A moment to consider,..Geography in the U.S.A. and "Snowstorm in Montana".

[Stuart G]

Last edited Mon Sep 30, 2019, 03:31 PM - Edit history (1)

...While the snow was blowing in Montana, it was 70 degrees in Florida. Same in Yuma Az. Where I live it is now 69 and sunny (5 miles North of Chicago Il)..I wonder if most people in the U.S.A. appreciate the incredible diversity of the "Geography in the U.S.A.?
.... In terms of "area" we are the 3rd or 4th largest country on earth, but we could have the most diverse weather of any country, anywhere. In our country we have a place called Hawaii as well as a place called Alaska.. These two became officially part of the U.S.A. (as states) in the late 50s..I remember. While I live near Chicago, I have never been to Alaska and Hawaii.
...But I must add...absolutely must add:..I have been to where the " Snowstorm in Montana" fell. I went to Glacier National Park about 25 years ago in the summer. One night we were camping out, and the temp was in the mid 30s and it was late August or early September..Yes, it was very cold. (for late August.)
...We have almost every kind of geography here. I don't think we have a huge "jungle" here but there are certain places that could grow a small one. Mountains, valleys, deserts, flat lands, rivers, large lakes, streams, farm land, oceans on both sides, islands, cities with millions of people, small cities, national parks of every shape and kind, artic areas, caves..(Carlsbad Caverns, heard of that?) you name it we got it. We are gifted with geography of almost every kind, and most people do not know it, or do not care one way or another...
............end of post...from a former high school geography teacher.....

[MontanaMama]

1. We've got every kind of geograpy you mention in your OP

except the oceans up here in MT....oh, and the cities with millions of people. We've got just a million people in the whole state. What a beautiful country we live in!!

[Stuart G]

5. In Illinois we have a lots too. I could drive 10 miles and see the sun rise over Lake Michigan.

(yes I have seen that) or drive 180 miles and see one of the largest rivers in the world, The Mississippi. For the same 180 mile drive, I could drive to the other side of Lake Michigan, and see the sunset over the lake. Actually I could see both the sunrise and sunset over a large body of water just by driving that same 180 miles.
Sunrise in Chicago, and sunset in Holland Michigan. Most people haven't got a clue about that one.
...What is also incredible is that where I live near Chicago in Skokie Il, there is a diversity of people as well. You name the countries that people originated from, and they are within 20 miles of where I live. '
...But we are gifted in ways few know. I've been to the Everglades and Glacier National Park, but never been to the Artic and the mountains in Alaska. (no passport needed if you fly) If you drive through Canada, you need one. I don't know, maybe I just wanted to forget the politics and talk about something many of us have shared. And here from lots of people from all over the U.S.A.

[LiberalLoner]

13. My home state. I will always love it and think it's the most beautiful state.

I have been in all fifty states now, as well as dozens of foreign countries. Montana is still the most beautiful place IMHO.

[bdamomma]

15. we need to keep it beautiful

for many generations to come all the more reason why we need to get this POS out.

[Ptah]

17. My hometown of Conrad got it pretty bad, too.

[MontanaMama]

25. I've always wondered

what your MT connection is, Ptah! Conrad...the Heart of the Golden Triangle...

[Ptah]

27. Grandparents homesteaded there in 1916

[Mike 03]

2. One of the greatest gifts my parents gave their children was to tour as many of

our national parks as we could fit in on vacations. One of my earliest memories is of Meramec Caverns in Missouri. Of course I was seeing it through the eyes of a child, but it was a transformative experience. Same for Yellowstone, Bryce Canyon, the Grand Tetons. We have tremendous treasures here. Thanks for your great post. There is much to appreciate here. We must protect it so that future generations can enjoy the same exhilarations.

[Javaman]

3. back in my primordial days when I worked in film...

I would work on many European commercials.

They would shoot here in the states because they didn't have the kinds of landscapes available to them in Europe.

By the way, the Dutch people are some of the nicest people on the earth.

[CrispyQ]

4. I loved geography!

I grew up in the 60s-70s & remember with fondness those big maps that rolled down from some apparatus that hung over the blackboard. There were always at least two - one of the world & one of the USA. Some classes had more, Europe, South America, Asia. I had a teacher who loved to point out how vast our country is.

[barbtries]

6. years ago,

in a Caifornia history class, the teacher told us that california alone had every climate but true tropical.

[Hermit-The-Prog]

7. 92F in the shade here in Kentucky

Had to check the timestamp on your OP to make sure it's not from last winter.

[Stuart G]

8. 92..?... on September 30?..?in Kenucky?..What a strange show this is, right here in the U.S.A.

[Hermit-The-Prog]

9. it's the land of hills and 'hollers' and mixed hardwood forests ...

I am not on an asphalt / concrete island; I'm in near wilderness. This Chinese hoax is screwing everything up.

We had 3 days of fall, but the trees didn't notice. Should be mid-70s right now for highs, instead that's our lows.

I fear geography will take a back seat to some of the big bubbles of air moving around while all this excess energy seeks some kind of balance.

