Hammada

HAMMADA IS AN Arabic word used to describe “desert pavement.” The deserts of the world that have sand dunes capture the imagination, but many of the world’s desert areas are bleak, stony deserts. Usually, the stony deserts are level plains that are virtually devoid of vegetation and also have very little, if any, soil. These deserts can have a relatively smooth, rocky surface that is hard, like road paving. Hammadas form in regions where the soil is either saline or alkaline, with little ability to absorb water, and winds are strong.

Desert paving or hammada (North Africa) is called by a number of names in the different hot and cold deserts of the world. The names are banada, desert crust, deflation armor, desert armor (North America), desert pavement, GOBI (CHINA), gibber (AUSTRALIA), lag gravel or reg (Africa, if the fine material remains), serir (Africa, if no fine material remains) and stone pavement.

Hammada describes a dark, stony desert surface without sand or vegetation. The dark color is “desert varnish” caused by wind-borne clay particles that carry bacteria living on them. The particles coat the rocks of the pavement coloring them with a dark sheen.

Desert regions covered with hammada have a surface that is fairly smooth. The wind has blown away most of the sand, soil, and dust. A layer of rocks on bedrock has formed that is so tightly packed that it forms a solid surface. There may be a layer of soil or dust under the hammada, but it can form directly on top of clean bedrock. The bare rocks that form hammada surfaces are usually relatively small and fit as tightly as a mosaic. Earth scientists describe these rock fragments as either primary or secondary. The primary stones are usually coarse, while the fine secondary material comes from the disintegration of the larger primary material.

There are several geomorphic theories explaining how hammada forms. One theory is that the pavement is a lag deposit. This theory says that the rock fragments of the pavement are what remains after the wind has blown away (deflated) all the small, fine-grained sand and dust. A second theory argues that moving water has deflated all of the fine material, leaving the hammada material behind to form the desert pavement.

A third theory sees the cycles of wetting and drying of the material as the cause. The exact nature of the process is not fully understood. Some claylike soils expand when wet, which forces stones to move upward. Another theory says that salt acts like water does when it expands or contracts in the freezing or melting process to create a stony surface. Another theory is that hammadas are caused by chilling and heating, as mechanisms that push stones to the surface of the desert and keep them there. Another theory is that several physical processes move the fine particles of sand and dust down between the stones of the hammada surface.

Hammada has been found on ALLUVIAL FANS, in dry WADIS, in terraces, on plateaus, on plains, and on bedrock. It is believed that hammada is also on the surface of the windswept planet Mars. Since hammada forms in such varied deserts conditions, it may be that all the theories are correct explanations.

The surfaces of many hammadas are hard enough for planes to use as landing strips. Vehicles can travel across the more solid variety, but excessive use can cause dust to rise from particles below the hammada surface. In the Atacama desert of Peru, the ancient Nazca people used hammada to make enormous drawings. Tank battle maneuvers and tank battles in North Africa, KUWAIT, and IRAQ have disturbed large areas of hammada, causing dust and sand dunes to form elsewhere. The damage to these deserts will take many years for nature to repair.

Haiti

HAITI IS LOCATED on the western third of the island of Hispaniola in the CARIBBEAN SEA. The country is mainly mountainous, with 60 percent of the land on gradients of at least 20 percent. The mountain ranges of Massif de la Hotte, the Massif de la Selle, and the Chaine du Bonet encompass much of the land. Two large peninsulas are present in the country. The peninsulas are separated by the Golfe de la Gonave.

The fertile river valleys and deep forests, which once provided beautiful sights, have diminished to a few. Haiti has suffered from deforestation, which has left only three percent of the land untouched. Much of the nutrient-rich topsoil has been washed away into the surrounding waters, which has destroyed some of the marine life. Because of the distinct range of elevations, the country has numerous plant species: 5,000 are spread throughout the land, including 600 fern and 300 orchid species. These plants thrive in the hot and humid climate throughout the year, with temperatures ranging from 65 degrees F (20 degree C ) to 85 degrees F (30 degrees C).

The history of Haiti is full of turbulence. After almost 200 years of rule, SPAIN ceded the western portion of Hispaniola to FRANCE in 1697. This area named Saint Dominique soon became one of the wealthiest nations in the Caribbean. Sugar plantations arose throughout the nation, and slaves were brought over in large numbers.

In 1791, a slave revolt, led by Toussaint Louverture, broke out across the colony. Louverture named himself lieutenant governor of the state in 1796. However, in October 1801, after a victorious campaign in Europe, Napoleon ordered an expeditionary force to Haiti to reclaim its lost colony. By November 1803, the last of Napoleon’s forces were routed and on January 1, 1804, the war-ravaged colony was soon declared independent of French rule and renamed Haiti.

In 1844, Santo Domingo (soon renamed the Dominican Republic) declared its independence from the struggling country. Haiti seemed to be spiraling into obscurity in the world stage. From 1843 to 1915, 22 dictators ruled the country. In 1915, the UNITED STATES invaded Haiti hoping to create stability in the country. By 1937, the American troops left the country, with the belief that the country was a modernized and thriving. For the next century, the Haitian government continued to struggle. During World War II, increased world market prices increased Haitian trade and greater exports. However, after the fighting ended, the country was still mired in poverty. François Duvalier was elected president of the country in 1957. Throughout his power, Duvalier struggled with the Catholic Church and citizens fleeing the country. He died in 1971, but his son, Jean-Claude Duvalier, took over the position. The Haitian economy continued to suffer and its external public debt increased to a staggering $366 million in 1980. The Haitian people continued to flee.

During January 1986, urban resistance overspread the country, led in particular by Jean-Bertrand Aristide. On February 7, 1986, Duvalier left Haiti, and General Henri Namphy, with American support, took control of the country. The Haitian government continued to promise the United States that elections would occur in November 1987. Three years later, Aristide won the presidential election. He took office in early 1991 but was overthrown by a violent coup.

During this three-year period, a military de facto regime ruled the country and refused to return to a constitutional government. The United Nations ultimately passed a resolution and sent in a multinational force to restore order in the country. Before the American-led force actually stepped into the country, a deal was brokered, which the Haitian de facto government peacefully accepted. Aristide was returned to the country, where he became president and the constitutional government was restored under the watchful eye of the United Nations.

For the next 10 years, the international optimism surrounding Aristide slowly diminished. He became embroiled in a variety of corruptive practices and many questioned the fairness of the presidential elections. Opposition parties rose and by early 2003, violence from all political sides began to flare up once again. In February 2004, Aristide fled Haiti, and afterward, U.S. Marines arrived along with 3,600 other international peacekeepers, to stabilize the situation. Haiti once again is trying to reestablish itself from its troubled past.

Hainan Island

THE SECOND-largest island (after TAIWAN) in CHINA with an area of 13,104 square mi (33,940 square km), Hainan Island is the most southerly province located in the South China Sea. The island is situated south of Guangdong province and west of VIETNAM. The topographic structure of the island resembles a staircase, with towering mountains in the middle and descending hills, plateaus, and plains toward the periphery.

Hainan Island enjoys a tropical maritime climate with abundant rainfall and year-round sunshine. The annual average temperature is about 77 degrees F (25 degrees C) and the average rainfall is 63 in (160 cm). Winter and spring are considered the dry seasons, while summer and autumn are wet. Good sunlight, heat and water allow a rich variety of crops like rice, tropical fruits, and coconut to be cultivated on the island. It is rich in mineral resources such as salt, natural gas, iron ore, and oil. But the island is also exposed to tropical storms and typhoons that hit the southeastern coast from July to September. Although geologically stable, it has a history of volcanic eruptions and mild earthquakes. Diseases ranging from malaria to mosquito-borne viruses plague the island.

Hainan Island is home to over 4,200 plant species and some 560 animal species, making it a destination for researchers. But deforestation could well threaten species extinction. The island is also a growing destination for tourists. Mainland Chinese and foreigners mostly flock to the southern coastal city of Sanya for surf and sun. In addition, the island has played host to international events like the Miss World Contest and Boao Forum for Asia.

Historically, the Li ethnic peoples were the first to inhabit the island 3,000 years ago. Other ethnic groups include the Miao and Hui peoples. The Han Chinese form the majority group. Backward and remote, the island was a place for exiles. In the early 20th century, many Hainanese emigrated abroad in search of a better life. Today, about 2 million Hainan Chinese are scattered in 53 countries worldwide.

In 1988, the island was made a special economic zone to boost foreign investment. The gross domestic product has increased tremendously, but economic development has gone through some boom-and-bust cycles. While rubber and agriculture are traditional industries, tourism, petrochemicals, biopharmaceuticals and machinery and electronic industries are expanding.

Guyana

THE NAME Guyana possibly comes from a local native word meaning “land of water,” but it could also derive from the word for “honorable people.” These Carib roots help demonstrate Guyana’s difference from the rest of the South American continent as one of the three non-Hispanic states on the northeast coast, wedged between VENEZUELA, BRAZIL, and SURINAME. Culturally, linguistically and economically, the three Guianas (along with Suriname, formerly Dutch Guiana, and FRENCH GUIANA) belong to the Caribbean region, and have been members of Caribbean regional associations since their inception.

The former British Guiana has a coastline of 285 mi (459 km), with the rest of the country stretching inland, encompassing the watershed of the largest river, the Essequibo, as it drains from the Guiana Highlands to the ATLANTIC OCEAN. The coastal regions are swampy, with river estuaries that provide an abundant harvest of shrimp, one of Guyana’s major exports. Much of this area is below sea level and relies on extensive dykes and drainage systems; still many houses are built on wooden stilts. The interior gradually increases to small hills, forest uplands, then mountains (the Pakaraima Mountains, up to 3,000 ft or 915 m shared with Venezuela and Brazil). Unlike the other two Guianas, Guyana also extends south of this band of mountains, into an area of tropical savanna grassland. Aside from this, forests cover approximately 80 percent of the country.

