Great Sahara Desert. Sahara (desert)

The largest and most famous desert is the Sahara. Its name translates as "sand". The Sahara desert is the hottest. It is believed that there is no water, vegetation, living creatures, but in fact this is not such an empty area as it seems at first glance. it unique place once it looked like a huge garden with flowers, lakes, trees. But as a result of evolution beautiful place turned into a huge desert. It happened about three thousand years ago, and yet five thousand years ago the Sahara was a garden.

Geographic features

The Sahara Desert is located in Sudan, Algeria, Tunisia, Chad, Libya, Morocco, Mali, Niger, Western Sahara and Mauritania. In summer, the sand warms up to a temperature of 80 degrees. This is one of the few places where evaporation exceeds several times the amount of precipitation. On average, about 100 mm of precipitation per year falls in the Sahara desert, and evaporation is up to 5500 mm. On hot, rainy days, raindrops disappear by evaporating before they hit the ground.

There is fresh water under the Sahara. There are huge reserves of it here: under Egypt, Chad, Sudan and Libya there is a huge lake, in which there are 370 thousand cubic meters of water.

The desertification of the Sahara desert began about five thousand years ago. The found rock paintings of those times prove that several thousand years ago there was a savannah in place of the sands with a large number of lakes and rivers. Now in these areas in the sand you can see huge channels. During the rains, they are filled with water, turning into full-fledged rivers.

In the photo of the Sahara desert, solid sands are visible. They occupy a large area. In addition to them, in the desert there are sandy-pebble, pebble, stony, saline types of soil. The thickness of the sands is on average about 150 m, and the largest hills can reach a height of 300 m.

According to scientists, in order to scoop out all the sand from the desert, each person on Earth had to endure three million buckets.

Climate

Here is the real kingdom of wind and sand. In summer, the temperature in the Sahara desert rises to fifty degrees and above, and in winter - up to thirty. In the southern part of the Sahara, the climate is tropical, dry, and in the north - subtropical.

Rivers

Despite the drought and heat, there is life in the desert, but only near water bodies. the biggest and great river is the Nile. It flows through desert lands. In the last century, a reservoir was built on the banks of the Nile. Because of this, there was big lake Toshka. The Niger flows in the southwest, and within this river there are several lakes.

Mirages

The air temperature in the Sahara desert is so high that at certain moments mirages are created. Exhausted by the heat, travelers begin to see oases with green palm trees and water. It seems to them that these objects are two kilometers away from them, but in fact the distance is measured at five hundred or more kilometers. This is an optical illusion due to the refraction of light at the boundary different temperatures. There are hundreds of thousands of such mirages per day in the desert. There are even special maps designed for travelers that tell you where, when and what you can see.

Animal and plant world

It is amazing that the desert is filled with a variety of animals. Over the millennia of evolution, they have adapted to survive in such conditions.

Animals of the Sahara desert are found everywhere, but most often near rivers and lakes, oases. In total, there are about four thousand species. Even in such an arid region as Death Valley, where there is no rain for several years, there are a variety of fauna. Here you can even meet thirteen species of fish.

Desert lizards are able to collect moisture from environment. Sahara is a habitat for camels, monitor lizards, scorpions, snakes, sand cats.

All plants that grow in the desert have their roots deep underground. They are able to get water at a depth of more than twenty meters. Mostly thorns and cacti grow in the Sahara.

Amazing weather facts

Where the Sahara desert is located, real miracles are happening with the weather. As mentioned above, during the day the air warms up to fifty degrees and above, and at night the temperature drops sharply - to zero and below. There have even been snowfalls here. A photo of the Sahara desert in the snow can be viewed in our article - this is amazing phenomenon happens about once every hundred years.

Once every few years, in some parts of the desert, such an amount of precipitation falls that there is enough moisture to transform the area. It is rapidly turning into a flowering steppe. Plants' seeds for a long time can be in the sand, waiting for moisture.

There are oases in the desert. There is always a small pond in the center, and vegetation around it. Under such oases there are huge lakes, with an area larger than our Baikal. Groundwater feeds surface lakes.

Desert Features

Desert - unique a natural phenomenon. Travelers can watch how huge dunes move. Due to the winds, the sands are shifting right before our eyes. And in the Sahara the wind blows every day. This is due to the relatively flat surface of the territory. And if there is no wind for at least twenty days a year, then this is real luck.

