Physicogeographical Country

one of the higher tax-onomic units in physicogeographical regionalization. A physico-geographical country is a part of a continent with a uniform geological structure (for example, a shield or a plate) or with a regular combination of structural elements. It also has a history of recent tectonic movements and therefore has a homogeneous macrorelief consisting of vast plains, plateaus, or mountain ranges or of combinations of these landforms.

The geographical position of physicogeographical countries determines the general features of their atmospheric processes and macroclimate, such as the interaction between marine and continental air masses and the degree of moisture. These features are reflected in latitudinal zonality (the number and distribution of landscape zones) and, in mountainous territories, in altitudinal zonality.

Examples of physicogeographical countries in the USSR include the East European (Russian) Plain, the Caucasus, the Urals, and the Western Siberian Lowland.