Hardwoods are exported and used for the manufacture of wood products, but forestry is possible only in areas accessible by existent roads or navigable rivers—both very limited beyond the first foothills. The frontier between lowlands and highlands is marked by striking natural features, including Kaieteur Falls, one of the highest waterfalls in the world (total drop of 822 ft or 250 m).

The highlands also contain significant mineral wealth, especially gold, but also diamonds, manganese, copper, and molybdenum. Bauxite (used to produce aluminum) was a big business in Guyana since the opening of the Demerara Bauxite Mining Company (DEMBA) in 1917. Reynolds Metal Company followed in 1953, and these two companies formed an essential component of the country’s economy. After independence from Britain in 1966, both companies were nationalized, and production declined in the following decades, until production was stopped altogether in 1983. Other resources remain unexplored and are potentially significant (iron, lead, silver, platinum) but are located too far from main roads or rivers to be commercially viable, and claims from Venezuela to nearly 70 percent of Guyana’s territory (the land west of the Essequibo) have also deterred some foreign investors.

The remoteness of much of southern Guyana was also an attraction for the People’s Temple cult, originally from the UNITED STATES, which made international headlines in 1978 after the mass suicide/murder of nearly 1,000 of its members.

Gulf Stream

THE GULF STREAM, a relative newcomer on the geological scene, is an odd, fast-moving circulation of warm water that travels in an unfixed position, a few hundred miles north of FLORIDA, up the east coast of the UNITED STATES to Cape Hatteras, NORTH CAROLINA, then onto Nantucket Island, before kicking eastward across the ATLANTIC OCEAN to the British Isles. In this way, the Gulf Stream, a part of the western edge of the North Atlantic circulation, acts as a boundary that prevents the warm water of the SARGASSO SEA from overflowing the colder, denser waters on the inshore side.

The Gulf Stream is one of the strongest and most extensive known currents in the world, and it is separated from the United States by a narrow strip of cold water. The Gulf Stream, which can be as much as 50 mi (80 km) wide and 1,300 ft (400 mi) deep, is caused by the northeast and southeast trade winds on the surface of the water and the equatorial currents that meet in the region of the windward islands of the CARIBBEAN SEA.

The Gulf Stream’s rival, the KUROSHIO CURRENT, located along the western edge of the PACIFIC OCEAN and the coast of JAPAN, is part of a transpacific system that connects the North Pacific, California, and equatorial currents. The Gulf Stream triples in volume and is strengthened by the waters from the Florida Straits, by way of the Florida Current, and by currents coming from the northern and eastern coast of PUERTO RICO and the BAHAMAS. It can travel more than 60 mi (96 km) a day.

The Gulf Stream, first mapped by Benjamin Franklin and his American whaling captain cousin Timothy Folger, early pioneers in using temperature in an attempt to define its boundaries, maintains its dimensions for nearly 1,000 mi (1,610 km) up the East Coast of the United States. Franklin, using observations of current speed in the region of the Gulf Stream and plotting them on a chart, was able to draw a river traversing the Atlantic Ocean with speeds ranging from 4 to 2 knots.

The strong carry power of the Gulf Stream’s warm equatorial layers of water has a notable, almost direct effect on the climate in various parts of the Earth. As the Gulf Stream moves pass Cape Hatteras, NORTH CAROLINA, it begins to flow away from the East Coast of the United States. The altered flow of the Gulf Stream, known as meanders or eddies, separates the cold slope water to the north from warm Sargasso Sea water to the south. As the Gulf Stream flows into deeper water, it carries warm water to the North Atlantic region, as it enters the Norwegian Sea between the FAROE ISLANDS and Great Britain. Thus, the Gulf Stream, which bathes northwest Europe with warmer water and wind currents, is largely believed to be the reason for mild European climate.

Too warm to encourage the kind of fish that are the main catch of North Atlantic waters, the Gulf Stream does bring well-developed specimens of tropical fish, like the Portuguese man-of-war jellyfish, much farther to north than they would normally venture. In addition, there are two particular species of plant (the double coconut tree indigenous to JAMAICA) and animal life (the freshwater eels of Europe) that are carried for thousands of miles by the Gulf Stream surface transport

system to the shores of IRELAND and Scotland.

Because the current patterns of the oceans has been the same as it is today throughout historical time, it becomes easy to understand that the Gulf Stream played an important role in the history of the New World. Indeed, it was during the early days of discovery of the West Indies, including the large islands of CUBA, HAITI, and Jamaica, that the Gulf Stream was first reported by Juan Ponce de Leon. During the American colonial period, the principal ocean routes for New England traders of rum and sugar and species—the direct northerly route influenced by clockwise circulation of the North Atlantic and the southwest route influenced by the clockwise currents northward past Florida—

played their part in the development of North America. Through the advent of frequent voyaging between the Old World and the New, the Gulf Stream came into its own as the most comfortable homeward route from the West Indies to Europe.

As we now understand, the Gulf Stream can be regarded as merely the outer edge of a general rotation of the surface waters of the North Atlantic. As such, it deserves it popularity with mankind because, in general, it has a benign influence on man’s affairs. The Gulf Stream has attracted the attention of many investigators and is probably the most studied example of ocean circulation. Although it can be questioned whether the Gulf Stream should be considered as a separate entity or regarded as the outer edge of the North Atlantic circulation, it is still one of the largest and fastest of the water circulation of the seas. It has always played an important role in the lives of people who live on the land that borders the North Atlantic.

Intertropical Convergence Zone

The Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ) is a narrow band where the trade winds of the two hemispheres collide. At or near the ITCZ, seasurface temperature (SST) is at a maximum. As the winds travel over the tropical water, they pick up moisture; where they collide, they are driven upward. The air is also forced upward by convection resulting from heating by the ocean. As the air rises, it cools, the moisture condenses, and heavy rain results. The heat released drives the regional and global atmospheric circulation. It also makes the ITCZ an origin site for cyclones. Another effect of the upward movement of air is relatively calm surface winds. This causes the ITCZ to be an area of downwelling, with low nutrients and productivity. The ITCZ interacts with other climatological features, affecting weather and climate in the tropics and subtropics.

The ITCZ might be expected to fall directly on the equator, because on average this is where the sun is strongest. In actuality, the ITCZ moves, but tends to fall preferentially in the Northern Hemisphere, over the eastern Pacific and the Atlantic oceans. The shift can be 10 degrees or more in latitude, or several hundred mi. (km), and it has significant effects.

The cause appears to be related to the western boundaries of South America and Africa, particularly the northwest to southeast slopes of the boundaries at the equator. This weakens the northeasterly trade winds, thereby warming the water north of the equator and allowing southeasterlies to cross into the north prior to convergence. The easterly trade winds are the prevalent winds in the tropical Pacific and Atlantic oceans.

These winds push the warm surface water west, exposing cooler water, known as the Equatorial Cold Tongue. Stronger trade winds in the south favor upwelling below the equator. Low-level stratus clouds above the cold water and evaporative cooling aided by the winds reinforce the hemispheric temperature difference and move it westward. The sun is closest to the Earth during northern winter, which may also favor prevalence of a northern ITCZ. The dominance of monsoons over trade winds in the Indian Ocean maintains equatorial symmetry there. The ITCZ fluctuates over many timescales.

Local winds are important seasonally, more distant winds can be significant interannually, and ocean circulation can affect sea-surface temperatures on decadal or greater scales. Normal annual migration is from 10 degrees north latitude in August to 3 degrees north in February. In March and April, a double ITCZ above and below the equator can form. Weak trade winds and subsequent decreased upwelling in El Niño years may move the ITCZ south of the equator in the Pacific. 

The asymmetry of the ITCZ aids in establishing an annual, rather than a biannual, weather cycle in the tropical eastern and central Pacific Ocean, even though the sun crosses the equator twice yearly. Seasonal air temperatures there exhibit wide divergence because the seasonal weakening and strengthening of the southeasterlies reduce or enhance upwelling and evaporative cooling. Models indicate that this phenomenon could intensify in response to increased greenhouse gases. Interannual and decadal variation in the ITCZ can result in droughts in some years, and floods in others. Southward displacement is associated with the increased occurrence and intensity of El Niño, while El Niño is suppressed by northward displacement.

The southward shift brings dry conditions to South America and perhaps western Africa, and increased rain in eastern Africa. Warming in one hemisphere or cooling in the other moves the ITCZ in the direction of warming. Past deflection of the ITCZ likely resulted from orbital changes that affected how the sun strikes Earth. Prolonged shifts have been linked to changes in human society, because of their effects on precipitation. The Northern Hemisphere is currently experiencing greater warming than the Southern Hemisphere because of the greater ocean heat sink in the south. This raises the possibility of change in the El Niño/Southern Oscillation regime. Changes in the Atlantic Meridional Circulation could also reorganize heat distribution, thereby evoking a response in the ITCZ.

International Geophysical Year

The International Geophysical Year (IGY), in French, Année Géophysique Internationale, took place between July 1, 1957, and December 31, 1958. The International Council for Science (ICSU) began designing it in 1952. The ICSU addresses global issues through international initiatives aimed to support scientists. A successful example of these initiatives, besides the International Geophysical Year, is the International Biological Program that took place from 1964 to 1974. The International Geophysical Year was inspired by National Academy of Sciences (NAS) member Lloyd Berkner and colleagues in 1950.

