Brazil is the fifth largest country in the world; in terms of population (163 million) as well as land area. It is the economic leader of South America, with the ninth largest economy in the world, and a large iron and aluminum ore reserve. The Brazilian city of Sao Paulo is the third largest in the world with more than 22 million people.

Physical Geography

From the Amazon basin in the north and west to the Brazilian Highlands in the southeast, Brazil's topography is quite diverse. The Amazon River system carries more water to the ocean than any other river system in the world. It is navigable for its entire 2000 mile trip within Brazil. The basin is home to the most rapidly depleting rain forest in the world, losing about 52,000 square miles (20,000 square kilometers) annually. The basin, occupying more than sixty percent of the entire country, receives more than eighty inches (about 200 cm) of rain a year in some areas. Almost all of Brazil is humid as well as either has a tropical or subtropical climate. Brazil's rainy season occurs during the summer months. Eastern Brazil suffers from regular drought. There is little seismic or volcanic activity due to Brazil's position near the center of the South American Plate.

The Brazilian Highlands and plateaus generally average less than 4000 feet (1220 meters) but the highest point in Brazil is Pico de Neblina at 9888 feet (3014 meters). Extensive uplands lie in the southeast and drop off quickly at the Atlantic Coast. Much of the coast is composed of the Great Escarpment which looks like a wall from the ocean.

Political Geography

Brazil encompasses so much of South America that it shares borders with all South American nations except Ecuador and Chile. Brazil is divided into 26 states and a Federal District. The state of Amazonas has the largest area (600,000 square miles or 1.5 million square kilometers) and the most populous is Sao Paulo (about 35 million inhabitants). The capital city of Brazil is Brasilia, a master planned city built in the late 1950s where nothing existed before in the Mato Grasso plateaus. Now, more than 1.9 million people reside in the Federal District.

Urban Geography

Two of the world's fifteen largest cities are in Brazil: Sao Paulo (17 million) and Rio de Janeiro (10.1 million), and are only about 250 miles (400 km) apart. Rio de Janeiro surpassed Sao Paulo's population in the 1950s. Rio de Janeiro's status also suffered when it was replaced by Brasilia as the capital in 1960, a position Rio de Janeiro had held since 1763. However, Rio de Janeiro is still the undisputed cultural capital (and major international transportation hub) of Brazil.

Sao Paulo is growing at an incredible rate. The population has doubled since 1977 when it was an 11 million people metropolis. Both cities have a huge ever-expanding ring of shanty towns and squatter settlements on their periphery. Salvador is Brazil's third largest urban area with a population of about 4 million people.

Economic Geography

The state of Sao Paulo is responsible for about half of Brazil's Gross Domestic Product as well as about two-thirds of it manufacturing. While only about five percent of the land is cultivated, Brazil leads the world in coffee production (about 30% of the global total). Brazil also produces 26% of the world citrus, have 12% of the cattle supply, and produce 19% of the iron ore. Most of Brazil's sugar cane production (12% of the world total) is used to create gasohol which powers a portion of Brazilian automobiles. The key industry of the country is automobile production.