Americas

=== Topography ===
[[File:Aconcagua_(aerial).jpg|thumb|[[Aconcagua]], in [[Argentina]], is the highest peak in the Americas.]]

The geography of the western Americas is dominated by the [[American Cordillera]], with the [[Andes]] running along the west coast of South America<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.blueplanetbiomes.org/andes.htm|title=Andes Mountain Range|access-date=September 8, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170429034553/http://www.blueplanetbiomes.org/andes.htm|archive-date=April 29, 2017|url-status=dead|df=mdy-all}}</ref> and the [[Rocky Mountains]] and other [[North American Cordillera]] ranges running along the western side of North America.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://biology.usgs.gov/s+t/SNT/noframe/wm146.htm |title=Rocky Mountains |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070714142008/http://biology.usgs.gov/s%2Bt/SNT/noframe/wm146.htm |archive-date=July 14, 2007 }}</ref> The {{convert|2300|km|mi|adj=mid|-long|sp=us}} [[Appalachian Mountains]] run along the east coast of North America from [[Alabama]] to [[Newfoundland (island)|Newfoundland]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ohiohistorycentral.org/entry.php?rec=2067 |title=Appalachian Mountains |publisher=Ohio History Central |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070501041411/http://www.ohiohistorycentral.org/entry.php?rec=2067 |archive-date=May 1, 2007 }}</ref> North of the Appalachians, the [[Arctic Cordillera]] runs along the eastern coast of Canada.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.evergreen.ca/nativeplants/learn-more/arctic-cordillera.php|title=Arctic Cordillera|work=evergreen.ca|access-date=May 17, 2007|archive-date=April 18, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090418173914/http://www.evergreen.ca/nativeplants/learn-more/arctic-cordillera.php|url-status=dead}}</ref>

The largest mountain ranges are the [[Andes]] and [[Rocky Mountains]]. The [[Sierra Nevada]] and the [[Cascade Range]] reach similar altitudes as the [[Rocky Mountains]], but are significantly smaller. In North America, the greatest number of [[fourteener]]s are in the United States, and more specifically in the U.S. state of [[Colorado]]. The highest peaks of the Americas are located in the [[List of mountains in the Andes|Andes]], with [[Aconcagua]] of [[Argentina]] being the highest; in North America [[Denali]] (Mount McKinley) in the U.S. state of [[Alaska]] is the tallest.

Between its coastal mountain ranges, North America has vast flat areas. The [[Interior Plains]] spread over much of the continent, with low relief.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://vulcan.wr.usgs.gov/LivingWith/VolcanicPast/Notes/interior_plains_region.html|title=Interior Plains Region|access-date=September 8, 2014|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130809003610/http://vulcan.wr.usgs.gov/LivingWith/VolcanicPast/Notes/interior_plains_region.html|archive-date=August 9, 2013|df=mdy-all}}</ref> The [[Canadian Shield]] covers almost 5&nbsp;million km<sup>2</sup> of North America and is generally quite flat.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://redpath-museum.mcgill.ca/Qbp/Natural%20History/nat_hist.html|title=Natural History of Quebec|access-date=September 8, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110706185133/http://redpath-museum.mcgill.ca/Qbp/Natural%20History/nat_hist.html|archive-date=July 6, 2011|url-status=dead|df=mdy-all}}</ref> Similarly, the north-east of South America is covered by the flat [[Amazon basin]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.amazonconservation.org/home/strategy.html |title=Strategy |publisher=Amazon Conservation Association |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070403082802/http://www.amazonconservation.org/home/strategy.html |archive-date=April 3, 2007 }} 
</ref> The [[Brazilian Highlands]] on the east coast are fairly smooth but show some variations in landform, while farther south the [[Gran Chaco]] and [[Pampas]] are broad [[lowland]]s.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www2.jpl.nasa.gov/srtm/southAmerica.htm|title=South America images|access-date=September 8, 2014}}</ref>