It was modeled after previous International Polar Years: 1882–83 and 1932–33. The IGY was to invite and allow all scientists to collaborate internationally in organized geophysical examinations. It would take place during peak solar activity from 1957 to 1958. Initially, 46 nations pledged to send representatives; however, the IGY was such a success that within the year, 67 nations actually participated. Participating scientists in the IGY represented 11 chief fields of Earth sciences: aurora and airglow, cosmic rays, geomagneticsm, gravity, ionospheric physics, longitude and latitude determinations, meteorology, oceanography, rocketry, seismology, and solar activity.

The NAS assembled a U.S. National Committee (USNC) to blueprint the extent of American involvement in the IGY. The USNC was established in March 1953 and chaired by Joseph Kaplan, then a professor of physics at the University of California at Los Angeles. The vice chairman of the UNSC was Alan H. Shapley, a physicist at the National Bureau of Standards. The NAS appointed another National Bureau of Standards member, Hugh Odishaw, as executive secretary. He would later become the executive director. Initially, the American contingent was to be 16 core UNSC members overseeing five working groups and 16 technical panels; however, the team quickly reached more than 200 member scientists.

As part of the IGY, both the United States and the Soviet Union launched artificial satellites into outer space. The Soviet Union launched the first artificial satellite in October of 1957; it was called Sputnik I. The U.S. artificial satellite Explorer I launched in January 1958. In 1956, the British established the Halley Research Station on the Brunt Ice Shelf in Antarctica, for the IGY; the bay housing was named Halley Bay, in honor of English astronomer Edmond Halley (1656–1742). The work carried out in the Antarctic, while not initially as esteemed as Arctic or equatorial work, proved to be pivotal for modern estimates of total ice content on Earth. These estimates were determined from measurements of ice depths in the Antarctic.

Internal Climate Variability

Internal or natural climate variability refers to variations over time in one or more measures of climate, resulting from natural causes. The distinction between climate variability and weather variability is based on the fundamental distinction between climate and weather: weather refers to meteorological conditions at a specific time and location, whereas climate refers to any statistical characterizations (such as a long-term mean) of weather conditions. Thus, for example, a single measurement of diurnal temperature range measures a weather variation, whereas an estimate of a multiyear mean diurnal temperature range is a climate variation. Natural climate variability is any variation in climate not resulting from human influences, such as increasing atmospheric greenhouse gases.

Natural climate variations occur on all timescales up to the age of Earth (for billions of years), and can be classified as either forced or unforced. Forced variations are caused by factors external to the climate system, including: Earth’s rotation (resulting in the daily cycle); Earth’s orbit (resulting in the seasonal cycle); large volcanic eruptions, which can result in more small particles in the stratosphere, lowering temperatures for a few years; variations in the sun’s inherent energy output, which may have caused, for example, the Little Ice Age during medieval times; variations in Earth’s orbital parameters, which result in redistributions of incoming solar radiation, and trigger glacial/interglacial cycles; slow motions of continents (plate tectonics); and slow changes in atmospheric composition, particularly greenhouse gas concentrations, resulting from changes in the balance between natural sources and sinks of these gases.

Unforced variations are internally generated redistributions of energy within the system that occur without changes in external factors. Important modes of unforced climate variability include: the Madden-Julian Oscillation, or variations in winds, cloudiness, and other phenomena in the tropics, with a timescale of 40–50 days; the El Niño/Southern Oscillation, a dominant mode of year-to-year tropical climate variability, characterized by changes in sea-surface temperatures in the tropical Pacific; the North Atlantic Oscillation, also known as the Arctic Oscillation and the Northern Annular Mode, variations in sea-level pressure in the Arctic, occurring simultaneously with variations of opposite sign at mid-latitudes in the Atlantic, reflecting north–south motions of atmospheric mass; and the Pacific Decadal Oscillation, changes in north Pacific climate, with a timescale of 20–30 years.

Feedbacks

Both forced and unforced modes of natural climate variability are affected by feedbacks: the responses of the climate system that either amplify or dampen the underlying variability. Glacial/interglacial cycles, for example, are exaggerated by ice-albedo feedback, in which land ice sheets (which result from cooling temperatures) reflect sunlight into space and thereby amplify cooling. Natural climate variability can be measured via traditional meteorological measurements, or different types of geological (proxy) measurements. Both approaches have limitations: the instrumental record (weather station measurements) is too short to characterize variability on many timescales of interest, while proxy measurements are typically too sparse to yield reliable estimates of variability over large regions (such as continents).

In principle, computer models of climate can be used to help understand natural variability, and simulations of intra-seasonal and intra-annual variability have improved in recent years. However, computational limitations prevent adequate simulation of millennial- and longer-timescale variability, and evaluation of simulations on these timescales is difficult. The character of natural climate variability has varied over time. In particular, records derived from ice cores show that the past approximately 10,000 years (the Holocene) have been unusually stable compared to the rest of the most recent 400,000 years; this is thought to have been a significant factor in the development of agricultural societies.

Natural climate variability on timescales of decades to a century complicates detection of anthropogenic climate change, the search for signals of human influences in the observed climate record since the late 19th century. Because there is no a priori way to attribute an observed climate trend to either natural variability or human influences, a common approach has been to determine if an observed trend is too rapid to result from natural variability alone. While simple in principle, this approach is complicated by the difficulty of characterizing natural variability on the timescale of about a century.

Indian Ocean

The Indian Ocean is the third-largest ocean in the world, after the Pacific and Atlantic oceans, and covers one-fifth of the world’s ocean surface area. It is bounded by 20 degrees east to 145 degrees east longitude and 60 degrees south to 31 degrees north latitude, and has a total area of 28 million sq. mi. (73.4 million sq. km). The coastline of the Indian Ocean is about 41,631 mi. (67,000 km). It is estimated that the oldest segment of the Indian Ocean’s seafloor was formed about 145 to 165 million years ago by the rifting of Africa and South America. The average depth of this ocean is 12,762 ft. (3,890 m), while the deepest point, near the southern coast of Java, is 24,442 ft. (7,450 m). There are about 36 coastal countries bordering the Indian Ocean.

The Indian Ocean is landlocked at the Northern Hemisphere and does not connect to Arctic waters. It does not appear to have a temperateto-cold zone and has fewer islands and narrow continental shelves compared to the Pacific and Atlantic oceans. It is the only ocean with a semiannually reversing surface circulation. Some studies, using observational data that began in 1958 and spanned 40 years, have found a dipole mode in the Indian Ocean as well as accompanying wind and precipitation anomalies like the Pacific and Atlantic oceans. The bottom water in the Indian Ocean originates away from its boundaries. The ocean has two sources of highly saline water: one in the Persian Gulf and the other in the Red Sea. The ocean’s water is extremely low in oxygen, especially in the north.

The most important climate process in the Indian Ocean is the monsoon. Monsoon dynamics are linked with the El Niño anomaly and with the Southern Oscillation atmospheric pattern of the South Pacific Ocean. But it is the Indian Ocean sea surface temperature (SST) that plays a key role in the regional climate dynamics in the Indian Ocean’s bordering regions. Although the Indian Ocean has been investigated for more than a century now, its role in the region’s monsoon variability has still not been fully analyzed because of complex issues as diverse as African orography, Himalayan snowfall, the El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO), or ocean dynamics. Therefore, the Indian Ocean remains an active area of research among Earth and climate scientists.

Regional Climate Zones

Based on atmospheric circulation, the Indian Ocean can be divided into four latitudinal climatic zones: the monsoon (10 degrees south to 31 degrees north), the trade wind (10 degrees south to 30 degrees south), the subtropical (30 degrees south to 45 degrees south), and the Antarctic (45 degrees south to 60 degrees south).

The climate in the latitude band of 10 degrees south to the north is very much influenced by the land boundaries of the Asian and Indian subcontinents. This massive land in the north sets up the required land–sea thermal contrast that is instrumental for the development of the monsoon. Ocean circulation changes are seen over the entire north Indian Ocean in terms of surface current reversals, coastal upwelling, and sea level variability. There is also evidence of SST anomalies over the Arabian Sea and Bay of Bengal to influence the interannual variability of the monsoon and fuel the genesis and intensification of tropical cyclones. The response to the reversing wind field is most important in the Somali upwelling region in the western Arabian Sea, with the Somali current directed toward the equator during the winter monsoon and poleward during the summer monsoon. This zone also receives freshwater input from several major rivers, including the Gangas and the Brahmaputra, in addition to significant amounts of rainfall during the southwest monsoon season. While synoptic observational estimates show the formation of a freshwater-induced barrier layer, the impact of freshwater input on regional SST is not as evident.

Because of the presence of an Indonesian low pressure, the prevailing equatorial winds are westerlies in this band. The main consequence of the westerly winds and surrounding landmass is the absence of an equatorial upwelling zone and a seasonal cycle of winds and currents. Thus, the annual mean winds and currents are almost negligible north of 10 degrees south, but at their peaks these winds and currents are as strong as any in the tropical oceans. The Bay of Bengal has a history of destructive tropical cyclones like the Nargis, which made landfall in Myanmar in May 2008. These storms typically occur just before and after the southwest monsoon rains. The northwestern part of this zone has the driest climate, with some areas receiving less than 9.8 in. (250 mm) of rainfall annually. The equatorial regions are the wettest, with an average of more than 78 in. (2,000 mm). Precipitation decreases from north to south.

The air temperature over the ocean in the summer is from 77 to 82 degrees F (25 to 28 degrees C), but along the northeastern coast of Africa it drops to 73 degrees F (23 degrees C) because of the upwelling of deep, cold water. The winter air temperature drops to 71 degrees (22 degrees C) in the northern ocean, remaining almost unchanged along and south of the equator. Cloudiness is 60 to 70 percent in summer and 10 to 30 percent in winter in the monsoon region.