The size of the desert is constantly changing. If you look at satellite images, you can see how the Sahara is expanding and shrinking in size. This is due to the rainy seasons: where they passed in large numbers, everything is quickly covered with vegetation.

Sugar is largest deposit oil and gas. There are deposits of iron, gold, uranium, copper, tungsten and other rare metals.

In the center of the desert is the Tibesti Plateau, which covers the south of Libya and part of Chad. Above this territory rises the Emmi-Kusi volcano, about three and a half kilometers high. In this place almost every year you can see snowfalls.

Tenere occupies the northern part of the desert - this is a sandy sea with an area of ​​\u200b\u200babout 400 kilometers. This natural creation is located in northern Niger and western Chad.

How people live

In those places where the Sahara Desert is located, people once lived, trees grew, there were many lakes and rivers. After the area became deserted, people went to the banks of the Nile, forming the ancient Egyptian civilization.

In some parts of the Sahara, people are building houses out of salt. They do not worry that their housing will melt from the water, because the rains here are rare and in small quantities. Their bulk does not have time to reach the ground, evaporating in the clouds.

Population

The Sahara is a sparsely populated area. About two million people live here, and most of the people live near water bodies, on islands with vegetation that allow them to feed livestock.

There were times when the territory was densely populated. In the desert, people are engaged in cattle breeding, and along the banks of rivers - agriculture. There are people involved in other crafts such as fishing.

Once upon a time, a trade route passed through the desert, connecting the Atlantic Ocean with northern Africa. Previously, camels were used to move goods, and now two highways have been laid across the Sahara, connecting several large cities. One of them passes through the largest oasis.

Desert location

Where is the Sahara desert located and how big is it? This miracle of nature is located in Africa, in the northern part of the continent. It stretched from west to east for about five thousand kilometers, and from north to south for a thousand kilometers. The area of ​​the Sahara is about nine million square kilometers. This area is comparable to Brazil.

On the western side, the Sahara is washed by the Atlantic Ocean. In the north, the desert borders the Mediterranean Sea, the Atlas Mountains.

The Sahara captures more than ten states. Most of its territory is not inhabited, as these lands are not suitable for human life. There are no oases, rivers, lakes. All settlements located precisely along the banks of water bodies, and most of the population of the continent lives on the banks of the Nile.

Scientists on the Sahara

The Sahara continues to evolve. Gradually, it captures more and more new territories. According to scientists, every year it wins the land from people, turning them into sands. Scientists' forecasts are disappointing. If the processes of depopulation continue, then in two hundred years the whole of Africa will become one huge Sahara.

The results of the ongoing observations showed that every year the Sahara increases in size by ten kilometers. And every year the covered area increases. If the desert growth continues, then all the rivers and lakes of the continent will dry up forever, forcing people to leave Africa and move to other countries of the world.

About ten thousand years ago, the territory where the most big desert our planet, the Sahara, was covered with grass, low shrubs and was densely populated. After the fact that our planet slightly changed the tilt of its axis, the climate began to change gradually, it became hot, the rains stopped - and many representatives of the animal world left the resulting desert.

Sahara (translated from Arabic - "desert") is the largest desert on our planet, which is located in northern Africa and is located on the territory of ten states. On the geographical map, it can be found at the following coordinates: 23° 4′ 47.03″ s. w., 12° 36′ 44.3″ e. d.

The Sahara occupies about thirty percent of the African continent, and its area is about 9 million km2:

• From east to west, the length of the desert is 4800 km: the Sahara begins off the coast of the Atlantic Ocean and ends off the coast of the Red Sea.
• The length of the Sahara from south to north ranges from 800 to 1200 km. The desert begins in the north of the mainland near the coast of the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlas Mountains, the southern border is limited to 16 ° N. sh., in the region of sedentary ancient dunes, south of which begins the tropical savannah of the Sahel, a transitional area between the desert and the fertile soils of Sudan.

When exactly on the territory of the African continent the Sahara desert was formed, scientists do not have a common opinion: earlier its age was estimated at 5.5 thousand years, then at four, recently they began to lean towards the idea that it is even younger, and its lands became desert only about three thousand years ago.

The desert is located in the northwest of the stable ancient African platform, so ground trembling is now rarely observed. In the center of the platform, from west to east, the relief rises: one of the largest high-mountain regions of the desert are the Ahaggar and Tibesti plateaus, where, unlike the rest of the Sahara, snow falls for a short time almost every year.

