Alabama state, Детальна інформація

The Tennessee-Tombigbee (Tenn-Tom) Waterway project was designed to provide a water route from the Tennessee Valley to the Gulf of Mexico, by way of the Tombigbee River. It includes a canal in the northeastern corner of Mississippi that links the rivers.

Alabama's general coastline on the Gulf of Mexico is 85 kilometers (53 miles) long. If the shorelines of inlets, bays, and offshore islands are added, the total shoreline is 977 kilometers (607 miles).

Climate

People sometimes think of Alabama as an uncomfortably hot, tropical state, but this impression is false. Actually, there is a wide variety of climate from the highlands of the north to the beaches of the Gulf of Mexico.

Winter temperatures in the southern half of the state rarely drop below freezing. Snow is so rare that many children have never seen a snowfall. In the northern part of the state, winters are not so mild. Northwest winds bring cold snaps, but they are usually short and are followed by mild weather.

Summer temperatures tend to be about the same over the state. The summer is long, but extended heat waves are almost unknown. Along the coast the hot days are relieved by frequent breezes blowing in from the Gulf of

Mexico. Nights are cool and comfortable even in midsummer. In the north, summer temperatures are relieved by the higher altitudes and by cool forest shade. Spring and autumn are long and delightful. Autumn extends from early

September to well after Thanksgiving.

THE LAND

LOCATION: Latitude—30° 13' N to 35" N

.Longitude—84" to 53' W to 88° 28' W.

Tennessee to the north, Mississippi on the west, the Florida panhandle and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, Georgia on the east.

ELEVATION: Highest—Cheaha Mountain, 734 m (2,407 ft). Lowest—Sea level, along the Gulf of Mexico.

LANDFORMS: Highlands (the Interior Low Plateau and the Appalachian

Highlands) in the northern part of the state; lowlands (the Gulf Coastal

Plain) in the south and west.

SURFACE WATERS: Major rivers—Tennessee; Tombigbee, with its main tributary, the Black Warrior; Coosa and Tallapoosa, which join to form the Alabama;

Mobile, formed by the joining of the Alabama and the Tombigbee;

Chattahoochee. Major artificial lakes—Pickwick, Wilson, Wheeler, and

Guntersville, on the Tennessee River; Lay, Mitchell, Weiss, and Jordan, on

.the Coosa; Martin and Thurlow, on the Tallapoosa; Holt Reservoir on the

Black Warrior.

CLIMATE: Temperature—July average, about 27°C (80°F) statewide. January average, about 7°C (44°F) in north, 12°C (53°F) in south.

Precipitation—Rainfall average, 1,350 mm (53 in); varies from 1,320 mm (52 in) in north to 1,730 mm (68 in) along the coast. Growing season—Varies from about 200 days in north to 300 days in south.

Natural Resources

Leaders of the state like to say that Alabama has more natural resources than any other area of its size in the world. These resources include soils, minerals, forests, and water.

Soils. Alabama may be divided into several major soil areas. Along the

Coosa and the Tennessee rivers, there are valleys called limestone valleys.

The soils in these valleys are mainly red clay loams. They were formed by the weathering of limestone rock. The soils of the Appalachian Plateau are mainly sandy loams. Red sandy loams and clay loams cover much pf the

Piedmont Plateau. The soils of the Gulf Coastal Plain were formed from sediment laid down in the oceans that once covered the plain. Most of these soils are sandy loams or clay soils.