The next zone is the trade wind zone, which lies between 10 degrees and 30 degrees south. A steady southeasterly trade wind prevails throughout the year in this zone. In the northern part of the zone, the air temperature averages from 77 degrees F (25 degrees C) during the winter (May–October) to slightly higher the rest of the time; along latitude bands parallel to 30 degrees south, the temperature varies from about 60 degrees F (16 degrees C) in winter to 71 degrees F (22 degrees C) in the summer (November–April). In this zone, a warm ocean current increases the air temperature by 5.4 degrees F (3 degrees C) in the western trade-wind zone than in its eastern part.

The third zone lies in the subtropical and temperate latitudes between 30 degrees and 45 degrees south. In the northern part of the zone the prevailing wind is light and varies across the zone, while in the southern area, moderate to strong westerly winds prevail. The average air temperature decreases with increasing southern latitude: from 68 to 71 degrees F (20 to 22 degrees C) down to 50 degrees F (10 degrees C) in the Austral summer (December–February), and from 60 to 62 degrees F (16 to 17 degrees C) to 43 to 44 degrees F (6 to 7 degrees C) in winter (June–August), whereas the rainfall is moderate and uniformly distributed.

The Antarctic zone covers the region from 45 degrees south up to the continent of Antarctica. In this region, a steady westerly wind prevails, occasionally reaching to a strong wind with its passage through deep Antarctic low-pressure zones. The average winter air temperature varies from 43 to 44 degrees F (6 to 7 degrees C) in the north to about 3.2 degrees F (minus 16 degrees C) near the continent, while for the summer, it varies from 50 to 24 degrees F (10 to minus 4 degrees C). Precipitation is frequent and decreases in quantity southward, with snow common in the far south.

Ice Albedo Feedback

Albedo is an estimate of the reflectivity of a surface. The sun produces solar radiation in wavelengths that can be reflected off of many of the Earth’s surfaces, some more so than others. The albedo of Earth is estimated as the ratio of the outgoing solar radiation (250–2500 nm), and the incoming solar radiation. A surface that is perfectly reflective (all incoming light is reflected back again) would have an albedo of 100 percent reflection, or a ratio of 1.00. A surface that has no reflectivity would have an albedo of zero percent reflection, and a ratio of zero. On Earth, open water, such as the oceans, has an albedo of 0.05, whereas newly fallen snow has an albedo of 0.90.

Ice and snow have an average albedo of 0.80. In the polar regions, this means that approximately 80 percent of the sun’s rays are reflected back into the atmosphere and only 20 percent of the ray’s transfer energy into melting the snow and ice. As the Earth warms, the amount of snow and ice cover decreases.

As snow and ice are very reflective, this works to keep the polar and high-altitude regions cooler.If, as in the polar regions, particularly the Arctic, approximately 80 percent of the solar radiation is reflected back to the atmosphere, the ice and snow do not melt completely and the permafrost that is located directly beneath the ice and snow is never warmed. If the permafrost remains frozen, the ice and snow on the ground are maintained and the air remains cool. This maintenance of the ice and snow keeps the albedo of the region fairly constant, reflecting most of the solar rays back to the atmosphere, and the ice and snow remain even longer. Scientists believe that this feedback loop that maintains the ice and snow has contributed to ice ages in the Earth’s past.

The opposite scenario can also be imagined. If the air temperature at the Earth’s surface increases, the ice and snow will melt more quickly. If there is less ice and snow cover at the poles and in the high altitude regions, the albedo will decrease (soil and vegetation are less reflective than ice and snow). If the albedo in a region decreases, more solar radiation will be absorbed by the Earth, which will further increase the surface temperature, melt more of the ice and snow, and perpetually warm the Earth. Scientists believe that global warming drives this ice-albedo feedback loop.

As global warming continues to increase the air temperature at the Earth’s surface, continual decreases in the amount of ice and snow covering large areas and the polar regions and high altitudes are expected. If this occurs, the ice and snow may permanently disappear from areas that were previously under snow for much, if not all of the year. If these areas are exposed, and, specifically, the permafrost is allowed to warm, melting of the permafrost layer will occur. If the permafrost layer were to melt, water drainage into the soil layers would increase. If this occurs, the peat layer beneath the permafrost that never decomposed because of a lack of water, will have vast amounts of water and warmer temperatures, suggesting fast rates of decomposition of the peat.

Peat stores carbon, and when it decomposes, the carbon is released as carbon dioxide (CO2) to the atmosphere. Scientists believe that CO2 release is contributing significantly to global warming. If the

peat decomposed and released more CO2 to the atmosphere, even higher temperatures at the Earth’s surface would, in turn, melt more ice and snow, and concomitantly release even more CO2 through further decomposition of the peat. The cycle would continue until no region would be permanently covered in ice or snow.

Without the high albedo to reflect the sun’s rays, expansive melting of ice and snow may occur. The contribution of melting ice to seawater would have a multitude of effects on global climate. For instance, if only the western Antarctic Ice Sheet alone melted, there would be a 16–20 ft. (5–6 m) increase in mean sea level. However, if the entire Antarctic Ice Sheet were to melt, there would be a 184 ft. (56 m) increase in sea level, causing catastrophic scenarios. Beyond sea-level rise, experts are concerned that the influx of freshwater to the oceans with the melting of the Antarctic Ice Sheet will significantly alter the salinity and temperature of the oceans, causing unpredictable effects on the ecosystems in this region. With decreased salinity, the evaporation rate of the oceans will change and the living organisms that are dependent on a stable aquatic environment may not survive. Changes in the ice-albedo feedback loop will likely have these and countless unpredicted effects on the Earth.

Jurassic Period

The Jurassic period extended from about 199 to  145 million years ago. This geological time period constitutes the middle of the Mesozoic era, also known as the Age of Dinosaurs. The start of the period is marked by the major Triassic–Jurassic extinction event. This period was named by Alexandre Brogniart for the extensive marine limestone exposures of the Jura Mountains, in the region where Germany, France, and Switzerland meet.

During the early Jurassic, the supercontinent Pangaea broke up into the northern supercontinent Laurasia and the southern supercontinent Gondwana. The Gulf of Mexico opened in the new rift between North America and what is now Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula. The Jurassic North Atlantic Ocean was relatively narrow, while the South Atlantic did not open until the following Cretaceous period, when Gondwana rifted apart. The Tethys Sea closed, and the Neotethys basin appeared. Climates were warm, with no evidence of glaciation. As in the Triassic, there was apparently no land near either pole, and no extensive ice caps existed.

The Jurassic geological record in western Europe is clear, where extensive marine sequences indicate a time when much of the continent was submerged under shallow tropical seas. In contrast, the North American Jurassic record is the poorest of the Mesozoic, with few outcrops at the surface. Although the epicontinental Sundance Sea left marine deposits in parts of the northern plains of the United States and Canada during the late Jurassic, most exposed sediments from this period are continental, such as the alluvial deposits of the Morrison Formation. The first of several massive batholiths were emplaced in the northern Cordillera, beginning in the mid-Jurassic, marking the Nevadan orogeny. Important Jurassic exposures are also found in Australasia, India, Japan, Russia, South America, and the United Kingdom. During the Jurassic period, the primary vertebrates living in the seas were fish and marine reptiles. The latter include ichthyosaurs, plesiosaurs, and marine crocodiles, of the families Teleosauridae and Metriorhynchidae. In the invertebrate world, several new groups appeared, including rudists and belemnites. The Jurassic period also had diverse encrusting and boring communities, and it saw a significant rise in the bioerosion of carbonate shells and hardgrounds. Especially common is the ichnogenus Gastrochaenolites. On land, large archosaurian reptiles remained dominant.

The Jurassic period was the golden age of the great sauropods, Camarasaurus, Diplodocus, Brachiosaurus, and many others that roamed the land late during this period. They were preyed upon by large theropods (Ceratosaurs, Megalosaurs, and Allosaurs). During the Late Jurassic, the first birds evolved from small coelurosaur dinosaurs. Ornithischian dinosaurs were less predominant than saurischian dinosaurs, although some, such as stegosaurs and small ornithopods, played important roles as small and medium-tolarge herbivores.

In the air, pterosaurs were common, filling many ecological roles now taken by birds. The arid, continental conditions characteristic of the Triassic steadily eased during the Jurassic period, especially at higher latitudes; the warm, humid climate allowed lush jungles to cover much of the landscape. Conifers dominated the flora, as during the Triassic; they were the most diverse group and constituted the majority of large trees.

Extant conifer families that flourished during the Jurassic included the Araucariaceae, Cephalotaxaceae, Pinaceae, Podocarpaceae, Taxaceae, and Taxodiaceae. The extinct Mesozoic conifer family Cheirolepidiaceae dominated low-latitude vegetation, as did the shrubby Bennettitales. Cycads were also common, as were Ginkgos and tree ferns in the forest. Smaller ferns were probably

the dominant undergrowth. Caytoniaceous seed ferns were another group of important plants during this time, and are thought to have been shrub to small-tree sized. Ginkgo-like plants were particularly common in the mid- to high northern latitudes. In the Southern Hemisphere, podocarps were especially successful, while Ginkgos and Czekanowskiales were rare.

There was no polar ice during the Jurassic period, so the sea levels were higher than they are now. The climate was warm. Early in the Jurassic, the continents were jammed together into a supercontinent known as Pangaea, making much of the inland area dry and desert-like. Toward the middle of the Jurassic period, when Pangaea began to break up, there were vast flooded areas, temperate and subtropical forests, and coral reefs.