From the northern and southern parts of the uplifts there are deflections of the platform, where in former times the sea was located, and therefore the presence of marine sedimentary rocks is characteristic of the soil. In the south of the desert, the platform deflection has led to the formation of large lakes, which are the main suppliers of fresh water of your region. First of all, we are talking about Lake Chad and the Ounianga group of lakes.

Sands occupy only a fourth of the Sahara, while the thickness of the sand layer is about 150 meters. Rocky soil predominates: it occupies about 70% of the desert area, the rest is volcanic mountains, as well as pebble and sandy-pebble soil.

Also, there are many aquifers ( sedimentary rocks with varying degrees of water permeability, the cracks and voids of which are filled with water), which are the main suppliers of water to oases.

Sometimes fertile lands are also found in the desert - mainly near oases that take water from underground rivers and reservoirs, the water of which, due to its own pressure, was able to reach the ground.

On the map of Africa, the Sahara is divided into several regions:

• Western Sahara - located in northwestern Africa, the territory is characterized by coastal lowlands that turn into elevated basement plains and plateaus.
• The central highlands of Ahaggar - on the map is located in the south of Algeria, the highest point is Mount Tahat with a height of 2918 meters, so snow often falls here in winter.
• The Tibesti mountain plateau is located in the center of the desert, in the north of the state of Chad and partly in the south of Libya. The highest point of the plateau is the volcano Emi-Kushi, almost 3.5 km high, on top of which snow falls every year.
• The Tenere Desert is located in the south-central Sahara. It is a sandy plain with an area of ​​\u200b\u200babout 400 thousand km2, which is located in the northeastern part of Niger and in western Chad.
• The Libyan Desert - on the map of Africa, it is located in the north and is the driest region of the desert.

Climate

Sahara is the hottest and hottest place on our planet: even the driest desert in the world, Atacama, which is located in South America, cannot be compared with it.

The weather here in summer is extremely hot: the air temperature at this time often exceeds 57°C, and the sands heat up to 80°C. At the same time, the Sahara desert is one of the few places on our planet where evaporation significantly exceeds the amount of precipitation (with the exception of narrow coastal strips). While the average precipitation is only 100 mm (while in the center they may not be for several years in a row), it evaporates - from 2 to 5 thousand mm of moisture.

Conventionally, the Sahara can be divided into two climatic zones, northern (subtropical) and southern (tropical):

The northern part of the desert is characterized by hot summers (up to 58°C) and cold winters (especially cold weather in the mountains, where the temperature can drop to -18 °C). The annual rainfall is 80 mm, rainy weather here from December to March and in August, while thunderstorms and even severe short-term floods are not uncommon. In winter, the high plateaus of Ahaggar and Tibesti receive a short snowfall almost every year.

The south is characterized by mild winters, and at the end of a hot and dry period, rains fall. In the mountainous regions, there is little rainfall, and it falls evenly throughout the year. In the lowlands, rains fall in summer, often accompanied by thunderstorms, with about 130 mm of precipitation per year. In the west, near the Atlantic coast, more high humidity, than in the rest of the Sahara, there are often fogs.

The difference between daytime and nighttime air temperatures in the Sahara is often about forty degrees: average temperature in the center of the desert in July is 35 °C, while at night the air temperature drops to +10 or +15 °C. The weather here is warm even in winter: the temperature of the coldest month of the year is + 10 ° C (therefore, snow is an extremely rare phenomenon).

The climate of the Sahara is greatly influenced by constantly blowing strong winds, especially in the north of the desert (only 20 days a year are calm). Winds blow mainly from north to east: the movement of wet air masses Mediterranean air stops the mountain range of the Atlas Mountains.

As for the air currents that move from the south, when they reach the central part of the desert, they manage to lose moisture. Therefore, the winds in the northern part of the desert have a particularly destructive force. They move at a speed of about 50 m / s and, raising dust, sand, small stones to a height exceeding a thousand meters, cause tornadoes and the strongest sandstorms, often moving the dunes.

Water resources

The only river in North Africa that runs through the eastern part of the Sahara towards mediterranean sea is the Nile, whose length is 6852 km (the river is the second longest after the Amazon, and flows through South America).

Since a large part of the water evaporates as you move through the desert, its two tributaries, the White and Blue Nile, which flow into it in the southeast of the desert (they are very clearly distinguishable on the map), play an important role. In the 60s of the last century, between Egypt and Sudan, the Nasser reservoir was created, the total area of ​​​​which exceeds 5 thousand km2.

