpendicular to the horizon for most of the year. The Earth bulges slightly at the Equator, the diameter of the Earth is 12,750 kilometres. Because the Earth spins to the east, spacecraft must also launch to the east to take advantage of this Earth-boost of speed, seasons result from the yearly revolution of the Earth around the Sun and the tilt of the Earths axis relative to the plane of revolution. During the year the northern and southern hemispheres are inclined toward or away from the sun according to Earths position in its orbit, the hemisphere inclined toward the sun receives more sunlight and is in summer, while the other hemisphere receives less sun and is in winter. At the equinoxes, the Earths axis is not tilted toward the sun, instead it is perpendicular to the sun meaning that the day is about 12 hours long, as is the night, across the whole of the Earth. Near the Equator there is distinction between summer, winter, autumn, or spring. The temperatures are usually high year-round—with the exception of high mountains in South America, the temperature at the Equator can plummet during rainstorms. In many tropical regions people identify two seasons, the wet season and the dry season, but many places close to the Equator are on the oceans or rainy throughout the year, the seasons can vary depending on elevation and proximity to an ocean. The Equator lies mostly on the three largest oceans, the Pacific Ocean, the Atlantic Ocean, and the Indian Ocean. The highest point on the Equator is at the elevation of 4,690 metres, at 0°0′0″N 77°59′31″W and this is slightly above the snow line, and is the only place on the Equator where snow lies on the ground. At the Equator the snow line is around 1,000 metres lower than on Mount Everest, the Equator traverses the land of 11 countries, it also passes through two island nations, though without making a landfall in either. Starting at the Prime Meridian and heading eastwards, the Equator passes through, Despite its name, however, its island of Annobón is 155 km south of the Equator, and the rest of the country lies to the north
9.
Prime meridian
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A prime meridian is a meridian in a geographical coordinate system at which longitude is defined to be 0°. Together, a meridian and its antimeridian form a great circle. This great circle divides the sphere, e. g. the Earth, if one uses directions of East and West from a defined prime meridian, then they can be called Eastern Hemisphere and Western Hemisphere. The most widely used modern meridian is the IERS Reference Meridian and it is derived but deviates slightly from the Greenwich Meridian, which was selected as an international standard in 1884. The notion of longitude was developed by the Greek Eratosthenes in Alexandria, and Hipparchus in Rhodes, but it was Ptolemy who first used a consistent meridian for a world map in his Geographia. The main point is to be comfortably west of the tip of Africa as negative numbers were not yet in use. His prime meridian corresponds to 18°40 west of Winchester today, at that time the chief method of determining longitude was by using the reported times of lunar eclipses in different countries. Ptolemys Geographia was first printed with maps at Bologna in 1477, but there was still a hope that a natural basis for a prime meridian existed. The Tordesillas line was settled at 370 leagues west of Cape Verde. This is shown in Diogo Ribeiros 1529 map, in 1541, Mercator produced his famous 41 cm terrestrial globe and drew his prime meridian precisely through Fuertaventura in the Canaries. His later maps used the Azores, following the magnetic hypothesis, but by the time that Ortelius produced the first modern atlas in 1570, other islands such as Cape Verde were coming into use. In his atlas longitudes were counted from 0° to 360°, not 180°W to 180°E as is usual today and this practice was followed by navigators well into the 18th century. In 1634, Cardinal Richelieu used the westernmost island of the Canaries, Ferro, 19°55 west of Paris, the geographer Delisle decided to round this off to 20°, so that it simply became the meridian of Paris disguised. In the early 18th century the battle was on to improve the determination of longitude at sea, between 1765 and 1811, Nevil Maskelyne published 49 issues of the Nautical Almanac based on the meridian of the Royal Observatory, Greenwich. Maskelynes tables not only made the lunar method practicable, they made the Greenwich meridian the universal reference point. In 1884, at the International Meridian Conference in Washington, D. C.22 countries voted to adopt the Greenwich meridian as the meridian of the world. The French argued for a line, mentioning the Azores and the Bering Strait. In October 1884 the Greenwich Meridian was selected by delegates to the International Meridian Conference held in Washington, united States to be the common zero of longitude and standard of time reckoning throughout the world
10.
Pacific Ocean
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The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of the Earths oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south and is bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, the Mariana Trench in the western North Pacific is the deepest point in the world, reaching a depth of 10,911 metres. Both the center of the Water Hemisphere and the Western Hemisphere are in the Pacific Ocean, the oceans current name was coined by Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan during the Spanish circumnavigation of the world in 1521, as he encountered favourable winds on reaching the ocean. He called it Mar Pacífico, which in both Portuguese and Spanish means peaceful sea, important human migrations occurred in the Pacific in prehistoric times. Long-distance trade developed all along the coast from Mozambique to Japan, trade, and therefore knowledge, extended to the Indonesian islands but apparently not Australia. By at least 878 when there was a significant Islamic settlement in Canton much of trade was controlled by Arabs or Muslims. In 219 BC Xu Fu sailed out into the Pacific searching for the elixir of immortality, from 1404 to 1433 Zheng He led expeditions into the Indian Ocean. The east side of the ocean was discovered by Spanish explorer Vasco Núñez de Balboa in 1513 after his expedition crossed the Isthmus of Panama and he named it Mar del Sur because the ocean was to the south of the coast of the isthmus where he first observed the Pacific. Later, Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan sailed the Pacific East to West on a Castilian expedition of world circumnavigation starting in 1519, Magellan called the ocean Pacífico because, after sailing through the stormy seas off Cape Horn, the expedition found calm waters. The ocean was often called the Sea of Magellan in his honor until the eighteenth century, sailing around and east of the Moluccas, between 1525 and 1527, Portuguese expeditions discovered the Caroline Islands, the Aru Islands, and Papua New Guinea. In 1542–43 the Portuguese also reached Japan, in 1564, five Spanish ships consisting of 379 explorers crossed the ocean from Mexico led by Miguel López de Legazpi and sailed to the Philippines and Mariana Islands. The Manila galleons operated for two and a half centuries linking Manila and Acapulco, in one of the longest trade routes in history, Spanish expeditions also discovered Tuvalu, the Marquesas, the Cook Islands, the Solomon Islands, and the Admiralty Islands in the South Pacific. In the 16th and 17th century Spain considered the Pacific Ocean a Mare clausum—a sea closed to other naval powers, as the only known entrance from the Atlantic the Strait of Magellan was at times patrolled by fleets sent to prevent entrance of non-Spanish ships. On the western end of the Pacific Ocean the Dutch threatened the Spanish Philippines, Spain also sent expeditions to the Pacific Northwest reaching Vancouver Island in southern Canada, and Alaska. The French explored and settled Polynesia, and the British made three voyages with James Cook to the South Pacific and Australia, Hawaii, and the North American Pacific Northwest, one of the earliest voyages of scientific exploration was organized by Spain in the Malaspina Expedition of 1789–1794. It sailed vast areas of the Pacific, from Cape Horn to Alaska, Guam and the Philippines, New Zealand, Australia, and the South Pacific. Growing imperialism during the 19th century resulted in the occupation of much of Oceania by other European powers, and later, Japan, in Oceania, France got a leading position as imperial power after making Tahiti and New Caledonia protectorates in 1842 and 1853 respectively. After navy visits to Easter Island in 1875 and 1887, Chilean navy officer Policarpo Toro managed to negotiate an incorporation of the island into Chile with native Rapanui in 1888, by occupying Easter Island, Chile joined the imperial nations
11.
Coral reef
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Coral reefs are diverse underwater ecosystems held together by calcium carbonate structures secreted by corals. Coral reefs are built by colonies of tiny animals found in waters that contain few nutrients. Most coral reefs are built from stony corals, which in turn consist of polyps that cluster in groups, the polyps belong to a group of animals known as Cnidaria, which also includes sea anemones and jellyfish. Unlike sea anemones, corals secrete hard carbonate exoskeletons which support, most reefs grow best in warm, shallow, clear, sunny and agitated waters. Often called rainforests of the sea, shallow coral reefs form some of the most diverse ecosystems on Earth, paradoxically, coral reefs flourish even though they are surrounded by ocean waters that provide few nutrients. They are most commonly found at depths in tropical waters. Coral reefs deliver ecosystem services to tourism, fisheries and shoreline protection, the annual global economic value of coral reefs is estimated between US$29. 8-375 billion. However, coral reefs are fragile ecosystems, partly because they are sensitive to water temperature. Most of the coral reefs we can see today were formed after the last glacial period when melting ice caused the sea level to rise and this means that most modern coral reefs are less than 10,000 years old. As communities established themselves on the shelves, the reefs grew upwards, Reefs that rose too slowly could become drowned reefs. They are covered by so much water there was insufficient light. Coral reefs are found in the sea away from continental shelves, around oceanic islands. The vast majority of islands are volcanic in origin. The few exceptions have tectonic origins where plate movements have lifted the deep ocean floor on the surface. In 1842 in his first monograph, The Structure and Distribution of Coral Reefs, Charles Darwin set out his theory of the formation of atoll reefs and he theorized uplift and subsidence of the Earths crust under the oceans formed the atolls. Darwin’s theory sets out a sequence of three stages in atoll formation and it starts with a fringing reef forming around an extinct volcanic island as the island and ocean floor subsides. As the subsidence continues, the reef becomes a barrier reef. Darwin predicted that underneath each lagoon would be a bed rock base, where the level of the underlying earth allows, the corals grow around the coast to form what he called fringing reefs, and can eventually grow out from the shore to become a barrier reef
12.