The extensive water moderated the strong seasonality, so that by the end of the Jurassic, there was less seasonality than we have now. Many giant sauropods lived during the late Jurassic period. Conifers dominated the landscape. There was a minor mass extinction toward the end of the Jurassic period. During this extinction, most of the stegosaurid and enormous sauropod dinosaurs died out, as did many genera of ammonoids, marine reptiles, and bivalves.

Gulf of Aqaba

THE GULF OF AQABA is the north arm of the RED SEA; it is bordered by ISRAEL, JORDAN, EGYPT, and SAUDI ARABIA. Created by seismic activity along the Afro-Syrian Rift, it is the northernmost extension of the Red Sea. It is a semi-enclosed water body that extends south some 111 mi (180 km) from Eilat and Aqaba and joins the Red Sea at the Straits of Tiran, with its widest point spanning 17 mi (28 km).

Israel’s gulf shore extends only a few kilometers, from the city of Eilat to the border with Egypt at Taba. Jordan’s shore reaches some 12 mi (20 km) in length, before meeting with the Saudi Arabia border. Egypt enjoys the longest gulf border, which stretches some 105 mi (170 km) along the SINAI PENINSULA between Taba and the Straits of Tiran. The Gulf of Aqaba supports a world class coral reef ECOSYSTEM that is noted for its intense beauty and accessibility. The gulf is exceptionally deep, as much as 5,905 ft (1,800 m) in some points, with an average depth of 2,624 ft (800 m). 

Because of its desert environs, very little freshwater flows into the Gulf of Aqaba and its southern mouth at the Strait of Tiran is extremely narrow. As a result of these factors, the gulf is a highly saline, still environment, with limited hydrological interface with the Red Sea. Waters that have been used for centuries for fishing, trading, and the transport of religious pilgrims are today shared with oil tankers, massive cargo ships, and growing fleets of tourists. These increased high-impact and potentially devastating uses are of concern. Increased international and regional cooperation regarding conservation, pollution, and sustainable use have been encouraging.

In May 1967, during a time of attempted pan-Arab nationalism, President Abdul Nasser of Egypt closed the Gulf of Aqaba by blockading the Straits of Tiran and pledged that “under no circumstances will we allow the Israeli flag to pass through the Aqaba Gulf.” Israel’s military reaction gave proof to the Gulf of Aqaba’s strategic and political importance to the nations of the region. The Straits of Tiran played a critical role in the Arab-Israeli 1967 war, was returned to Egypt in the wake of the 1973 war, and has been monitored by a multinational peacekeeping force since 1982.

Lying along the international waterway through the Suez Canal, the Gulf of Aqaba is a natural transshipment area. Improved relations among the bordering nations have encouraged the development of the Aqaba-Eilat region as a commercial gateway between Asia, Europe, and Africa. Continuing improvements of the ports and transportation infrastructure have increased the Gulf of Aqaba’s role as a regional transshipment point between the MAGHREB countries and the PERSIAN GULF. Future proposals include upgrading the Port of Aqaba, establishing inland logistic centers, improving transportation networks, building manufacturing and storage facilities, and creating international passenger and commercial airports. This complex would then be connected to other Red Sea and MEDITERRANEAN SEA ports by railroad. Such ambitious projects and proposals have been presented by the Jordanian, Israeli and Egyptian governments.

Guinea-Bissau

THE REPUBLIC OF Guinea-Bissau, commonly called Guinea-Bissau, is a tropical West African nation-state. The borders include the ATLANTIC OCEAN on its west, GUINEA to its south and east, and SENEGAL to the north. Guinea-Bissau is an ethnically diverse country. While most of its residents are indigenous Africans, they belong to various ethnic groups. Thirty percent belong to the Balanta group, 20 percent are Fula, 14 percent are Manjaca, 13 percent are Mandinga, and 7 percent are Papel. The remaining are of European descent or mixed African and European ancestry.

Approximately 50 percent of the population adheres to indigenous African religions that recognize many deities and venerate ancestors. Forty-five percent identify themselves as Muslims and 5 percent as Christians. Portuguese is the official language of the country, although such native languages as Fulah and Mande are also in wide use.

The area was home to agricultural groups during the European Middle Ages. In the centuries before European contact, Guinea-Bissau underwent profound cultural, political, and population shifts. During the early 13th century, the displaced Soninke, an ethnic group from GHANA, fled to Guinea-Bissau when the Almovarids subjugated Ghana. Later, the area became a coastal outpost of the Mali Empire.

Portuguese advancement in ocean navigation and their desire for new sources of wealth combined in the mid 1400s to lead Portuguese explorers to northern and western Africa. Portuguese slave traders captured Guineans and sent them to plantations on CAPE VERDE, an island group off Guinea-Bissau’s coast. In the late 1600s, Guinea-Bissau became PORTUGAL’s first colony on the African continent. Despite pressures from other European colonial powers and colonized ethnic groups, Guinea-Bissau remained under Portuguese authority until 1974, when, after a 10-year war of independence led by the African Party for the Independence of Guinea and Cape Verde, the Republic of Guinea-Bissau was proclaimed.

The first 30 years of independence were fraught with difficulty. In 1980, Guinea-Bissau’s first president, Luis de Almeda Cabral, was overthrown by Prime Minister João Bernard Vieira. Supported by the military, Vieira ruled for 18 years, during which several unsuccessful coups were staged, political opposition was crushed, and ethnic tensions increased. Since 1998, Vieira and Kumba Yala, elected in 1998, have been deposed from power by coups.

Partly because of political turmoil, an undeveloped infrastructure, and a dependence on subsistence agriculture, Guinea-Bissau languishes in poverty. Today, the country is one of the poorest nations in the world. Using key health indicators for 2001, poverty has compromised Guinean health. At birth, for example, Guinean women have only a 40.6-year life expectancy. 

Men are expected to live 36.1 years. Infant mortality rates of 195 and 213 per 1,000 live births for Guinean female and male children, respectively, rank among the highest in African regions according to the World Health Organization. Economic and health improvements are possible with international effort but only through sustainable growth projects that take the natural environment, citizens, and industry into consideration. As a republic, Guinea-Bissau is in its infancy, and as the 21st century unfolds, whether it matures into a stable country will be determined by its people and their leaders.

Guatemala

THE REPUBLIC OF GUATEMALA is located in Central America and is bordered by the PACIFIC OCEAN, the Gulf of Honduras, otherwise known as the CARIBBEAN SEA, and four countries (EL SALVADOR, HONDURAS, BELIZE, MEXICO). The total length of the borders is about 1,296 mi (2,087 km), and the landscape is largely mountainous, with a limestone plateau. The two coastal areas are very narrow. Latino and Amerindian are the two major ethnic groups in Guatemala.

The mountainous areas of Guatemala are home to over 30 volcanoes. Many volcanoes are still active and this area experiences occasional earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. The Caribbean coastline is very narrow and beaches are nonexistent, while the Pacific coastline is characterized by black-sand beaches. Guatemala is intensely cultivated and agriculture employs 50 percent of the workforce; some people work on sugarcane and banana plantations.

Guatemala also features the Peten RAINFOREST, which is an archaeological treasure where many dinosaur bones can be found in the soil. However, the existence of the Peten rainforest, located within the interior of Guatemala, is being threatened as trees are being cut down. Soil erosion and water pollution also pose a great concern for the environment. Guatemala has a tropical climate that varies with elevation. The country’s coastal regions are generally hot throughout the year, with usual temperatures reaching up to 100 degrees F (38 degrees C). The summer seasons are hot and humid, while winters are warm and dry. 

These regions are susceptible to hurricanes and other tropical storms. The highlands are generally wet and cloudy during the summer, and the temperatures are not as hot as in the coastal regions because of the higher elevation. The climate in the Petén rainforest is mostly wet year-round. Summers are hot while winters are warm. There is a brief dry season from February to April. The rainforest is home to a variety of wildlife, which is in danger because of deforestation. The quetzal, the national bird, is almost extinct. Pumas, jaguars, ocelots, deer, tapir, and margay are among many of the animals living there.

Guam

A U.S. TERRITORY, the island of Guam is one of the largest islands in the north PACIFIC OCEAN, located about three-quarters of the distance from HAWAII to the PHILIPPINES. Its harbor, one of the best in the world, underlies the importance the island has held for the last five centuries to foreign powers in the region, first SPAIN, and now the UNITED STATES. Guam is the southernmost island of the chain known as the Mariana Islands and has been a territory of the United States since 1898. Much of the local economy is dependent on the U.S. military presence and on heavy subsidies, so it is unlikely there will be any moves toward independence in the coming years.

The island is 48 mi (77 km) long and roughly 4 to 9 mi (6 to 15 km) wide. Its closest neighbors are the Northern Mariana Islands, a U.S. commonwealth, and the newly independent Federated States of MICRONESIA to the south. Guam lies at the crossroads of TRADE ROUTES, 1,488 mi (2,400 km) east of Manila (Philippines), 1,612 mi (2,600 km) south of TOKYO (JAPAN), and 3,658 mi (5,900 km) west of Honolulu, Hawaii. 

Guam was formed by successive undersea volcanoes, which are older and more worn by erosion in the north, and younger in the south. The more hilly south has more streams and is thus more conducive to agriculture. The north is a coralline limestone plateau, with steep cliffs along the coasts. As part of the Pacific ring of fire, Guam also suffers from earthquakes. Coral reefs surround the island on all sides, causing some dangers for boats, which are increased by heavy swells and swift currents. Apra Harbor, located about 5 mi (8 km) southwest of the capital, is one of the best natural harbors in the Pacific, providing ample shelter during typhoons, which hit the island at least two times each year. The worst of these to strike in recorded history was in 1982, causing a great deal of damage.

