The Asian continent is regionalized into: Far East, Middle East, Southeast Asia, North Asia, West Asia, South Asia, East Asia and Central Asia.
Central Asia, in this case, will be the focus of analysis. This subcontinent is made up of five countries: Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. Together they make up an area of 4 million km2, with Kazakhstan being the largest in territorial space, covering 2.7 million km2.
The surface of Central Asia is basically constituted by a relatively flat relief, with the presence of plains and of plateaus of modest altitudes, except for regions close to the border with countries in the Middle East, where there are mountains.
The vegetative composition of the subcontinent is quite restricted, with the presence of steppe-type vegetation, that is, poor in biodiversity (flora and fauna). This characteristic comes from, among other factors, the climate, since in the region there is a predominance of arid and semi-arid climate, therefore, dry.
The climatic characteristic that prevails in the subcontinent in question interferes with the hydrographic composition present in the region, being restricted to the number of rivers. The main rivers are the Syr and Amu, both of which flow into the Aral Sea.
The Aral Sea is located northwest of Uzbekistan and west of Kazakhstan. This sea has suffered a great environmental impact, since the 60's the Aral has been losing water (drying up), being one of the biggest environmental problems in the world.
The Aral Sea is drying up because one of its main tributaries, the Amu River, had its course diverted to meet the irrigation needs for planting crops such as rice and cotton. In light of this situation, the Aral Sea did not receive a significant amount of water, causing its volume to decrease.
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By Eduardo de Freitas
Graduated in Geography
Would you like to reference this text in a school or academic work? Look:
FREITAS, Eduardo de. "Central Asia"; Brazil School. Available in: https://brasilescola.uol.com.br/geografia/asia-central.htm. Accessed on June 27, 2021.
