Texas Geography

So how big is Texas

• Second largest state•New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Illinois,

Connecticut, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire, New Jersey, and Maine•Can all fit inside Texas combined • El Paso is closer to the Pacific Ocean

than it is to Houston

Four Regions of Texas

• Great Plains• Panhandle and central

• Central Plains• North central

• Coastal Plains• Eastern to Southern

• Mountains and Basins• Extreme western

Viewing Texas

• Southern Texas is plains• Gentle rolling hills• Padre Island; barrier island for the state

• Central Texas is the “Hill Country”• Balcones Escarpment-long cliff

• Northwest Texas is the “High Plains”• Caprock Escarpment

•West Texas is a mountain range • Guadalupe peak

Southern Texas Plains

Galveston Texas

Texas Hill Country

• Splendora Texas

Northwest Texas “High Plains”

• Amarillo Texas

West Texas Mountain Range

• Guadalupe Peak

Texas Water Resources

• Gulf of Mexico• Nurseries for fish, shrimp, oysters, crabs, birds

Texas Water Resources

• Rio Grande River• Forms most of Texas southern boundary• 2,000 miles long

Texas Water Resources

• All 200 lakes in Texas are dammed rivers• Only Caddo Lake began as a natural lake

• Most lakes are built for flood control and water conservation• Some used for irrigation, manufacturing, and cities

Texas Water Resources

• Edwards Aquifer • Located in the hill country• Fills up with rain and turns into springs• Most of central Texas’ water supply

• Ogallala Aquifer (oh-gah-LAH-lah)• Located in the panhandle• Irrigates more than 5 million acres

Different Types of Vegetation

• Texas has 3 types of vegetation regions• forests, savannas, and grasslands• Allows for different types of farming• Cotton, watermelons, spinach, wheat, rice,

corn, soybeans, and peanuts• Land not used for farming is used for

ranching• We lead the nation in cattle, sheep, and

goats ranching

Energy Production

•Main minerals• Petroleum, gas, coal, sand, and gravel• Also a big producer of:• Limestone, granite, salt, and coal

Climate

• The middle latitudes are a meeting place for cool air moving from the north and moist warm air from the Gulf of Mexico•Makes Texas weather unpredictable• Mild winters, with an occasional norther• A norther is a sudden blast of Canadian air

• Thunderstorms, lightening, hail• Also allows for hurricanes to hit

occasionally •Mountain ranges allow for snowfall