Cay
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A cay, also spelled caye or key, is a small, low-elevation, sandy island on the surface of a coral reef. Cays occur in tropical environments throughout the Pacific, Atlantic and Indian Oceans, a cay forms when ocean currents transport loose sediment across the surface of a reef to a depositional node, where the current slows or converges with another current, releasing its sediment load. Gradually, layers of deposited sediment build up on the reef surface, such nodes occur in windward or leeward areas of reef where surfaces sometimes occur around an emergent outcrop of old reef or beach rock. The island resulting from sediment accumulation is made up almost entirely of biogenic sediment – the skeletal remains of plants, if the accumulated sediments are predominantly sand, then the island is called a cay, if they are predominantly gravel, the island is called a motu. Cay sediments are composed of calcium carbonate, primarily of aragonite, calcite. They are produced by plants and animals. Small amounts of sediment are also contributed by sponges and other creatures. Over time, soil and vegetation may develop on a cay surface, a range of physical, biological and chemical influences determines the ongoing development or erosion of cay environments. Significant changes in cays and their surrounding ecosystems can result from natural phenomena such as severe El Niño Southern Oscillation cycles, also, tropical cyclones can help build or destroy these islands. There is much debate and concern over the stability of cays in the face of growing human populations and pressures on reef ecosystems. Understanding the potential for change in the sediment sources and supply of cay beaches with environmental change is an important key to predicting their present and future stability. Despite, or perhaps because of all the debate around the future of cays, there is consensus that these environments are very complex. Examples of cays include, The Florida Keys are composed primarily of exposed ancient coral reefs, a few of the Florida Keys, such as Sand Key, are cays as defined above. Approximately 750 by 1500 m wide, this island is situated on the surface of a large 11 km2 emergent reef platform. This cay and the reef flat are Holocene in origin
13.
Island
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An island or isle is any piece of sub-continental land that is surrounded by water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, skerries, an island in a river or a lake island may be called an eyot or ait, and a small island off the coast may be called a holm. A grouping of geographically or geologically related islands is called an archipelago, an island may be described as such, despite the presence of an artificial land bridge. Example, Singapore and its causeway, or the various Dutch delta islands, there are two main types of islands in the sea, continental and oceanic. The word island derives from Middle English iland, from Old English igland, Old English ieg is actually a cognate of Swedish ö and German Aue, and related to Latin aqua. There is a difference between islands and continents in terms of geology, continents sit on continental lithosphere which is part of tectonic plates floating high on Earths mantle. Oceanic crust is also part of tectonic plates, but it is denser than continental lithosphere, Islands are either extensions of the oceanic crust or geologically they are part of some continent sitting on continental lithosphere. This holds true for Australia, which sits on its own continental lithosphere, continental islands are bodies of land that lie on the continental shelf of a continent. A special type of island is the microcontinental island, which is created when a continent is rifted. Examples are Madagascar and Socotra off Africa, the Kerguelen Islands, New Caledonia, New Zealand, another subtype is an island or bar formed by deposition of tiny rocks where water current loses some of its carrying capacity. While some are transitory and may disappear if the volume or speed of the current changes, others are stable, oceanic islands are islands that do not sit on continental shelves. The vast majority are volcanic in origin, such as Saint Helena in the South Atlantic Ocean, the few oceanic islands that are not volcanic are tectonic in origin and arise where plate movements have lifted up the ocean floor above the surface. Examples are Saint Peter and Paul Rocks in the Atlantic Ocean, one type of volcanic oceanic island is found in a volcanic island arc. These islands arise from volcanoes where the subduction of one plate under another is occurring, examples are the Aleutian Islands, the Mariana Islands, and most of Tonga in the Pacific Ocean. The only examples in the Atlantic Ocean are some of the Lesser Antilles, another type of volcanic oceanic island occurs where an oceanic rift reaches the surface. There are two examples, Iceland, which is the second largest volcanic island, and Jan Mayen. A third type of oceanic island is formed over volcanic hotspots. A hotspot is more or less stationary relative to the tectonic plate above it
14.
Ambergris Caye
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Ambergris Caye, pronounced /æmˈbɜːrɡrᵻs ˈkiː/ am-BUR-gris KEE, is the largest island of Belize, located northeast of the country in the Caribbean Sea. It is about 40 kilometres long north to south. Where it has not been modified by man, is mostly a ring of sand beach around mangrove swamp in the centre. Though administered as part of the Belize District, the closest point on the mainland is part of the Corozal District, a Maya community lived on the island in Pre-Columbian times, and made distinctive polished red ceramics. San Pedro Town is the largest settlement and only town on Ambergris, there are also a number of small villages and resorts. Two resorts north of San Pedro played host to the first season of Foxs Temptation Island in 2000, tourism development of Ambergris Caye began in the early 1970s and grew considerably in the later years of the 20th century. The main attractions are the Belize Barrier Reef and its beaches and that barrier reef is the second largest in the world, after the Great Barrier Reef of Australia. The caye has a small airstrip serviced by Tropic Air and Maya Island Air, Ambergris Caye can also be reached by ferry from Chetumal in Mexico. Because of the small size, the main form of powered transportation is the golf cart. San Pedro Day is celebrated annually on June 27, media related to Ambergris Caye at Wikimedia Commons Ambergris Caye travel guide from Wikivoyage AmbergrisCaye. com—San Pedro is the only town on Ambergris Caye. Travel tips, large photo galleries, very active message board The San Pedro Sun newspaper—Local Ambergris Caye newspaper
15.
Glover's Reef
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Glovers Reef is a partially submerged atoll located off the southern coast of Belize, approximately 45 kilometres from the mainland. It forms part of the outermost boundary of the Belize Barrier Reef, the oval-shaped atoll is 32 km long and 12 km wide. The interior lagoon is dotted with around 850 reef patches and pinnacles rising to the surface, major cays include Amounme Point Cay, Northeast Cay, Long Cay, Middle Cay and Southwest Cay. Glovers harbours one of the greatest diversity of types in the western Caribbean. A large spawning site for the endangered Nassau grouper is located at the end of the atoll. It has been identified as one of two viable sites remaining for the species, of nine originally known locations. In 2002, it was declared a marine reserve, permanently closed to fishing. The reserve encompasses the area of the atoll, totaling approximately 86,653 acres. In 1996, it was designated by UNESCO as one of seven protected areas that form the Belize Barrier Reef Reserve System. The marine reserve is divided into four different management zones. Where this zone overlaps with the spawning aggregation site, it is closed to fishing all year round. A fifth zone has recently created to offer greater protection to the northeast spawning aggregation site. It largely overlaps with the Seasonal Closure Zone and it is permanently closed to all fishing. The protected area is considered to be within IUCNs category IV, the Wildlife Conservation Society operates the Glovers Reef Research Station on Middle Cay. It was opened in 1997 for the purpose of promoting and facilitating long-term conservation, since its opening, the station has hosted more than 200 scientific and research expeditions. Glovers Atoll Resort on Northeast Cay Home page for the Glover’s Reef Marine Reserve and Research Station
16.
Turneffe Atoll
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It is approximately 30 miles long and 10 miles wide, making it the largest coral atoll in Belize and in the Mesoamerican Barrier Reef System. The atoll was declared a marine reserve on November 22,2012. Turneffe is home to marine species that are threatened and/or commercially important. The land and seascape consists of a network of highly productive flats, creeks, large expanses of intact mangrove and seagrass habitat and shallows provide important nursery functionality for a wide array of fish species, crocodiles, lobster, conch and other invertebrates. It is home to more than 500 species of fish,65 species of corals, sea turtles, manatees, dolphins, seabirds. In addition, at least three known important fish spawning aggregation sites have been identified, at the northern end of the island group is Mauger Caye, with its eponymous lighthouse, the southern end has a smaller aid to navigation on Caye Bokel. The infamous pirate Blackbeard, aka Edward Teach, spent the winter of 1717-1718 harassing shipping sailing to and from the port of Vera Cruz, Mexico and traversing the Bay of Honduras. On April 4 or 5th of 1718, at Turneffe, Blackbeard captured the ten gun logwood cutting sloop Adventure and forced its captain, David Herriot, also on board was Edward Robinson, the ship’s gunner, who would later be involved in the Battle of Cape Fear River. Blackbeard then made Israel Hands captain of the Adventure and began sailing for North Carolina, oceanic Society When Blackbeard Scourged the Seas, History. org Out to Sea, Elite Magazine
17.