[Stuart G]

11. I've been to Kentucky..It is a beutiful place: forests, hills and "hollars" Thank You for view.

[Wounded Bear]

10. I once nearly got snowed in in Yellowstone...in August...

High mountains can be like that.

[Kaleva]

12. I read an article awhile back about a two French couples that drove across the South West

They were amazed by the vastness of it all. The state of Texas alone is bigger then France. And that's just the South West region.

[sdfernando]

14. I've had the good fortune of living in both Alaska and Hawaii

Both are spectacular and quite beautiful in very different ways.

Funny, but not a single one of our very large extended family visited us when we lived in Alaska....but we couldn't keep them away when we lived in Hawaii....why is that?

[Ptah]

16. Lewis and Clark Caverns, not Carlesbed Caverns

Or Carlesbad Caverns

[Stuart G]

18. Well there it is, another spelling error. OK..I will be glad to change it. When I was teaching,

I had students with 5th grade reading scores (high school of course) correct my spelling. Oh Well .I got it and change was made...thank you for helping me to get that one right. I am sure there will be another. So time to hide...

...................

[Ptah]

20. Lewis and Clark Caverns are in Montana.

Lewis and Clark Caverns are in Montana.

Carlsbad Caverns are in New Mexico.

[Stuart G]

23. The e in the OP, has been removed..It now reads Carlsbad Caverns..

[Ptah]

24. Carlsbad Caverns are in New Mexico.

[Maru Kitteh]

19. Here's my view of that Montana Snowstorm - out my front window right now

You are looking at my view of a small little bit of the foothills of the Cabinet Mountains.

[Stuart G]

21. Thank You!!!!...Beautiful Picture, Thank you for sharing that view..outstanding..

[Hortensis]

33. Lovely. Calm and quiet. Low to mid 90s today here in N. GA.

It's been rainy in recent years, but drought for the last several weeks combined with these prolonged temperatures have me worried for our woods.

[lunatica]

22. Geography is one of my very favorite things!

Our entire planet has geography, depends on geography, exists because of geography, and is beautiful beyond words because of geography.

. .

[Stuart G]

28. One of my favorites too..When I was a kid and our family went on trips in our car, the three kids,

my two brothers and I often shared maps on which way we were going. Sometimes, we would fill up with gas and the station would have plenty of maps, so each of us got one. So, I was looking at road maps, and studying this way and that way 60 years ago. When I became an adult, I traveled around with maps. Once in the 70s, I traveled 7000 miles in 13 days with the 70s version of the map trip. So, I love maps and geography. And yes, I went abroad to London, Paris, and Tokyo, and yes, I had to get maps to get around. The Tokyo subway system is terrific, but you really need a map to get around....Maps make me happy as does ..Geography..Last note: Yes, I have traveled around the U.S.A. from Maine to L.A. from the Everglades to Washington State and in between. Never been to Alaska or Hawaii...........................BUT...................i got to say.....
.........................................................I love the U.S.A...all 50 states...........................

[MontanaMama]

26. Snow in Missoula today

[Stuart G]

29. Beautiful Picture...Thank You for sharing with the rest of us....K and R your picture..Beautiful...

Take a look at the mountains in the background in the distance..Incredible picture..!!!!!

[SharonAnn]

30. 94 here in East TN, same for the next three days. Then 87

I’m so ready for this heat to be over.

[Rstrstx]

31. It's not so much the diversity of climate as it is the extremes

A lot of countries that take up a large chunk of land will have very diverse climates, but what defines North America and the eastern two-thirds of the US in particular is how extreme and sudden the weather changes are. It can be in the 90s one day and snowing the next.

This is not normal for other places on earth, it's a result of North America's vast expanse of flat lands in the middle to high latitudes along with a the continuous line of the Rockies that run north to south that permits the flow of both very warm and very cold air masses to move into latitudes where they're generally not seen elsewhere in the world.

In Asia the mountains run tend to run east to west and wild weather swings are uncommon. Much of China has a humid temperate-continental climate like the eastern US but they ease into and out of their seasons more gradually.

Europe has mountains and oceans and seas everywhere so it has a very mild climate despite its high latitude. It's amazing that palmy Rome is farther north than New York City and the French and Italian Rivieras are at the same latitude as the Great Lakes region.

The Southern Hemisphere is defined by water so there are really no continental climates there except maybe for the pampa region of Central Argentina, where you see the closest setup to the US: an expansive area of flat land that is cut off from the Pacific by the curtain of the Andes running north to south, allowing for both warm and cold air masses to move in and out throughout the year. It's still not as severe as North America, though, since the polar air coming out of Antarctica is tempered by oceans that never freeze over (even though Antarctica is colder in all seasons than the North Pole).

[ecstatic]

32. It's October 1 and we're still experiencing nearly 100 degree weather in

Atlanta. I really don't recall this type of weather here. For the past few years, I've had to run my HVAC system everyday, throughout the year, with no days off. It is either too hot or too cold, with no in between days. I literally have to flip back and forth between heating and air conditioning during the season formerly known as Spring.