In the south of the Sahara, several river flows flow into Lake Chad, the area of ​​\u200b\u200bwhich ranges from 27 to 50 thousand km2 (depending on precipitation in the region), after which part of the water leaves the lake - and the water continues to flow in a northeasterly direction, replenishing watersheds.

In the southwest flows the Niger River, which flows into the Gulf of Guinea of ​​the Atlantic Ocean. This river is interesting in that starting almost near the ocean, 240 km from the coast, it flows in the opposite direction, into the Sahara, after which it turns sharply to the right and continues on its way in a southeast direction (the shape of the river, if you look at the map of Africa, looks like a boomerang).

AT northern part desert water comes from wadi streams, temporary streams of water that appear after heavy rains and flow down the mountains. Wadis also feed the desert soil in its central part. A lot of rainwater is in the dunes: once in the sand, the water seeps through the slopes and flows down.

Under the sands of the desert there are huge pools of groundwater, thanks to which oases are formed (there are especially many of them in the north of the Sahara, while in the south the aquifers are located deeper).

Another source of water in the largest desert on the planet is located on the outskirts and in mountain ranges of relict lakes (the remains of former seas), often swampy and salty, although fresh water is often found among them (for example, the water of most lakes of the Unianga group).

Flora

There is little vegetation in the Sahara - mostly shrubs, herbs and trees that grow near a natural reservoir, along a wadi or in high-altitude regions, among them olives, cypress, dates, thyme, citrus fruits.

In areas where there is little water supply, only those types of vegetation are found that tolerate drought well. There are no plants at all in rocky massifs, in places where sands accumulate.

Fauna

Almost 4 thousand representatives of the animal world live in the desert, most of which are invertebrates. Animals of the Sahara desert live mainly near the water (they are practically not found in arid regions) and are nocturnal.

Most of the animals are monitor lizards, cobras, lizards, chameleons, snails. Crocodiles, frogs, crustaceans are found in reservoirs. There are about sixty species of mammals, among them - cheetah, spotted hyena, sand fox, mongoose.

About 300 species of birds live in the Sahara, 50% of them are migratory. These are, first of all, ostriches, African owl, trumpet and desert crows and others.

Desert and people

Despite the vast area, the desert is sparsely inhabited: only 2.5 million people live here. Some peoples lead a nomadic lifestyle, but most prefer to settle down. People settle only near oases, as well as in the valleys of the Nile and Niger rivers, where in order to survive on their own and feed livestock, there is enough water and vegetation. At the same time, cattle breeding: goats and sheep prevails over fishing and hunting.

Sahara Desert- the largest desert in the world, which covers an area of ​​​​almost 10 million square kilometers and occupies almost a third of the entire territory of the mainland. The desert area touches 10 neighboring African states. Sahara is the hottest and most dry place planets. Temperature regime here it rarely drops below 30 degrees. Rain is extremely rare here. But powerful storms, raising whirlwinds of sand to a height of 1 kilometer, are not uncommon here.

The most ancient information about the desert dates back to the beginning of our era. Residents of the countries neighboring the desert often refer to the desert as an endless sea of ​​​​sand. Here you can find only dark sand, clay and stone scorched by the sun. All that can be found here except for sandy expanses is a handful of oases and a single river.

The Sahara is an endless sea of ​​sand.

Sahara (Sahra) in Arabic means a brown monotonous empty plain. Saying the name of the desert several times aloud, a slight wheezing is felt, which intensifies with each new time of continuous pronunciation. Perhaps in this way the Arabs wanted to show that the farther a person goes into the desert and the longer he wanders through it, the stronger the rattle of an emaciated person is heard, who is subject to sizzling heat and becomes exhausted without water and humid air. In our country, the word "Sahara" is pronounced somewhat softer than among Africans, but the formidable charm of the desert atmosphere is still felt in it.

It is difficult to refute the fact that the Sahara is the hottest place on the planet. Here, the air temperature annually reaches over 55 degrees, and once a maximum figure of 73 degrees was recorded.