Belize Barrier Reef
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The Belize Barrier Reef is a series of coral reefs straddling the coast of Belize, roughly 300 meters offshore in the north and 40 kilometers in the south within the country limits. It is Belizes top tourist destination, popular for diving and snorkeling and attracting almost half of its 260,000 visitors. It is also vital to the fishing industry. Charles Darwin described it as the most remarkable reef in the West Indies in 1842, in addition to its barrier reef, it also boasts three distinct Caribbean atolls, Turneffe Atoll, Glovers Reef and Lighthouse Reef. These different reefs provide diverse scuba diving opportunities that include walls, pinnacles, a large portion of the reef is protected by the Belize Barrier Reef Reserve System, which includes seven marine reserves,450 cayes, and three atolls. Georges Caye, English Caye, Rendezvous Caye, Gladden Caye, Ranguana Caye, Long Caye, Moho Caye, Blackbird Caye, Three Corner Caye, Northern Caye, Tobacco Caye, Belize became the first country in the world to completely ban bottom trawling in December 2010. In December 2015, Belize banned offshore oil drilling within 1 km of the Barrier Reef, despite these protective measures, the reef remains under threat from oceanic pollution as well as uncontrolled tourism, shipping, and fishing. Other threats include hurricanes, along with global warming and the increase in ocean temperatures. It is claimed by scientists that over 40% of Belizes coral reef has been damaged since 1998, the Belize Barrier Reef has been affected by mass-bleaching events. The first mass bleaching occurred in 1995, with a mortality of 10 percent of coral colonies. A second mass-bleaching event occurred, when Hurricane Mitch struck in 1998, biologists observed a 48 percent reduction in live coral cover across the Belize reef system. Usually, it is hard to distinguish whether the reason for coral bleaching is human activities or natural reasons such as storms or bacterial fluctuations, but in the case of the Belize Barrier Reef, many factors which make the distinction difficult do not apply. When coral bleaching occurs, a part of the coral dies. But the chances of recovery are low, as corals that are bleached become much more vulnerable to disease, disease often kills more corals than the bleaching event itself. With continuous bleaching, the reef will have little to no chance of recovery. List of reefs World Heritage Sites in Danger UNESCO World Heritage website
18.
Great Barrier Reef
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The reef is located in the Coral Sea, off the coast of Queensland, Australia. The Great Barrier Reef can be seen from space and is the worlds biggest single structure made by living organisms. This reef structure is composed of and built by billions of tiny organisms and it supports a wide diversity of life and was selected as a World Heritage Site in 1981. CNN labelled it one of the seven wonders of the world. The Queensland National Trust named it a icon of Queensland. A large part of the reef is protected by the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park, other environmental pressures on the reef and its ecosystem include runoff, climate change accompanied by mass coral bleaching, and cyclic population outbreaks of the crown-of-thorns starfish. According to a study published in October 2012 by the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the Great Barrier Reef has long been known to and used by the Aboriginal Australian and Torres Strait Islander peoples, and is an important part of local groups cultures and spirituality. The reef is a popular destination for tourists, especially in the Whitsunday Islands. Tourism is an important economic activity for the region, generating over AUD$3 billion per year, in November 2014, Google launched Google Underwater Street View in 3D of the Great Barrier Reef. A March 2016 report stated that coral bleaching was more widespread than previously thought, in October 2016, Outside published an obituary for the reef, the article was criticized for being premature and hindering efforts to bolster the resilience of the reef. The Great Barrier Reef is a feature of the East Australian Cordillera division. It includes the smaller Murray Islands and it reaches from Torres Strait in the north to the unnamed passage between Lady Elliot Island and Fraser Island in the south. Lady Elliot Island is located 1,915 km southeast of Bramble Cay as the crow flies, the Plate tectonic theory indicates Australia has moved northwards at a rate of 7 cm per year, starting during the Cenozoic. Eastern Australia experienced a period of uplift, which moved the drainage divide in Queensland 400 km inland. Also during this time, Queensland experienced volcanic eruptions leading to central and shield volcanoes, some of these became high islands. The Great Barrier Reefs development history is complex, after Queensland drifted into tropical waters, it was influenced by reef growth. 10 million years ago, the sea level lowered, which further enabled sedimentation. The reefs substrate may have needed to build up from the sediment until its edge was too far away for suspended sediments to inhibit coral growth
19.
Elevation
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GIS or geographic information system is a computer system that allows for visualizing, manipulating, capturing, and storage of data with associated attributes. GIS offers better understanding of patterns and relationships of the landscape at different scales, tools inside the GIS allow for manipulation of data for spatial analysis or cartography. A topographical map is the type of map used to depict elevation. In a Geographic Information System, digital models are commonly used to represent the surface of a place. Digital terrain models are another way to represent terrain in GIS, USGS is developing a 3D Elevation Program to keep up with growing needs for high quality topographic data. 3DEP is a collection of enhanced elevation data in the form of high quality LiDAR data over the conterminous United States, Hawaii, there are three bare earth DEM layers in 3DEP which are nationally seamless at the resolution of 1/3,1, and 2 arcseconds. This map is derived from GTOPO30 data that describes the elevation of Earths terrain at intervals of 30 arcseconds and it uses color and shading instead of contour lines to indicate elevation. Hypsography is the study of the distribution of elevations on the surface of the Earth, the term originates from the Greek word ὕψος hypsos meaning height. Most often it is used only in reference to elevation of land, related to the term hypsometry, the measurement of these elevations of a planets solid surface are taken relative to mean datum, except for Earth which is taken relative to the sea level. In the troposphere, temperatures decrease with altitude and this lapse rate is approximately 6.5 °C/km. S
20.
Sea level
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Mean sea level is an average level of the surface of one or more of Earths oceans from which heights such as elevations may be measured. A common and relatively straightforward mean sea-level standard is the midpoint between a low and mean high tide at a particular location. Sea levels can be affected by factors and are known to have varied greatly over geological time scales. The careful measurement of variations in MSL can offer insights into ongoing climate change, the term above sea level generally refers to above mean sea level. Precise determination of a sea level is a difficult problem because of the many factors that affect sea level. Sea level varies quite a lot on several scales of time and this is because the sea is in constant motion, affected by the tides, wind, atmospheric pressure, local gravitational differences, temperature, salinity and so forth. The easiest way this may be calculated is by selecting a location and calculating the mean sea level at that point, for example, a period of 19 years of hourly level observations may be averaged and used to determine the mean sea level at some measurement point. One measures the values of MSL in respect to the land, hence a change in MSL can result from a real change in sea level, or from a change in the height of the land on which the tide gauge operates. In the UK, the Ordnance Datum is the sea level measured at Newlyn in Cornwall between 1915 and 1921. Prior to 1921, the datum was MSL at the Victoria Dock, in Hong Kong, mPD is a surveying term meaning metres above Principal Datum and refers to height of 1. 230m below the average sea level. In France, the Marégraphe in Marseilles measures continuously the sea level since 1883 and it is used for a part of continental Europe and main part of Africa as official sea level. Elsewhere in Europe vertical elevation references are made to the Amsterdam Peil elevation, satellite altimeters have been making precise measurements of sea level since the launch of TOPEX/Poseidon in 1992. A joint mission of NASA and CNES, TOPEX/Poseidon was followed by Jason-1 in 2001, height above mean sea level is the elevation or altitude of an object, relative to the average sea level datum. It is also used in aviation, where some heights are recorded and reported with respect to sea level, and in the atmospheric sciences. An alternative is to base height measurements on an ellipsoid of the entire Earth, in aviation, the ellipsoid known as World Geodetic System 84 is increasingly used to define heights, however, differences up to 100 metres exist between this ellipsoid height and mean tidal height. The alternative is to use a vertical datum such as NAVD88. When referring to geographic features such as mountains on a topographic map, the elevation of a mountain denotes the highest point or summit and is typically illustrated as a small circle on a topographic map with the AMSL height shown in metres, feet or both. In the rare case that a location is below sea level, for one such case, see Amsterdam Airport Schiphol
21.
Doyle's Delight
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Doyles Delight is the highest peak in Belize at 1,124 m. It lies in the Cockscomb Range, a spur of the Maya Mountains in Western Belize, the name Doyles Delight was first coined by Sharon Matola in a 1989 report. The name is based on Sir Arthur Conan Doyles book The Lost World, which contains the quote there must be something wild and wonderful in a such as this. This name has meanwhile achieved widespread acceptance, the official Government of Belize Website lists Doyles Delight as the highest point in Belize. The capital of Belize, Belmopan, has a Doyles Delight Street, recently there has been an attempt to rename the peak to Kaan Witz which is Maya for Sky Mountain, but the new name has not gained widespread acceptance. Although Victoria Peak was for many years touted as the highest point in Belize, Victoria Peak is located east of the Maya Mountain Divide in the Stann Creek District, and in clear weather its dramatic peak is visible from the coast. Doyle’s Delight is located in the heart of the Maya Mountains and is part of a gently sloping range. There is a clearing on the peak that is maintained by the Belize Defence Force, in 1970, a survey marker was placed at the high point of the ridge. In 2004 and 2007 ecologists reached the summit by using a helicopter and surveyed Doyle’s Delight and adjacent ridges to better understand the ecology and these efforts focused on plants, fungi, insects, amphibians, birds, and small mammals, and produced preliminary inventory data for the area. Two notable expeditions by mountaineers, in 2007 and 2008, reached the summit by hiking and climbing for eight days through the virgin jungle, the second expedition members included, Bruno Kuppinger, Christian Rodriguez, Douglas Leonardo, Emilino Sho, Alfredo, and Erick Cho. Ascenso a la cima Doyle’s Delight, el punto más alto de Belice
22.
