Explore North America
North America is an ideal continent for physical mapping. The irregular coast, varied terrain, and diverse environments form a cartographic mosaic of colors and textures. Besides being beautiful, these features also tell geographic stories. The cordillera running along the entire Pacific coast gives evidence of the theory of plate tectonics. And looking south from Canada’s arctic islands to Panama’s rain forests, we see the influence of latitude and elevation on natural vegetation.
I first made this map during the winter of 2020-21 to keep busy during the pandemic. This new version, completely rebuilt from Natural Earth v.6 data and with terrain rendered in Eduard software, is more accurate, detailed, and prettier.
I hope that you enjoy using the map as much as I did making it.
Tom Patterson
November 18, 2025
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Physical Map of North America
Terms of use
The Physical Features of North America map is in the public domain. You may use it any way that you want. You are not required to cite the map.
6000+ labels!
Terrain art without type
Georeferenced terrain with hydrography, GeoTIFF, 350 DPI, 244 MB
Contact me
I will periodically update the map. Please let me know about major features to include or any problems that you find.
Thanks!
Tom Patterson Bio
Version 2.01, April 1, 2026 Change Log