The climate is maritime tropical, with little temperature variation, but increased rain during the southwest monsoons, July to October. Lush vegetation covers the island, with vines and palm trees, and tropical produce like bananas, breadfruit and coconut. Of particular value is the ironwood tree, termite resistant and extremely hard, now protected by law. There is limited natural wildlife, mostly birds, bats, insects, and sea turtles. The reefs have abundant tropical fish, squid and sharks. The nearby Challenger Deep in the Mariana Trench, at 35,838 ft (10,924 m) below sea level, is the deepest point on the planet.

The islands were populated by migrants, probably from the Philippines or Malay, who set up a number of chiefdoms based on matrilineal clans. Ferdinand Magellan landed here in 1521 on his way around the world and named the islands (the whole chain) the Ilhas das Velhas (“islands of sails” after the triangularshaped sails used by the natives, known as Chamorros). They were also sometimes called, pejoratively, the Ilhas de Ladrones (“thieves”). Although renamed by Spanish authorities the Marianas, in honor of the Queen of Spain, Mariana of Austria, the natives continued to call their island Guahan, or Guam. The Spanish did not settle here, but used it as a stop-off point in their annual trade convoys between MEXICO and the Philippines. 

Jesuit missionaries arrived in the later 17th century, and permanent settlements began. Struggles with colonial administrators and the introduction of European diseases quickly reduced the native population from an estimated 50,000 to 100,000 in 1600 to a mere 5,000 by the end of the century, reaching record lows of about 1,500 in 1780. The United States took over the island from SPAIN in 1898 and established a large military presence; the island was at first essential as a coaling station for ships crossing the Pacific, then as a fueling stop for transpacific flights. After a brutal occupation by Japanese forces from 1941 to 1944, Apra Harbor served as a main airbase during the Vietnam War era.

Guam remains an unincorporated territory under the administration of the Department of the Interior. In a 1982 referendum, Guamanians requested commonwealth status, and a Guam Commonwealth Act, approved in two plebiscites, has been repeatedly submitted to Congress since 1988 but has been stalled, perhaps from U.S. military concerns on the island. Its culture is very American, and almost entirely urban. Most Chamorros seem happy with that, except there is a growing fear of being overwhelmed numerically by Filipino immigrants.

Guadeloupe

GUADELOUPE, IN THE CARIBBEAN SEA, is one of the four French overseas departments (similar to states in the UNITED STATES). Guadeloupe is also a French region. There are two main islands, Basse Terre and Grande Terre, separated by a strip of water called the Rivière Salée. Other outlying inhabited islands are dependencies, namely Saint Martin, St Barthélemy, Désirade, Marie Galante, the Petite Terre and Saintes Islands.

These territories are collectively known as Guadeloupe. The climate is tropical and humid and the dry season runs from December to May (carême). During the rainy season (hivernage), June to November, temperatures generally rise. Guadeloupe’s climate is tempered by trade winds, but hurricanes and cyclones often wreak havoc in the area. Neighboring islands in the southwest Caribbean include the UNITED KINGDOM’s ANGUILLA and the NETHERLANDS ANTILLES.

The landscape is mountainous in the west (Basse Terre), and thick forest covers the slopes and thins out nearer to the coast. The highest point in Guadeloupe is La Soufrière in Basse Terre, a live volcano. Low limestone plateaus and coastal cliffs are typical of Grande Terre in the East. The other outlying islands are mainly volcanic. Approximately a third of the population lives in densely populated Point à Pitre on Grande Terre island. Guadeloupe was colonized in 1635, and in spite of spells of British occupation in 1759, 1794 and 1810, the island remained a French possession. 

The native Indian inhabitants were massacred, and the bulk of today’s black and mulatto population is descended from the slaves imported into Guadeloupe to labor on the sugar plantations. East Indians and some Chinese and Lebanese also contribute to the diversity of the population. Slavery was abolished in 1848, and the colony became an overseas department in 1946 and a region in 1982. As such, Guadeloupe is a member of the EUROPEAN UNION. The official language is French, but French Creole is spoken by the black and métis population.

Guadeloupe enjoys the same advantages as any other mainland French department or region in terms of health, education, and social welfare. The islands also benefit from special measures aimed at encouraging economic development (lower income tax for example). The islands are also popular tourist destinations for the French. Nevertheless, government subsidies are essential to Guadeloupe’s economic survival.

Growth Pole

GROWTH POLE REFERS to the concentration of highly innovative and technically advanced industries that stimulate economic development in linked businesses and industries. This concept was first introduced by François Perroux in 1950, was further sharpened in following publications, and finally evolved into an idea that came to take on a meaning rather different from the one posited by Perroux. While he had conceived a growth pole to be a focus of economic development in an abstract economic space, it was interpreted by his disciples, particularly Jacques Boudeville, to be a focus of development in geographic space.

Perroux, a 20th-century French economist, was largely influenced by the ecopolitical climate around him when he wrote about the concept of the growth pole. At this time, France was in its post-World War II phase of rebuilding itself under the Marshall Plan. Urban areas were the primary centers of economic growth, relying on technology- and innovation-based industries that thrived on primary resources such as iron ore or agricultural products from the surrounding region. These concentrations of industries often affected the economies of geographical areas outside their immediate regions. Also apparent to Perroux was the dominance of colonial centers over geographically dispersed colonized areas.

Perroux’s observation and belief was that concentrations of economic forces would develop in areas that could provide the material and infrastructural resources necessary for the establishment, sustenance, and growth of key industries. These resources contributed toward the economic growth of this cluster of industries and caused them to become key or “propulsive” industries that caused an economic thrust in related industries and businesses through “fields of (economic) forces.” The thrust was not necessarily felt in the growth pole’s surrounding region, or even within its country of location. Therefore, this concept recognized the forces of polarization but did not recognize geographic or political boundaries.

However, Jacques Boudeville and other interpreters of Perroux’s growth pole concept replaced “economic space” with geographic space, an idea that was readily adopted by regional planners and economic geographers who were pressed into making economic development plans on a regional scale. The idea was to identify selected nuclei for industrial growth to stimulate development in the surrounding area instead of focusing on the underdeveloped region as a whole. This idea was then touted as a remedy for jump-starting the slumping economies of entire regions or inducing development into economically retarded areas.

As history has shown, this theory did not readily translate into practice when it was applied in the developing world, and growth could not be injected into a geographic region by adding a growth pole into it. A more comprehensive territorial approach seemed to be more appropriate for both rural and urban development. Even in the developed world, Dutch national planning experience aimed at correcting regional imbalances by earmarking less developed areas for growth during the 1950s and 1960s did not have the desired “spread effect” in the surrounding area. It has since been realized that the failure was not of Perroux’s growth pole theory but of its faulty application as a space-bound concept, and a remedy for all regional underdevelopment. 

Today, as economic interaction encompasses macroregions and becomes globalized, Perroux’s original theory seems likely to find validation. A recent example of such growth pole effects may be found in the Silicon Valley in San Jose, CALIFORNIA. The information technology (IT) industry here grew at a meteoric rate in the 1990s, but the economic stimulus was not restricted to the state of California or even the United States. Its impact was felt through increased employment and social development in the developing countries of Asia halfway around the globe.

Grid And Graticule

THE EARTH IS NOT spherical but rather an ellipsoidal shape where the north and south poles are flattened and the equator bulges. This unique shape is called a geoid. In order to uniquely locate features on the Earth’s surface, a reference system is required. An imaginary network of lines called a grid or graticule is superimposed on the Earth to serve this purpose. Although the terms grid and graticule are used synonymously, there is a subtle technical difference in their meaning. A graticule is a referencing system tied directly to the Earth’s ellipsoidal shape. On the other hand, a grid is a network of perpendicular lines, much like graph paper, superimposed on a flat paper map to provide relative referencing from some fixed point as origin.

The graticule is composed of longitude lines (meridians), which run north-south, and LATITUDE lines (parallels), which run east-west. The longitude lines converge at the North Pole in the Northern Hemisphere, and at the South Pole in the Southern Hemisphere. The equator divides the Earth into two hemispheres. All meridians and the equator are great circles since they can form planes that cut the surface and pass through the center of the Earth. Small circles such as latitude lines form a plane that cuts the surface but does not pass through the center of the Earth. In this system of reference, geographic coordinates are measured in units of angular degrees.

There are 360 degrees of longitude around the equator, with each meridian numbered from 0 to 180 degrees east and west such that the 180 degree meridian is on the opposite side of the Earth from Greenwich, England. There are 180 degrees of latitude from pole to pole, with the equator being 0 degrees and the north and south poles being 90 degrees. Each degree is divided into 60 minutes (60’) and each minute is divided into 60 seconds (60”). The north-south line is called the prime meridian, which has been arbitrarily set to pass through the Royal Observatory in Greenwich, England. The longitude is measured as the angle between the point, the center of the Earth, and the prime meridian at the same latitude. West is positive and east is negative, meeting at 180 degrees at the international dateline. The east-west line follows the equator and is midway between the north and south poles. Degrees of latitude are measured as the angle between the point on the surface, the center of the Earth,

and a point on the equator at the same longitude. In

this graticule reference system, the size of the cells is

largest at the equator and the zones are square. At the

poles, the zones are smallest and triangular.

When the three-dimensional Earth is projected

unto a flat paper map there are distortions in distance,

area, and direction, and the projection process attempts

to minimize these distortions when transferring

the curved Earth to the flat map. The projection

process affects both the graticule and Earth features.