Natural hazard
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A natural hazard is a natural phenomenon that might have a negative effect on people or the environment. Natural hazard events can be grouped into two broad categories, geophysical hazards encompass geological and meteorological phenomena such as earthquakes, volcanic eruption, wildfire, cyclonic storms, flood, drought, and coastal erosion. Biological hazards can refer to an array of disease and infestation. Many geophysical hazards are related, for example, submarine earthquakes can cause tsunamis, floods and wildfires can result from a combination of geological, hydrological, and climatic factors. It is possible that some natural hazards are intertemporally correlated as well, an example of the division between a natural hazard and a natural disaster is that the 1906 San Francisco earthquake was a disaster, whereas living on a fault line is a hazard. An avalanche occurs when a large snow mass slides down a mountainside, an avalanche is an example of a gravity current consisting of granular material. In an avalanche, lots of material or mixtures of different types of fall or slide rapidly under the force of gravity. Avalanches are often classified by the size or severity of consequences resulting from the event, an earthquake is the sudden release of energy stored as lithospheric stress that radiates seismic waves. Many earthquakes happen each day, few of which are enough to cause significant damage. Coastal erosion can result from long-term processes as well as from events such as tropical cyclones or other severe storm events. These flows can destroy entire towns in seconds and kill thousands of people and this is based on natural events. A landslide is a displacement of sediment, usually down a slope. A sinkhole is a depression in the surface topography, usually caused by the collapse of a subterranean structure such as a cave. Although rare, large sinkholes that develop suddenly in populated areas can lead to the collapse of buildings, a volcanic eruption is the point in which a volcano is active and releases its power, and the eruptions come in many forms. They range from daily small eruptions occur in places like Kilauea in Hawaii, to megacolossal eruptions from supervolcanoes like Lake Taupo. Some eruptions form pyroclastic flows, which are high-temperature clouds of ash, a blizzard is a severe winter stormer icy and windy conditions characterized by low temperature, strong wind and heavy snow. Scientists warn that global warming and climate change may result in more extensive droughts in coming years and these extensive droughts are likely to occur within the African continent due to its very low precipitation levels and high climate. A hailstorm is a hazard where a thunderstorm produces numerous hailstones which damage the location in which they fall
23.
Tropical cyclone
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Depending on its location and strength, a tropical cyclone is referred to by names such as hurricane, typhoon /taɪˈfuːn/, tropical storm, cyclonic storm, tropical depression, and simply cyclone. A hurricane is a storm that occurs in the Atlantic Ocean and northeastern Pacific Ocean, a typhoon occurs in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, Tropical cyclones typically form over large bodies of relatively warm water. They derive their energy through the evaporation of water from the ocean surface and this energy source differs from that of mid-latitude cyclonic storms, such as noreasters and European windstorms, which are fueled primarily by horizontal temperature contrasts. The strong rotating winds of a tropical cyclone are a result of the conservation of momentum imparted by the Earths rotation as air flows inwards toward the axis of rotation. As a result, they form within 5° of the equator. Tropical cyclones are typically between 100 and 2,000 km in diameter, Tropical refers to the geographical origin of these systems, which form almost exclusively over tropical seas. Cyclone refers to their nature, with wind blowing counterclockwise in the Northern Hemisphere. The opposite direction of circulation is due to the Coriolis effect, in addition to strong winds and rain, tropical cyclones are capable of generating high waves, damaging storm surge, and tornadoes. They typically weaken rapidly over land where they are cut off from their energy source. For this reason, coastal regions are vulnerable to damage from a tropical cyclone as compared to inland regions. Heavy rains, however, can cause significant flooding inland, though their effects on human populations are often devastating, tropical cyclones can relieve drought conditions. They also carry heat away from the tropics and transport it toward temperate latitudes. Tropical cyclones are areas of low pressure in the troposphere. On Earth, the pressures recorded at the centers of tropical cyclones are among the lowest ever observed at sea level, the environment near the center of tropical cyclones is warmer than the surroundings at all altitudes, thus they are characterized as warm core systems. The near-surface wind field of a cyclone is characterized by air rotating rapidly around a center of circulation while also flowing radially inwards. At the outer edge of the storm, air may be nearly calm, however, due to the Earths rotation, as air flows radially inward, it begins to rotate cyclonically in order to conserve angular momentum. At an inner radius, air begins to ascend to the top of the troposphere and this radius is typically coincident with the inner radius of the eyewall, and has the strongest near-surface winds of the storm, consequently, it is known as the radius of maximum winds. Once aloft, air flows away from the center, producing a shield of cirrus clouds
24.
Atlantic hurricane season
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The Atlantic hurricane season is the period in a year when hurricanes usually form in the Atlantic Ocean. Tropical cyclones in the North Atlantic are called hurricanes, tropical storms, in addition, there have been several storms over the years that have not been fully tropical and are categorized as subtropical depressions and subtropical storms. Worldwide, tropical cyclone activity peaks in summer, when the difference between temperatures aloft and sea surface temperatures is the greatest. However, each basin has its own seasonal patterns. On a worldwide scale, May is the least active month, Tropical disturbances that reach tropical storm intensity are named from a pre-determined list. On average,10.1 named storms occur each season, the most active season was 2005, during which 28 tropical cyclones formed, of which a record 15 became hurricanes. The least active season was 1914, with one known tropical cyclone developing during that year. The Atlantic hurricane season is a time when most tropical cyclones are expected to develop across the northern Atlantic Ocean and it is currently defined as the time frame from June 1 through November 30, though in the past the season was defined as a shorter time frame. The basic concept of a hurricane season began during 1935, when dedicated wire circuits known as hurricane circuits began to be set up along the Gulf and Atlantic coasts, a process completed by 1955. It was originally the time frame when the tropics were monitored routinely for tropical cyclone activity, over the years, the beginning date was shifted back to June 1, while the end date was shifted to November 15, before settling at November 30 by 1965. Since regular satellite surveillance began, hurricane hunter aircraft fly only into areas which are first spotted by satellite imagery. If systems occur outside the hurricane season, special Tropical Weather Outlooks will be issued. Possible tropical cyclones are depicted with a closed isobar, while systems with less certainty to develop are depicted as spot lows with no isobar surrounding them. The original database of positions and intensities were put together in the 1960s in support of the Apollo space program to help provide statistical track forecast guidance. HURDAT was not designed with all of these uses in mind when it was first put together, HURDAT contains numerous systematic as well as some random errors in the database. Additionally, analysis techniques have changed over the years at NHC as their understanding of tropical cyclones has developed, another difficulty in applying the hurricane database to studies concerned with landfalling events is the lack of exact location, time and intensity at hurricane landfall. HURDAT is regularly updated annually to reflect the seasons activity. The older portion of the database has been revised since 2001
25.
Flood
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A flood is an overflow of water that submerges land which is usually dry. The European Union Floods Directive defines a flood as a covering by water of land not normally covered by water, in the sense of flowing water, the word may also be applied to the inflow of the tide. Floods can also occur in rivers when the flow exceeds the capacity of the river channel. Floods often cause damage to homes and businesses if they are in the flood plains of rivers. Some floods develop slowly, while others such as floods, can develop in just a few minutes. Additionally, floods can be local, impacting a neighborhood or community, or very large, the word flood comes from the Old English flod, a word common to Germanic languages. Deluge myths are stories of a great flood sent by a deity or deities to destroy civilization as an act of divine retribution. Floods can happen on flat or low-lying areas when water is supplied by rainfall or snowmelt more rapidly than it can infiltrate or run off. The excess accumulates in place, sometimes to hazardous depths, surface soil can become saturated, which effectively stops infiltration, where the water table is shallow, such as a floodplain, or from intense rain from one or a series of storms. Infiltration also is slow to negligible through frozen ground, rock, concrete, paving, areal flooding begins in flat areas like floodplains and in local depressions not connected to a stream channel, because the velocity of overland flow depends on the surface slope. Endorheic basins may experience flooding during periods when precipitation exceeds evaporation. Floods occur in all types of river and stream channels, from the smallest ephemeral streams in humid zones to normally-dry channels in arid climates to the worlds largest rivers. When overland flow occurs on tilled fields, it can result in a flood where sediments are picked up by run off. Localized flooding may be caused or exacerbated by drainage obstructions such as landslides, ice, debris, slow-rising floods most commonly occur in large rivers with large catchment areas. The increase in flow may be the result of sustained rainfall, rapid snow melt, monsoons, the cause may be localized convective precipitation or sudden release from an upstream impoundment created behind a dam, landslide, or glacier. In one instance, a flood killed eight people enjoying the water on a Sunday afternoon at a popular waterfall in a narrow canyon. Without any observed rainfall, the rate increased from about 50 to 1,500 cubic feet per second in just one minute. Two larger floods occurred at the site within a week
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Maya Mountains
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The Maya Mountains are a mountain range located in Belize and eastern Guatemala, in Central America. The ranges highest peaks are Doyles Delight at 1,124 metres, the Cockscomb Basin Wildlife Sanctuary is a notable nature reserve within the range. The mountains are made of Paleozoic era granite and sediments. The Maya Mountains and associated foothills contain a number of important Mayan ruins including the sites of Lubaantun, Nim Li Punit, Cahal Pech, and Chaa Creek
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Exclusive economic zone
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It stretches from the baseline out to 200 nautical miles from its coast. In colloquial usage, the term may include the continental shelf, the term does not include either the territorial sea or the continental shelf beyond the 200 nmi limit. The surface waters, as can be seen in the map, are international waters, generally, a states exclusive economic zone is an area beyond and adjacent to the territorial sea, extending seaward to a distance of no more than 200 nautical miles out from its coastal baseline. The exception to this occurs when exclusive economic zones would overlap. When an overlap occurs, it is up to the states to delineate the actual maritime boundary, generally, any point within an overlapping area defaults to the nearest state. A states exclusive economic zone starts at the edge of its territorial sea. The exclusive economic zone stretches much further into sea than the territorial waters, thus, the exclusive economic zones includes the contiguous zone. The idea of allotting nations EEZs to give more control of maritime affairs outside territorial limits gained acceptance in the late 20th century. Initially, a countrys sovereign territorial waters extended 3 nautical miles or 6 km beyond the shore, in modern times, a countrys sovereign territorial waters extend to 12 nautical miles beyond the shore. One of the first assertions of exclusive jurisdiction beyond the territorial seas was made by the United States in the Truman Proclamation of September 28,1945. The exact extent of economic zones is a common source of conflicts between states over marine waters. One well-known example of such dispute was the Cod Wars between the United Kingdom and Iceland, Norway and Russia dispute both territorial sea and EEZ with regard to the Svalbard archipelago as it affects Russias EEZ due to its unique treaty status. A treaty was agreed in principle in April 2010 between the two states and subsequently ratified, resolving this demarcation dispute, the agreement was signed in Murmansk on September 15,2010. The South China Sea is the site of a dispute between several neighboring nations. Croatias ZERP in the Adriatic Sea caused friction with Italy and Slovenia, a wedge-shaped section of the Beaufort Sea is disputed between Canada and the United States, as the area reportedly contains substantial oil reserves. France claims a portion of Canadas EEZ for Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon based on a new definition of the continental shelf, Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon is entirely surrounded by Canadas EEZ. Mauritius claims EEZ for Tromelin from France and EEZ for British Indian Ocean Territory from the UK, Northern Cyprus claims a portion of Cyprus EEZ overlaps with that of Northern Cyprus in the south/southeastern part of the Cyprus island. Turkey claims a portion of Cypruss EEZ overlaps with its own EEZ, Lebanon claims that the agreement between Cyprus and Israel overlapped its own EEZ
28.
