Northern Europe
Northern Europe is the northern section of the vast peninsula to the west of Asia. It consists of the Scandinavian peninsula, Jutland, the Baltic plain as well as islands to the north west, including Greenland and Iceland. The landscape is flat in the south but more mountainous in the north of the region, particularly Scandinavia, and volcanic in Iceland (which is often classed as part of Scandanavia). The region's climate is affected by the North Atlantic drift (a branch of the Gulf stream, emanating from the Gulf of Mexico) which causes the climate of northern Europe to be warmer than it would otherwise be, with mild winters, cool summers and cloud and rain throughout the year.