On the flat map there is no natural reference point, but

one can be defined using an arbitrary system of coordinates.

A grid of intersecting parallel and perpendicular

lines is placed over the projected map such that the origin

of the grid lines fall on a point of interest on the

map. This arrangement is called a grid reference system,

and every point on the flat map can be located with a unique X and Y coordinate. Usually, the X coordinates

are referred to as eastings and the Y coordinate

as northings. An example of a grid system is the Universal

Transverse Mercator (UTM) system.

Graticules are always expressed in geographic coordinates

(latitude and longitude) while grids are expressed

in some locally defined X and Y coordinate

system. In projected coordinate systems, graticules will

appear as curved lines (when necessary) to follow the

curved form of the meridians of longitude or parallels

of latitude in the projection. Grids, however, will always

appear as an arrangement of horizontal and vertical

straight lines.

Guinea

West Africa. It is bordered by GUINEA-BISSAU, SENEGAL, and MALI to the north, by CÔTE D’IVOIRE to the east and southeast, by LIBERIA and SIERRA LEONE to the south, and by the ATLANTIC OCEAN to the west. Guinea is a humid tropical country with four main geographic regions. There are alluvial coastal plains in Lower Guinea; the mountainous Fouta Djallon highlands in Middle Guinea, with an average elevation of 3,000 ft (915 m); the northern savanna in Upper Guinea; and the southeastern rainforest in Forest Guinea, which includes the Nimba Mountains.

Lower Guinea, also known as Maritime Guinea, stretches from the Atlantic Ocean inland to and including the foothills of the Fouta Djallon mountains. Tides along the coast are very high, reaching 15 ft (4.5 m), and creating an area of brackish marshes and estuaries that stretch many miles inland. Past these swamps is the alluvial plain, which is on average 30 mi (48 km) wide. Periods of heavy rain cover these plains resulting in soggy soil, but this along with the equatorial heat favor agriculture in this area. The people of Guinea grow rice, millet, maize, oil palms, kola trees, and in the southern part of Lower Guinea, bananas and pineapples. Originally living in this area were the medieval Ghana people; later it became part of the Mali Empire. Currently, the Soussous inhabit this area. Middle Guinea is covered by the Fouta Djallon Mountains, which consist of a mass of complex, elevated, relatively level plateaus. In many places, these plateaus are cut with deep, steep-walled valleys. Most of these valleys extend for long distances; many are at right angles to each other, creating a checkerboard appearance to the region. Many of the major African rivers begin in this area, including the Gambia, the Senegal, the NIGER, and 19 others. Living in Middle Guinea are the Peuhl, who raise cattle in the highlands. 

Upper Guinea stretches east of the Fouta Djallon and is covered in tall grass savannas. This area is cut by a long rocky spur stretching eastward along the Mali border for over 100 mi (160 km). Some shorter spurs also stretch east from the Fouta Djallon. Along the western border with Mali are rounded granite domes rising above the plains. This area is inhabited by the Malinke people, who also make up part of the inhabitants of the Forest region.

Forest Guinea covers the southeastern corner of Guinea. This area has several peaks above 4,000 ft (1,220 m). Many of these peaks are lightly forested and have crests of bare rocks. Below 2,000 ft (610 m), this area is covered in dense rainforest. The Malinke and other small groups, including the Gerze and Toma peoples, inhabit this area. They raise cattle and cultivate crops of rice, maize, cassava, bananas, coffee, kola trees, and oil palms.

FRANCE gained control of Guinea in 1898 when it defeated the armies of Samori Touré, a warlord and leader of Malinke descent. The French negotiated for the boundaries of Guinea that are in use today. On October 2, 1958, France withdrew from Guinea in the face of the Democratic Party of Guinea, led by Sékou Touré and backed by almost the entire native population of Guinea. Guinea became a dictatorship until Touré’s death in 1984. Since then, President General Lansana Conté has created civilian rule and democratic reform in Guinea.

Guerrilla Base

A GUERRILLA BASE or base area is a physically secure geographic location used by political dissidents from which they can launch military attacks. Historically, such bases were local or national. In 2003, the process became global, with guerrilla bases of al-Qaeda staged in AFGHANISTAN, PAKISTAN, the PHILIPPINES, SUDAN, and possibly South America. Since guerrilla bases are not randomly located and must provide both security as well as political access, their locations become somewhat predictable.

Using special geographic areas for political dissidents is not new. However, in the 1920s, Mao Zedong in CHINA developed specific guidelines for the location and geopolitical nature of such bases. For optimum political impact as well as general security of the participants, such bases should meet as many of the following location or geographic criteria as possible:

1. It is best if an area or group has had previous experience in anti-government protests or activities.

2. Ideally, a base should be located where there are multiple political or administrative boundaries that create confusion in terms of local government authority.

3. A location should be chosen that provides access to a multiplicity of political targets that are demographic, economic, or political.

4. The area selected should provide some kind of physical advantage against government military attack, for example, mountains, jungles, swamps, distance from formal military units.

5. To the extent possible, the location should be capable of economic self-sufficiency. That is, it should be largely invulnerable to the withholding of food or essential supplies.

The use of these geographic conditions can be applied at all scales, from national to regional and even in an urban context with appropriate modifications, for example, high-rises and slums may equal rugged topography and jungle analogues. The key is target access and personal safety. It is the objective of these groups that distinguishes them from simple bandit hideouts like those used by Jesse James and others. 

The ultimate objective is for each base area to become a proto-province or political unit. The creation of many base areas begins to form a geopolitical system and eventually an entire insurgent state. This was a calculated process in China during the civil war and has been used with varying degrees of success in almost all modern guerrilla wars.

The modern variation on this process is where an insurgent political movement (in this case, al-Qaeda) seeks to create bases among sympathetic concentrations of Muslims, regardless of where they may be located (Detroit, MICHIGAN, or the southern Philippines). The process is the same. Find a sympathetic population and locate in an area that has access to political targets yet provides some physical safety. In some instances, this safety has been provided by a sympathetic national government as in Afghanistan under the Taliban, and in Pakistan or YEMEN at various times.

Grenada

GRENADA IS AN independent island country in the CARIBBEAN SEA. It is a member of the British Commonwealth. The country was in the news in 1983, when the UNITED STATES led a successful military invasion of the island to protect U.S. citizens there and to restore the island’s parliamentary form of government. Free elections have taken place there ever since.

Grenada is one of the smallest nations in the Western Hemisphere; it is about twice the size of Washington, D.C. The country consists of the main island of Grenada, which makes up three-fourths of the country’s total land area, as well as hundreds of mostly uninhabited tropical islets. Three landscapes divide the main island: a coral-lined shore, an agricultural plain fringed by mangrove swamps, and a mist-shrouded volcanic highland. Tropical storms and hurricanes traveling from the Atlantic Ocean menace the islands each year. Volcanic eruptions also threaten the tiny nation: A volcano (Mount St. Catherine) dominates the main island of Grenada and a submarine volcano (Kick-Em-Jenny), which is the most active volcano in the Windward Islands region, rumbles fitfully 5 mi (8 km) offshore. The climate is the tropical-wet type. 

Temperatures average a sweltering 84 degrees F (29 degrees C) throughout the year. Northeast-flowing trade winds assure abundant moisture from June through November, when the Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ) passes over the islands. Precipitation decreases noticeably when the ITCZ shifts south during the remainder of the year. Due to the prevalence of the northeast trade winds, there is a prominent rain shadow area on the leeward (southwest) side of Mount St. Catherine.

All but about 700 of the country’s population lives on the main island of Granada. Approximately 82 percent of the people are black, 13 percent mixed black and European, and 5 percent European and East Indian. The only large urban center is the capital, St.George’s (population 4,300). English is the official language, but most people also speak French patois. The main island’s impressive production of nutmeg, cinnamon, ginger and cloves earns it the nickname Spice Island. Bananas, cocoa, citrus, avocados, sugar cane and root crops also earn income. Industry involves agricultural processing, construction, offshore financing, and tourism. Grenada was the world’s second-poorest country based on the percentage of the population living below the poverty line in 2003. (DOMINICA, which is also a Caribbean nation, ranked first.)

Greenland

ONE OF THE MOST northerly territories in the world is Greenland, located between the North ATLANTIC, the northeastern coasts of CANADA (Ellesmere and Baffin islands), and the ARCTIC OCEAN. More than two-thirds of the region lies above the ARCTIC CIRCLE. Greenland is technically considered part of North America, though ICELAND (usually considered part of Europe) lies only 186 mi (300 km) to the southeast. Greenland is the world’s largest island that is not considered a continent (like AUSTRALIA). It is roughly onethird the size of the UNITED STATES, and 50 times the size of its parent nation, DENMARK. Greenland has been a part of Denmark for centuries, officially integrated within the kingdom in 1953, but has had internal selfrule since 1978.

A victim (or beneficiary) of early Viking propaganda to encourage new settlements, Greenland is in fact mostly ice. The island consists almost entirely of a vast inland plateau covered in ice up to 9,800 ft (3,000 m) thick. It is estimated that this ice sheet, second in size only to ANTARCTICA, holds up to 10 percent of the world’s frozen water.