Nautical mile
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A nautical mile is a unit of measurement defined as exactly 1852 meters. Historically, it was defined as one minute of latitude, which is equivalent to one sixtieth of a degree of latitude. Today it is an SI derived unit, being rounded to a number of meters. The derived unit of speed is the knot, defined as one mile per hour. The geographical mile is the length of one minute of longitude along the Equator, there is no internationally agreed symbol. M is used as the abbreviation for the mile by the International Hydrographic Organization and by the International Bureau of Weights. NM is used by the International Civil Aviation Organization, nm is used by the U. S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Nmi is used by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, the word mile is from the Latin word for a thousand paces, mīlia. In 1617 the Dutch scientist Snell assessed the circumference of the Earth at 24,630 Roman miles, around that time British mathematician Edmund Gunter improved navigational tools including a new quadrant to determine latitude at sea. He reasoned that the lines of latitude could be used as the basis for a unit of measurement for distance, as one degree is 1/360 of a circle, one minute of arc is 1/21600 of a circle. These sexagesimal units originated in Babylonian astronomy, Gunter used Snells circumference to define a nautical mile as 6,080 feet, the length of one minute of arc at 48 degrees latitude.3 metres. Other countries measure the minute of arc at 45 degrees latitude, in 1929, the international nautical mile was defined by the First International Extraordinary Hydrographic Conference in Monaco as 1,852 meters. Imperial units and United States customary units used a definition of the nautical mile based on the Clarke Spheroid, the United States nautical mile was defined as 6,080.20 feet based in the Mendenhall Order foot of 1893. It was abandoned in favour of the nautical mile in 1954.181 meters. It was abandoned in 1970 and, legally, references to the unit are now converted to 1,853 meters. Conversion of units Orders of magnitude
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Territorial waters
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Adjustment of these boundaries is called, in international law, maritime delimitation. Normally, the baseline from which the sea is measured is the low-water line along the coast as marked on large-scale charts officially recognized by the coastal state. Straight baselines can alternatively be defined connecting fringing islands along a coast, across the mouths of rivers, or with certain restrictions across the mouths of bays. An indentation shall not, however, be regarded as a bay unless its area is as large as, or larger than, the baseline across the bay must also be no more than 24 nautical miles in length. Waters landward of the baseline are defined as waters, over which the state has complete sovereignty. Lakes and rivers are considered internal waters, however, archipelagic states may designate certain sea lanes through these waters. A states territorial sea extends up to 12 nautical miles from its baseline, if this would overlap with another states territorial sea, the border is taken as the median point between the states baselines, unless the states in question agree otherwise. A state can also choose to claim a territorial sea. Conflicts still occur whenever a coastal nation claims an entire gulf as its territorial waters while other nations recognize the more restrictive definitions of the UN convention. In the U. S. federal system, individual states exercise ownership up to 3 nautical miles from shore and this will typically be 12 nautical miles wide, but could be more, or less, if it would otherwise overlap another states contiguous zone. However, unlike the sea, there is no standard rule for resolving such conflicts. The United States invoked a contiguous zone out to 24 nmi on 24 September 1999, an exclusive economic zone extends from the outer limit of the territorial sea to a maximum of 200 nautical miles from the territorial sea baseline, thus it includes the contiguous zone. A coastal nation has control of all resources within its exclusive economic zone, including fishing, mining, oil exploration. Indeed, the economic zone is still popularly, though erroneously. Article 76 gives the definition of continental shelf of coastal countries. For the physical geography definition, see the continental shelf page, coastal states have the right of exploration and exploitation of its natural resources, however other states could lay cables and pipelines if they are authorised by the coastal state. The foot of the slope is determined as the point of maximum change in the gradient at its base. The portion of the continental shelf beyond the 200 nautical mile limit is known as the extended continental shelf
30.
Sarstoon River
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The Sarstoon River is a river in the Toledo District of Belize. It forms the southern boundary with Guatemala. The rivers sources are in neighbouring Guatemala and it flows through the Guatemalan departments of Alta Verapaz and Izabal into Belize and through Toledo to the Caribbean Sea
31.
Sibun River
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The Sibun River is a river in Belize which drains a large central portion of the country. Xibun is an alternate Mayan spelling of Sibun that appears on some Spanish colonial-period maps of the region and is used to refer to the ancient Maya people who inhabited the region. The headwaters of the Sibun River are located within the Maya Mountains, at approximately 800 meters above sea level, the river then flows through a gorge until it reaches an alluvial floodplain, where citrus and cacao plantations exist. Here the river valley is flanked by Karst topography featuring Maya cave sites and it empties into the Caribbean Sea, south of Belize City. The Sibun River Watershed features several types, including tropical evergreen seasonal mixed needle forest, broadleaf forest, mangroves. The Sibun Watershed Association is an organization focused on environmental issues within the watershed. Since 1999 Guatemala has claimed all Belizean land south of the Sibun River, the current internationally accepted southern Belizean–Guatemalan border is the Sarstoon River. The claim is central to the ongoing Belizean–Guatemalan territorial dispute, the lower reaches of the river are prominent in scenes from the 1986 film The Mosquito Coast
32.
New River (Belize)
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The New River, also Rio Nuevo, is a river in northern Belize. As the longest river that is confined to Belize, it drains primarily the eastern part of the Orange Walk District during its north-northeasterly course. The river also forms the New River Lagoon, the largest body of water in Belize. The New River is a habitat for numerous types of fish, birds, boat tours are available from several sources. Tours of Lamanai use the river as transportation to reach the site
33.
Chetumal Bay
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Chetumal Bay is a large bay of the western Caribbean Sea on the southern coast of the Yucatán Peninsula. It is located in northern Belize and Southeastern Mexico, the mouth of Chetumal Bay is directed southward and buffered by the large Belizean island of Ambergris Caye. Corozal Bay is a smaller inlet, that extends to the southwest in the upper region of Chetumal Bay. It is named after the town of Corozal on it, Chetumal is a major city on the bay, located in the Mexican state of Quintana Roo. Bays of the Caribbean Bays of the Gulf of Mexico
34.
Hurricane Janet
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Hurricane Janet was the most powerful tropical cyclone of the 1955 Atlantic hurricane season and one of the strongest Atlantic hurricanes on record. The eleventh tropical storm, ninth hurricane, and fifth hurricane of the year. Moving westward across the Caribbean Sea, Janet fluctuated in intensity, the intense hurricane later made landfall at that intensity near Chetumal, Mexico on September 28. After weakening over the Yucatán Peninsula, it moved into the Bay of Campeche, Janet quickly weakened over Mexicos mountainous terrain before dissipating on September 30. In its developmental stages, Janet caused $7.8 million in damage to the Lesser Antilles and 189 deaths in the Grenadines and Barbados. While Janet was in the central Caribbean Sea, an aircraft flew into the storm and was lost. This remains the only such loss which has occurred in association with an Atlantic hurricane, a Category 5 upon landfall on the Yucatán Peninsula, Janet caused severe devastation in areas of Quintana Roo and British Honduras. Only five buildings in Chetumal, Mexico remained intact after the storm, at Janets second landfall near Veracruz, significant river flooding ensued, worsening effects caused by Hurricanes Gladys and Hilda earlier in the month. The floods left thousands of stranded and killed at least 326 people in the Tampico area. At least 1,023 deaths were attributed to Hurricane Janet, the name Janet was later retired from the Atlantic list of tropical cyclone names due to its significance to the scientific research community. A weak tropical disturbance was first reported by the Air France, upon classification, Janet quickly intensified as it moved to the west. On September 22, Janet attained hurricane strength, and proceeded to intensify as it moved westward across the Windward Islands. By 1200 UTC that day, Janet already attained Category 3 hurricane strength with sustained winds of 120 mph. Shortly after 1700 UTC on September 22, the eye of Janet passed over Barbados, a reconnaissance flight into the hurricane discovered that the Hurricane Janets eye measured only 20 mi in diameter, with gale force winds extending 120 mi away from the center of circulation. The flight also reported a barometric pressure of 979 mbar. After passing between the islands of Grenada and Carriacou in the hours of September 23, Janet entered an area of unfavorable conditions in the eastern Caribbean Sea. As a result, the hurricane became disorganized, with winds weakening to 90 mph by 1200 UTC on September 23. A U. S. Navy reconnaissance plane entered the early on September 24, reporting a lack of organization
35.
