Mexico is located in North America. It is to the south of the U.S. Its other neighbors are Belize, to its SE and Guatemala to its SW. It is to the south of the U.S. It is near Central America. Mexico is a very large country. It is a very diverse land. Mexico has many land features that vary from lowlands to mountains, with elevations from sea level to over 13,100ft high.
Some of the land features include:
The Central Plateau
The Central Plateau is like the heart of Mexico. Most of Mexico’s cities and population lives here. It is also where the most agricultural and industrial products are made. This area is shaped like a triangle with the base touching the U.S. and the point going toward Mexico City. The top two thirds is called the Mesa del Norte, and the third part to the south is called the Mesa Central. The Mesa del Norte is mostly flat. The land here is hot and dry in the summer and cold and dry in the winter. Farmers need to irrigate the land to make crops grow here. The Mesa Central has many lakes and rivers and the land is very rich and fertile, making it easy to grow crops. There are many farms here and crowded cities.
Mountains
There are many mountains that border the Central Plateau to its west and east. To the west is the infamous Sierra Madre Occidental, a series of mountain ranges that have been a problem for people in Mexico traveling from east to west. There are many volcanoes in the southern part of these ranges. The highest and most well known volcanoes here are the snowcapped peaks of Popocatepetl, which means the Smoking Mountain, and Ixtacihuatl, which means Sleeping Woman. Popocatepetl last erupted in 1702 and has been inactive since then. Along the Central Plateau’s eastern edge is another set of mountain ranges called the Sierra Madre Oriental. This is where the snow-capped volcanic peak of Pico de Orizaba, one of the highest peaks in North America is located. It’s almost 19,000 feet high.
Coastal Plains
One of the two major lowland regions is the Pacific Coastal Plain in the northwest of Mexico. This region includes the peninsula of Baja California. The southern part of this plain has a tropical climate, with humid summers and dry winters. The Sonara desert is located in the northern part of the plain.
Lowlands
The lowlands are mostly made of the Gulf Coast and the Yucatan Peninsula. The northern parts of the lowlands are dry. Due to an irrigation system the water from the Rio Grande can reach this region, making it an important agricultural part of Mexico. To the south of the Gulf Coast there are many swamps and lagoons. Many of the infamous temples of the Mayas are found in the Yucatan Peninsula, and it’s a very popular tourist attraction.
Click here to print a crossword puzzle on Mexico's land features.
Click here to print out a word scramble on Mexico's land features.
The cliffs drawn by Luis show some of Mexico's land features.
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