The interior plateau is surrounded on all sides by mountains, the highest being those along the east coast (including Greenland’s highest point, Gunnbjørn). A narrow coastal plain supports most of the settlements, mostly along the south-west coast. Here there is a short summer growing season, but, as in most of the rest of the island, the chief industry is fishing. Other economic activities include the hunting of whales and seals and, to some extent, tourism. Adventurous tourists are drawn to the rugged subarctic terrain and the dramatic ice fjords but primarily to the celestial attractions: the northern lights and the midnight sun. North of the Arctic Circle, the sun never sets between late May and late July. The town of Ilulissat (Jakobshavn) is one of Greenland’s tourism centers, both for the midnight sun and for its position among dramatic glaciers and icebergs that flow into Disko Bay. In contrast to the summer, however, most of these northern settlements see no sunlight at all from November to January. The east coast of Greenland is almost entirely uninhabited and has mostly been isolated from European contact.

Greenland’s official name, Kalaallit Nunaat, means “land of the people.” Most of its population are Inuits, closely related by language and culture to Canadian Inuits and Alaskan Eskimos. Migrations from North America occurred as recently as 150 years ago. Many traditional Inuit practices continue today, such as the use of kayaks in hunting (the word qajaq is Inuit), and the crafting of tupilaks, small grotesque figures carved in walrus tusk or reindeer antler to represent evil spirits. Europeans first arrived in southern Greenland around the year 1000, under the leadership of the Norwegian (Viking) chieftain Erik the Red.

By the early 15th century, however, these settlements were abandoned. English navigators charted the island again in the late 16th century, in the process of searching for the Northwest Passage to the Pacific. Danish and Icelandic settlers gradually established small fishing villages on the southwest coast, but it was not until 1921 that Denmark declared the entire island to be Danish territory, following the 1917 treaty by which Denmark sold the Virgin Islands to the United States, and in exchange, the United States relinquished its claims to the northern parts of Greenland.

Greenland has been developed economically only since the 1950s, as Denmark made strides to integrate Greenlanders more fully into the kingdom. There are still no roads between settlements, however, and attempts to commercially mine minerals beneath the interior ice cover (primarily zinc and lead) have been slow to develop. There is also potential for large deposits of uranium and oil, but these remain mostly unexplored.

The population continues to rely heavily on subsidies from Denmark (nearly $200 million a year). A 1978 referendum brought self-rule, and through a further vote in 1985, Greenlanders chose to leave the markets of the European Union after many years of haggling over fishing and mining rights. The capital city, Nuuk (Godthåb, Danish for “the headland”), is a very modern city, built mostly since the 1950s, and housing over 13,000 people, three times the population of the second-largest town. Rapid modernization has, however, taken a toll, and the city is marked with high unemployment, alcoholism, and teen suicide.

Greece

FOR OVER 4,000 years, Greece has been at the crossroads of civilizations. The great empires of the Western and Eastern worlds met, clashed, and exchanged ideas here. The ancient Greeks contributed to the development of European civilization in many ways, most notably in the areas of philosophy and politics. Shaped by their country’s lengthy coastline and rocky inhospitable interior, the Greek culture has always been dominated by the sea, as much for the ancients as it is today. Modern Greece is bordered to the northwest by ALBANIA, to the north by the Former Yugoslav Republic of MACEDONIA (FYROM) and BULGARIA, and to the east by the AEGEAN SEA and TURKEY. To the west lie the Ionian Sea and ITALY. Like Italy, Greece comprises a peninsula that protrudes into the MEDITERRANEAN SEA.

Greece is known officially as the Hellenic Republic, taking its name from the classical Greeks’ name for themselves, the Hellenes. At its height in the 5th century B.C.E., Classical Greek, or Hellenistic, civilization stretched from the western Mediterranean (Marseilles, FRANCE, was originally a Greek city) to the INDUS RIVER. Eclipsed by the rising Roman Empire in the 2nd century B.C.E., Greece reemerged as the center of the Mediterranean world with the founding of the city of Constantinople in 330 C.E., and the establishment of the Byzantine Empire. Byzantium slowly lost ground to the Ottoman Turks over several centuries, finally succumbing to conquest in 1453. For 400 years, Greeks

struggled to maintain their identity as a people within the OTTOMAN EMPIRE, until a successful revolt in 1829 reestablished an independent kingdom of Greece, which, over the next 60 years, gradually extended its boundaries to incorporate the rest of the Greek peninsula and the islands of the Aegean Sea.

This expansion was halted after a disastrous war with Turkey in 1922, which resulted in the deaths or forced migrations of millions of Greeks from Asia Minor and Anatolia. Lingering tensions between the two nations are not helped by the fact that many Greeks would like to see such quintessentially Greek cities as Smyrna, Ephesus, and especially Constantinople itself (modern ISTANBUL) returned to the fold. Pressure exerted by the NORTH ATLANTIC TREATY ORGANIZATION (NATO) and the EUROPEAN UNION (EU), however, has worked to end this conflict that has spanned a millennium.

Greece joined NATO in 1952, became a parliamentary republic by removing its king in 1974, and joined the European Community (forerunner of the EU) in 1981. Although cut off geographically from the other nations of the EU, it remains a solid outpost of European development in Europe’s southeast, and a strategic NATO partner at the doorstep of the MIDDLE EAST.

The modern nation of Greece consists mainly of the southern end of the Balkan Peninsula, and over 2,000 islands. A highly indented coastline stretches for over 8,400 mi (13,600 km). About 200 of the islands are inhabited, including the largest (and the fifthlargest in the Mediterranean), Crete. Greece’s second largest island, Euboea, nearly forms part of the mainland, running parallel to the Attic Peninsula for roughly 900 mi (1,500 km). Other major islands in the Aegean include Rhodes, Cythera, Naxos, Samos, Chios, Lesbos, and Lemnos, plus the island groups of the Cyclades, Sporades, and the Dodecanese. To the west of the peninsula lies the Ionian Sea, in which are even more islands: the Ionian Islands (Cephalonia, Zante and Ithaca) and Corfu. Many of these islands are important wintering grounds for migratory birds. The southernmost part of the Greek peninsula is nearly an island itself, the Peloponnesus, connected only by the narrow Isthmus of Corinth. This area was the site of powerful ancient city-states such as Mycenae and Sparta and the birthplace of the Olympic Games.

Immediately to the northeast is the Attic peninsula, where the majority of the Greek population lives, in and around the city of Athens (Athinaí, with a metropolitan population of 5 million, or 40 percent of the total population). Attica is also the site of many of Greece’s most ancient monuments, the city of Thebes, the oracle at Delphi, and several of the major battlefields of the ancient world, including the famous battle of Marathon, in 490 B.C.E., in which the Greeks defended their independence against the largest imperial power of the day, the Persian Empire. Greece’s second largest city, Salonica (Thessaloníki), is much further to the north, and is the capital of the province of Macedonia, a major port and industrial center. Macedonia includes the third major peninsula on mainland Greece, Chalcidice (Khalkidhiki), with its famous Orthodox monastery of Mount Athos, which has been allowed to rule itself autonomously for centuries.

Because it is made up of so many mountainous peninsulas jutting out into the sea, Greece has only a few rivers over 62 mi (100 km) in length. The longest of these, the Aliákmon, is only 184 mi (297 km) long. This river, and the Piniós to the south, are the primary rivers that drain the plains of Greece’s north-central regions (Macedonia and Thessaly). Greece has very few lakes, but there are three of significant size, one in each corner of Greece: Trikhonís in the southwest, Voïviïs in the east, and Vegorrítis in the far north. The spine that runs down the center of the main Greek peninsula is the Pindus Mountain range. These stretch from the highland province of Epirus in the northwest, down to

Attica and across to the Peloponnesus in the south. A second mountain chain, the Rhodope Mountains, runs along Greece’s northern border with FYROM and Bulgaria. The highest mountain in Greece, however, is not a part of either of these chains. Mount Olympus, reputed to be the home of the gods in Greek mythology, stands alone above the plain of Thessaly.

Thessaly forms one of the few places in Greece where the terrain is level enough to permit agriculture on a larger scale. The rest of Greece consists mostly of sharp, rocky hills, with a dry and temperate climate year-round, sufficient only for the cultivation of olives, grapes and goat’s cheese, Greece’s primary exports. Lacking rich farmland, the Greeks thus turned to the sea for their primary livelihood. Today, the Greek merchant fleet is the largest in the world (excluding nonnationally owned fleets, such as the multinational registries of LIBERIA or PANAMA). It is estimated that one family in 11 in Greece is connected in some way to the shipping industry and that Greek shipping accounts for 70 percent of all EU maritime commerce.

Other significant industries include tourism, especially with the exposure from the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens. Natural resources include bauxite (aluminum ore) and alternative power sources, including hydropower, geothermal, and solar energy, fueled by Greece’s ever-present sunshine. There are estimated oil reserves in the eastern Aegean, but these have largely gone untapped because of yet another conflict with Turkey over how far each nation’s boundary extends over the continental shelf. Turkey is not the only nation that has disputes with Greece. Albania contests the borders of Epirus, claiming large numbers of ethnic Albanians living inside Greek borders, which official Greek statistics do not show. The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia has been denied the use of its name “Macedonia” and its flag, the ancient symbol of Alexander the Great, since its independence in 1991. Although Greece dropped its economic blockade in 1995 (and allowed FYROM to take a seat at the United Nations), it continues to insist that the Slavic country drop its Hellenistic name and symbols.

Greece also firmly supports the claims of its Greek brethren to the entire island of CYPRUS, fanning the flames of continued ethnic strife with the Turks in northern Cyprus. Greece’s far northeastern province, Thrace, where roughly 1.5 percent of the population are Turkish Muslims, is, by contrast, quite peaceful. A Greek-Turkish partnership in NATO, and potentially in the EU, was furthered by the twin natural disasters of 1999. Rescue efforts from both nations were quick to come to the aid of victims of earthquakes only three weeks apart, leaving an impression of goodwill that bodes well for future regional cooperation.