Hurricane Hattie
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Hurricane Hattie was the strongest and deadliest tropical cyclone of the 1961 Atlantic hurricane season, reaching a peak intensity equivalent to that of a Category 5 hurricane. Moving generally northward, the quickly became a hurricane and later major hurricane the following day. Hattie then turned westward west of Jamaica and strengthened into a Category 5 hurricane and it weakened to Category 4 before making landfall south of Belize City on October 31. The storm turned southwestward and weakened rapidly over the terrain of Central America. Hattie first affected the southwestern Caribbean, where it produced hurricane-force winds and it was initially forecast to continue north and strike Cuba, prompting evacuations on the island. While turning west, Hattie dropped heavy rainfall of up to 11.5 in on Grand Cayman, the country of Belize, at the time known as British Honduras, sustained the worst damage from the hurricane. The former capital, Belize City, was buffeted by strong winds, the territory governor estimated that 70% of the buildings in the city had been damaged, leaving more than 10,000 people homeless. The destruction was so severe that it prompted the government to relocate inland to a new city, overall, Hattie caused about $60 million in losses and 307 deaths in the territory. Although damage was heavier in Hattie than a hurricane in 1931 that killed 2,000 people, elsewhere in Central America, Hattie killed 11 people in Guatemala and one in Honduras. For several days toward the end of October 1961, a low-pressure area persisted in the western Caribbean Sea, on October 25, an upper-level anticyclone moved over the low, the next day, a trough over the western Gulf of Mexico provided favorable outflow for the disturbance. At 0000 UTC on October 27, a ship nearby reported winds of 46 mph. Later that day, the airport on San Andres Island reported easterly winds of 60 mph, after being classified, Hattie moved steadily northward, passing very near or over San Andres Island. A station on the recorded a pressure of 991 mbar and sustained winds of 80 mph. Late on October 28, a Hurricane Hunters flight encountered a much stronger hurricane, at the time, gale-force winds extended outward 140 mi to the northeast and 70 miles to the southwest. Early on October 29, a trough extending from Nicaragua to Florida was expected to allow Hattie to continue northward, later that day, Hattie was forecast to be an imminent threat to the Cayman Islands and western Cuba. Around that time, a ridge to the north turned the hurricane northwestward. With the strengthening ridge to its north, Hattie began restrengthening after retaining the intensity for about 24 hours. Initially, forecasters at the Miami Weather Bureau predicted the storm to turn northward again, early on October 30, the Hurricane Hunters confirmed the increase in intensity, reporting winds of 140 mph
36.
Belmopan
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Belmopan is the capital city of Belize. Its population in 2010 was 16,451, although the smallest capital city in the continental Americas by population, Belmopan is the third-largest settlement in Belize, behind Belize City and San Ignacio. Founded as a community in 1970, Belmopan is one of the newest national capital cities in the world. Since 2000 Belmopan has been one of two settlements in Belize to hold city status, along with Belize City. Belmopan is located in Cayo District at an altitude of 76 metres above sea level. Belmopan was constructed just to the east of the Belize River,80 km inland from the former capital, the government was moved to Belmopan in 1970. Its National Assembly Building is designed to resemble a Pre-Columbian Maya temple and this new capital would be on better terrain, would entail no costly reclamation of land, and would provide for an industrial area. In 1962, a committee chose the site now known as Belmopan,82 kilometres west of the old capital of Belize City, since Belize was a British colony in 1964, Premier George Cadle Price led a delegation to London to seek funds to finance the new capital. Although they were not ready to commit to funding such a large project, to encourage financial commitment from the British government, Premier Price and the PUP government invited Anthony Greenwood, Secretary of State for the Commonwealth and Colonies, to visit Belize. One of the highlights of this visit was the unveiling of a monument at mile 49 on the Western Highway, the monument records that Lord Greenwood dedicated the site for the new capital on 9 October 1965. Thus, in a fashion, there was a commitment, the initial estimated cost for building this new city was 40 million Belize dollars. Only 20 million Belize dollars were available, but the momentum was not to be lost, in 1967, work began, the first phase of the new city was completed in 1970 at a cost of 24 million Belize dollars. From 1970 to 2000 the administration of Belmopan was managed by the Reconstruction and Development Corporation, Recondev was vested with the power and authority to provide, or cause to be provided, the municipal functions necessary for the smooth running of the citys business and infrastructure. The British High Commission opened in 1981 when Belize achieved independence, in February 2005, the United States government broke ground and started building a new embassy in Belmopan,43 years after it was chosen as the new capital city. The U. S. embassy was opened on 11 December 2006. Mexico, Brazil, Costa Rica, El Salvador, and Venezuela also have embassies in Belmopan, while Ecuador, Chile, however, with four embassies and 29 consulates the former capital of Belize City still has most of the countrys foreign diplomatic community. The city layout centers around the Ring Road which is just under 4 km in circumference, the majority of government buildings are situated either within or around the Ring Road, and a large area within the Ring Road is also given to parkland. The National Assembly Building is the point of the citys design, with the grey stone architecture and broad steps designed to resemble a Mayan temple
37.
Hurricane Mitch
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Hurricane Mitch was the most powerful and destructive hurricane of the 1998 Atlantic hurricane season, with maximum sustained winds of 180 mph. The storm was the tropical storm, ninth hurricane. Along with Hurricane Georges, Mitch was the most notable hurricane in the season, at the time, Hurricane Mitch was the strongest Atlantic hurricane observed in the month of October, though it has since been surpassed by Hurricane Wilma of the 2005 season. The hurricane matched the fourth most intense Atlantic hurricane on record, after drifting southwestward and weakening, the hurricane hit Honduras as a minimal hurricane. It drifted through Central America, reformed in the Bay of Campeche, due to its slow motion from October 29 to November 3, Hurricane Mitch dropped historic amounts of rainfall in Honduras, Guatemala, and Nicaragua, with unofficial reports of up to 75 inches. Additionally, roughly 2.7 million were homeless as a result of the hurricane. The flooding caused damage, estimated at over $6 billion. Tropical Depression Thirteen formed on October 22 over the southwestern Caribbean Sea and it executed a small loop, and while doing so intensified into Tropical Storm Mitch. A weakness in a ridge allowed the storm to track slowly to the north, after becoming disorganized due to wind shear from an upper-level low, Mitch quickly intensified in response to favorable conditions, including warm waters and good outflow. It became a hurricane on October 24 and developed an eye, after turning to the west, Mitch rapidly intensified, first into a major hurricane on October 25 and then into a Category 5 on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Scale the next day. At peak intensity, Mitch maintained maximum sustained winds of 180 mph while off the northern coast of Honduras. Hurricane Hunters reported a barometric pressure of 905 mbar, which at the time was the lowest in the month of October. Initially, the National Hurricane Center and various tropical cyclone forecast models anticipated a turn to the north, instead, Mitch turned to the south due to a ridge that was not observed while the storm was active. Land interaction imparted weakening, and the hurricane made landfall on Honduras on October 29 with winds of 80 mph, Mitch slowly weakened while turning to the west over land, maintaining deep convection over waters. After moving across mountainous terrain in Central America, the circulation of Mitch dissipated on November 1. The next day, the reached the Gulf of Mexico. Mitch accelerated to the northeast ahead of a front, moving across the Yucatán peninsula before striking southwestern Florida on November 5. Shortly thereafter, the became an extratropical cyclone, which was tracked by the NHC until November 9
38.
Tropical Storm Chantal (2001)
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Tropical Storm Chantal was a North Atlantic tropical cyclone that moved across the Caribbean Sea in August 2001. Chantal developed from a wave on August 14 in the tropical Atlantic Ocean. It tracked rapidly westward for much of its duration, and after degenerating into a tropical wave it passed through the Windward Islands, on August 21 Chantal moved ashore near the border of Mexico and Belize, and the next day it dissipated. In the Windward Islands, lightning caused two deaths in Trinidad. Chantal dropped light to moderate rainfall across its path, most significantly in Quintana Roo in Mexico where it caused widespread mudslides, damage in Belize totaled $4 million, due to the combined impact of high waves, moderate winds, and rainfall. A tropical wave moved off the coast of Africa on August 11, environmental conditions favored tropical development, and the system gradually became better organized, although convection was initially limited near the center. Situated to the south of a subtropical ridge, the depression tracked rapidly westward. One computer model predicted the depression would reach winds of around 115 miles per hour by four days after development. Banding features increased while the presentation continued to improve. This was confirmed by a Hurricane Hunters flight into the system, despite lacking a closed circulation, the overall structure remained well-organized, and with a favorable upper-level environment the possibility of regeneration into a tropical cyclone was noted. Early on August 17, the remnants of Chantal passed over the Windward Islands with winds of tropical storm force, after entering the Caribbean Sea, the system slowed while its convective pattern expanded and became more symmetric. Hurricane Hunters confirmed that a circulation developed about 290 miles south of Saint Croix. Forecasters described the environment as ideal for tropical cyclone to intensify. The cyclone was predicted to maintain a track toward the northwestern Caribbean. On August 18, the winds increased to 65 miles per hour, the storm again decelerated on August 19, allowing re-organization and for Chantal to attain peak sustained winds of 70 miles per hour about 185 miles south of Kingston, Jamaica. By early on August 20, Hurricane Hunters reported several low-level circulations embedded within a low pressure area. Later that day, wind shear decreased when the storm moved into the Gulf of Honduras, Chantal became much better organized, again reaching peak winds of 70 miles per hour before making landfall early on August 21 near the border of Mexico and Belize. Initially, the storm was forecast to cross the Yucatán Peninsula and Bay of Campeche, Chantal slowly weakened over land while moving slowly across northern Belize
39.
Hurricane Keith
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Hurricane Keith was a storm in October 2000 that caused extensive damage in Central America, especially in Mexico and Belize. It was the tropical cyclone, eleventh named storm. Keith developed as a depression from a tropical wave in the western Caribbean Sea on September 28. The depression gradually strengthened, and became Tropical Storm Keith on the following day, as the storm tracked westward, it continued to intensify and was upgraded to a hurricane on September 30. Shortly thereafter, Keith began to deepen, and peaked as a Category 4 hurricane less than 24 hours later. Keith then began to meander erratically offshore of Belize, which weakened the storm due to land interaction. By late on October 2, Keith made landfall in Ambergris Caye and it quickly weakened to a tropical storm, before another landfall occurred near Belize City early on the following day. While moving inland over the Yucatán Peninsula, Keith weakened further, once in the Gulf of Mexico, Keith began to re-strengthen and was upgraded to a tropical storm later that day, and a hurricane on the following day. By late on October 5, Keith made its third and final landfall near Tampico, Tamaulipas, the storm quickly weakened inland and dissipated as a tropical cyclone by 24 hours after landfall. Keith brought heavy rainfall to several countries in Central America, which resulted in flooding, especially in Belize. In Guatemala, the storm flooded 10 towns, and caused one fatality, similarly, one fatality also occurred in El Salvador, and at least 300 people were affected by flooding in that country. Thirteen communities in Nicaragua were completely isolated after Keith made roads impassable, twelve deaths were reported in Nicaragua, all of which were flood-related. Five people were presumed dead in Honduras after an aircraft disappeared near Roatán, the storm brought torrential rainfall to Belize, with many areas reporting at least 10 inches of rain, while highest reported amount of precipitation was greater than 30 inches. In Belize, a reported that only 12 houses remained, while elsewhere in the country, at least 60 homes were destroyed or damaged. At least 19 people were killed in Belize and damages totaled to $280 million, heavy rainfall also occurred in Mexico, especially in the states of Nuevo León and Tamaulipas. Flooding from Keith caused several mudslides and a few rivers reached historic levels, throughout Mexico, at least 460 houses were damaged or destroyed and other losses in infrastructure occurred. In addition, one person drowned due to heavy rainfall, damages incurred in associated with Keith in Mexico totaled to approximately $365.9 million. Overall, Keith was responsible for 40 deaths and $319 million in damage, on September 16,2000 a tropical wave – an elongated area of low air pressure moving from east to west – exited the west coast of Africa
40.
Hurricane Iris
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Hurricane Iris of 2001 was the most destructive hurricane in Belize since Hurricane Hattie in 1961. Iris was the second-strongest storm of the 2001 Atlantic hurricane season and it was the ninth named storm, fifth hurricane, and third major hurricane of the year, forming from a tropical wave on October 4 just southeast of Barbados. It moved westward through the Caribbean, intensifying into a storm on October 5 south of Puerto Rico. While passing south of the Dominican Republic, Iris dropped heavy rainfall caused landslides. Later, the hurricane passed south of Jamaica, where it destroyed two houses, on reaching the western Caribbean Sea, Iris rapidly intensified into a Category 4 on the Saffir–Simpson scale. A small hurricane with an eye of only 7 mi in diameter, the hurricane quickly dissipated over Central America, although its remnants contributed to the formation of Tropical Storm Manuel in the eastern Pacific Ocean. Destruction was heaviest in Belize and totaled $250 million, because Iris was compact, the damage was largely confined to 72% of the houses in the Toledo district and 50% of the houses in the Stann Creek district. The hurricane damaged or destroyed 3,718 homes nationwide, Iris left about 15,000 people homeless, many receiving assistance from the government and the local Red Cross chapter. High winds also damaged large swaths of forest and crops, mostly affecting the banana industry, Iris killed 24 people in Belize, including 20 who died when a scuba diving boat capsized near Big Creek. The storm also killed eight people and damaged about 2,500 homes in neighboring Guatemala, and later dropped heavy rainfall in southern Mexico, the change provided a favorable environment for tropical development, and an area of convection soon blossomed along the waves axis. Operationally, however, Hurricane Hunters did not confirm the formation until nine hours later. In its early stages, the depression moved west-northwestward between the islands of St. Vincent and St. Lucia under the influence of a ridge to its north. Compared to its appearance 24 hours before forming, the depression exhibited improved outflow and more distinct convection and this was confirmed by a Hurricane Hunters flight into the system, which failed to report a closed circulation despite the depressions well-organized appearance on satellite imagery. At 21,00 UTC on October 5, they reported a circulation with flight-level winds of 74 mph. Based on these data, the depression was upgraded to Tropical Storm Iris, in post-season analysis, the National Hurricane Center estimated that Iris had attained tropical storm status about nine hours earlier. Despite the storms intensification and well-organized satellite appearance, the failed to become better defined. In their first discussion on Iris, the NHC mentioned the potential for the system to degenerate into a wave if it maintained its fast forward speed. One forecaster noted that the center was fragile and that the cyclone could dissipate quickly if it encountered wind shear to its south
41.
Banana
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The banana is an edible fruit – botanically a berry – produced by several kinds of large herbaceous flowering plants in the genus Musa. In some countries, bananas used for cooking may be called plantains, in contrast to dessert bananas. The fruit is variable in size, color and firmness, but is elongated and curved, with soft flesh rich in starch covered with a rind which may be green, yellow, red, purple. The fruits grow in clusters hanging from the top of the plant, almost all modern edible parthenocarpic bananas come from two wild species – Musa acuminata and Musa balbisiana. The scientific names of most cultivated bananas are Musa acuminata, Musa balbisiana, the old scientific name Musa sapientum is no longer used. Musa species are native to tropical Indomalaya and Australia, and are likely to have been first domesticated in Papua New Guinea. They are grown in 135 countries, primarily for their fruit, worldwide, there is no sharp distinction between bananas and plantains. Especially in the Americas and Europe, banana usually refers to soft, sweet, dessert bananas, particularly those of the Cavendish group, by contrast, Musa cultivars with firmer, starchier fruit are called plantains. In other regions, such as Southeast Asia, many kinds of banana are grown and eaten. The term banana is used as the common name for the plants which produce the fruit. This can extend to members of the genus Musa like the scarlet banana, pink banana. It can also refer to members of the genus Ensete, like the snow banana, both genera are classified under the banana family, Musaceae. The banana plant is the largest herbaceous flowering plant, all the above-ground parts of a banana plant grow from a structure usually called a corm. Plants are normally tall and fairly sturdy, and are mistaken for trees. Bananas grow in a variety of soils, as long as the soil is at least 60 cm deep, has good drainage and is not compacted. The leaves of plants are composed of a stalk and a blade. The base of the petiole widens to form a sheath, the tightly packed sheaths make up the pseudostem, the edges of the sheath meet when it is first produced, making it tubular. As new growth occurs in the centre of the pseudostem the edges are forced apart, cultivated banana plants vary in height depending on the variety and growing conditions
42.
Citrus
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Citrus is a genus of flowering trees and shrubs in the rue family, Rutaceae. Plants in the genus produce citrus fruits, including important crops like oranges, lemons, grapefruit, pomelo, the most recent research indicates an origin in Australia, New Caledonia and New Guinea. Citrus fruit has been cultivated in an area since ancient times. At various times, citrus plants were thought to be native to Asia, Europe, but the European oranges were originally brought from India at around the time of Alexander the Great, and the native oranges of Florida actually originated with the Spanish Conquistadors. The lemon reached Europe during the time of classical Rome, the generic name originated from Latin, where it referred to either the plant now known as Citron or a conifer tree. It is somehow related to the ancient Greek word for cedar and this may be due to perceived similarities in the smell of citrus leaves and fruit with that of cedar. Collectively, Citrus fruits and plants are known by the Romance loanword agrumes. The large citrus fruit of today evolved originally from small, edible berries over millions of years, Citrus plants diverged from a common ancestor about 15 million years ago, which was about when it diverged from the closely related severinia, for example the Chinese box orange. These estimates are made using genetic mapping of plant chloroplasts, the three original species in the citrus genus that have been hybridized into most modern commercial citrus fruit are the mandarin orange, pummelo, and citron. Within the last few years, all common citrus fruits were created by crossing those original species. Something similar has occurred with the array of chili peppers originating in the hybridization of a few initial species. Natural and cultivated citrus hybrids include commercially important fruit such as oranges, grapefruit, lemons, limes, apart from these four core citrus species, there are Australian limes and the recently discovered Mangshanyegan. Kumquats and Clymenia sp. are now considered to belong within the citrus genus. Trifoliate orange, which is used as commercial rootstock, is an outgroup. Phylogenetic analysis suggests the species of Oxanthera from New Caledonia should be transferred to the genus Citrus and these plants are large shrubs or small to moderate-sized trees, reaching 5–15 m tall, with spiny shoots and alternately arranged evergreen leaves with an entire margin. The flowers are solitary or in corymbs, each flower 2–4 cm diameter, with five white petals and numerous stamens. The fruit is a hesperidium, a berry, globose to elongated, 4–30 cm long and 4–20 cm diameter. The outermost layer of the pericarp is a called the flavedo
43.
Hurricane Dean
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Hurricane Dean was the strongest tropical cyclone of the 2007 Atlantic hurricane season. It was the most intense North Atlantic hurricane since Hurricane Wilma of 2005, additionally, it made the third most intense Atlantic hurricane landfall. A Cape Verde-type hurricane that formed on August 13,2007, Dean took a west-northwest path from the eastern Atlantic Ocean through the Saint Lucia Channel and into the Caribbean. It strengthened into a hurricane, reaching Category 5 status on the Saffir–Simpson hurricane wind scale before passing just south of Jamaica on August 20. The storm made landfall on the Yucatán Peninsula on August 21 as a powerful Category 5 storm and it crossed the peninsula and emerged into the Bay of Campeche weakened, but still a hurricane. It strengthened briefly before making a landfall near Tecolutla in the Mexican state of Veracruz on August 22. Dean drifted to the northwest, weakening into a remnant low which dissipated uneventfully over the southwestern United States, the hurricanes intense winds, waves, rains and storm surge were responsible for at least 45 deaths across ten countries and caused estimated damages of US$1.66 billion. First impacting the islands of the Lesser Antilles, Deans path through the Caribbean devastated agricultural crops, particularly those of Martinique, through the affected regions, clean up and repair took months to complete. Donations solicited by international aid organizations joined national funds in clearing roads, rebuilding houses, in Jamaica, where the damage was worst, banana production did not return to pre-storm levels for over a year. Mexicos tourist industry, too, took almost a year to rebuild its damaged cruise ship infrastructure, Dean was the first hurricane to make landfall in the Atlantic basin at Category 5 intensity since Hurricane Andrew on August 24,1992. The depression moved westward, and was upgraded to Tropical Storm Dean at 1500 UTC on August 14. The storms intensity continued to build although dry air and cooler air inflow from the north were slowing structural development, ragged bands formed on August 15 and the formation of a partial eyewall was observed later that day. Intensification continued and the storm was upgraded to Hurricane Dean at 5 am EDT August 16, the deep-layered ridge to the north continued to steer the system west, towards the Caribbean Sea. The storm quickly strengthened to a Category 2 hurricane on the Saffir–Simpson Hurricane Scale, the storms development slowed slightly but a reconnaissance aircraft discovered a closed eyewall on August 17 as the storm passed through the Lesser Antilles. Data from the aircraft indicated that Hurricane Dean had strengthened to a Category 3 hurricane, during the evening of August 17, Dean strengthened into a Category 4 hurricane and continued to steadily grow in both size and intensity through the night. On August 18 the presence of an eyewall was noted, indicating an eyewall replacement cycle. These fluctuations did not affect the well defined satellite presentation. Operationally, Dean was thought to have only been a Category 4 on the 18th and its eyewall replacement cycle was thought to be completed
44.
Papaya
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The papaya, papaw, or pawpaw is the plant Carica papaya, one of the 22 accepted species in the genus Carica of the family Caricaceae. It is native to the tropics of the Americas, perhaps from southern Mexico and it was first cultivated in Mexico several centuries before the emergence of the Mesoamerican classical civilizations. The papaya is a small, sparsely branched tree, usually with a stem growing from 5 to 10 m tall. The lower trunk is conspicuously scarred where leaves and fruit were borne, the leaves are large, 50–70 cm in diameter, deeply palmately lobed, with seven lobes. All parts of the plant contain latex in articulated laticifers, unusually for such large plants, the trees are dioecious. The flowers are 5-parted and highly dimorphic, the flowers with the stamens fused to the petals. The female flowers have a superior ovary and five contorted petals loosely connected at the base, male and female flowers are borne in the leaf axils, the males in multiflowered dichasia, the female flowers is few-flowered dichasia. The flowers are sweet-scented, open at night and are moth-pollinated, the fruit is a large berry about 15–45 cm long and 10–30 cm in diameter. It is ripe when it feels soft and its skin has attained an amber to orange hue, Papaya is native to Mexico and extends to South America and has become naturalized throughout the Caribbean Islands, Florida and several countries of Africa. Additional crops are grown in India, Australia, Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines, Thailand, Papaya plants grow in three sexes, male, female, hermaphrodite. The male produces only pollen, never fruit, the female will produce small, inedible fruits unless pollinated. The hermaphrodite can self-pollinate since its flowers contain both male stamens and female ovaries, almost all commercial papaya orchards contain only hermaphrodites. Originally from southern Mexico, Central America, and northern South America, in cultivation, it grows rapidly, fruiting within three years. It is, however, highly frost-sensitive, limiting its production to tropical climates, temperatures below −2 °C are greatly harmful if not fatal. In Florida and California, growth is limited to southern parts of the states. It prefers sandy, well-drained soil, as standing water will kill the plant within 24 hours, India and Brazil are the major producers of papaya, together providing 57% of the world total of 12.4 million tons in 2013. Gaining in popularity among tropical fruits worldwide, papaya is now ranked fourth in total tropical fruit production after bananas, oranges, global papaya production has grown significantly over the last few years, mainly as a result of increased production in India. Papaya has become an important agricultural export for developing countries, where export revenues of the fruit provide a livelihood for thousands of people, especially in Asia, Carica papaya was the first transgenic fruit tree to have its genome sequenced
45.
Sugarcane
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It has stout, jointed, fibrous stalks that are rich in the sugar sucrose, which accumulates in the stalk internodes. The plant is two to six meters tall, all sugar cane species interbreed and the major commercial cultivars are complex hybrids. Sugarcane belongs to the grass family Poaceae, an important seed plant family that includes maize, wheat, rice, and sorghum. Sucrose, extracted and purified in specialized factories, is used as raw material in the food industry or is fermented to produce ethanol. Ethanol is produced on a large scale by the Brazilian sugarcane industry, sugarcane is the worlds largest crop by production quantity. In 2012, The Food and Agriculture Organization estimates it was cultivated on about 26×106 hectares, in more than 90 countries, Brazil was the largest producer of sugar cane in the world. The next five major producers, in decreasing amounts of production, were India, China, Thailand, Pakistan, the world demand for sugar is the primary driver of sugarcane agriculture. Cane accounts for 80% of sugar produced, most of the rest is made from sugar beets, sugarcane predominantly grows in the tropical and subtropical regions. Other than sugar, products derived from sugarcane include falernum, molasses, rum, cachaça, bagasse, in some regions, people use sugarcane reeds to make pens, mats, screens, and thatch. The young, unexpanded inflorescence of tebu telor is eaten raw, steamed, or toasted, the Persians, followed by the Greeks, discovered the famous reeds that produce honey without bees in India between the 6th and 4th centuries BC. They adopted and then spread sugarcane agriculture, merchants began to trade in sugar from India, which was considered a luxury and an expensive spice. Sugarcane is a tropical, perennial grass that forms lateral shoots at the base to produce multiple stems, the stems grow into cane stalk, which when mature constitutes around 75% of the entire plant. A mature stalk is composed of 11–16% fiber, 12–16% soluble sugars, 2–3% nonsugars. A sugarcane crop is sensitive to the climate, soil type, irrigation, fertilizers, insects, disease control, varieties, the average yield of cane stalk is 60–70 tonnes per hectare per year. However, this figure can vary between 30 and 180 tonnes per hectare depending on knowledge and crop management approach used in sugarcane cultivation, sugarcane is a cash crop, but it is also used as livestock fodder. Sugarcane is indigenous to tropical South and Southeast Asia, different species likely originated in different locations, with Saccharum barberi originating in India and S. edule and S. officinarum in New Guinea. It is theorized that sugarcane was first domesticated as a crop in New Guinea around 6000 BC, New Guinean farmers and other early cultivators of sugarcane chewed the plant for its sweet juice. The exact date of the first cane sugar production is unclear, the earliest evidence of sugar production comes from ancient Sanskrit and Pali texts
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This article incorporates public domain material from the Library of Congress Country Studies website http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/.
This article incorporates 