But you are probably interested to know how the average Russian or European feels when visiting the Sahara. We invite you to familiarize yourself with the words of one tourist who spent 3 days in the desert:

"Morning. A huge scorching sun rises below the horizon and heats up the sand in a few minutes. After a few more minutes, it is impossible to stand on him barefoot, his legs burn and are very strong. The air is incredibly dry and hot, it burns your lips, as soon as you lick them, they immediately begin to dry and crack. It is worth mentioning the proverb that says that in the Sahara the wind rises with the sun and subsides with it. Indeed, during the daytime, the wind can rage very strongly and bring strong sandstorms, which you can survive ordinary person extremely difficult without special equipment. At night, the unbearable heat subsides, and the wind blows with a very noticeable coolness. Such differences are difficult to tolerate even stones and stone structures. They burst here, making a barely audible crack. Because of this nuance with stones, they were even given the name "Shooters", and among the local population there is a saying that even stones scream from the heat in sugar.

However, deserted sugar also cannot be called. Here you can often meet nomadic Tuareg, especially in uninhabited areas. Local residents called them blue ghosts, since their main attribute is a blue veil that completely covers the face, leaving only a thin strip around the eyes to see the route. It is customary to give such bandages-veils at the age of 18 to young men who have become men. From this moment on, he can put on a bandage at any time, however, when the accessory is on his face, it cannot be removed until death. It is only allowed to move the mask to the level of the nose when eating.

Where is the desert located?

The endless desert is easy to find, focusing on the territory between the Atlantic Ocean and the Red Sea. In a north-south direction, it spreads across the entire territory from the foothills of the Atlas to Lake Chad, along the savannah zone. The territory of the desert in different sources indicates different and is within 7-10 thousand square kilometers.

Weather.

The desert climate is expected, but we will deal with it in more detail. The climate of the Sahara desert is classified as extra-arid. Dry weather prevails here with tropical hot days. high humidity with rainfall more than 1-2 times a year can be seen only in the northern part. This fact explains that the main part of the desert is affected by the northeast trade wind, which "walks" through it for a whole year.

active influence on climatic conditions The desert is provided by the northern Atlas mountain range, which stretches across almost the entire territory of the African continent. He does not allow the clouds to penetrate the desert. It rains regularly in the southern part of the Sahara, but it dries up and does not reach the central parts of the desert.

A very high coefficient of air dryness and excessively active evaporation prevent rain from falling normally to the ground in any corner of the desert. Although, the Sahara is still divided into three zones according to the amount of precipitation:

• South (precipitations periodically fall, but very scarce);
• Central (no precipitation, except for 1-2 times a year);
• North (there is practically no precipitation, as the clouds linger in the mountains).

The direction of the desert from west to east also has its own characteristics. Near the Atlantic Ocean, you can occasionally encounter fog, but you should not expect rain either, since the Canary Current cools the west wind.

Air humidity - 30-40%. On the outskirts of the desert, the figures may be slightly higher. Active evaporation of precipitation (6000 millimeters per year) already says a lot about the desert itself. On the territory of narrow coastal strips, precipitation is slightly higher and evaporation can fall up to 2500 millimeters. The earth reaches only 50-200 millimeters of precipitation per year. There are also areas where not a single drop of rain has been observed for the past hundred years.

The desert comes to life only during heavy rains. At this time, stormy water flows lead to flooding of all neighboring villages. Only then does the desert truly come to life. Unfortunately, these facts are very rare. There is little rainfall in the desert, but it is overflowing with groundwater, which is actively used by the inhabitants of many African villages.

Due to the large temperature differences between day and night, most of the Sahara is characterized by dew. But on Ahaggar and Tibesti, snow was recorded several years ago.

The critical temperature in summer can reach 70 degrees, however, forecasters say that the maximum summer temperature constantly fluctuates around 57 degrees. The average annual temperature in the Sahara is 37 degrees. The minimum indicators in the mountains can reach sub-zero temperatures, but during severe January colds, the average temperature throughout the desert is in the range of 15-17 degrees.

Sandstorms can be found here almost daily, as well as prolonged strong winds. Sometimes strong storms can drag on for several days. The wind speed in these cases can be over 50 meters per second, which is almost twice stronger than a hurricane. Caravaners and Bedouins often talk about how saddles with a camel can fly 200 meters away, and stones the size of a fist calmly roll on the ground like a pea.

Strong winds are often accompanied by sandy dust. Visibility becomes zero, looking at the sun is like an eclipse, and the wild animals of the Sahara desert completely lose their bearings.

Sahara is a place of eternal sands and hurricanes that can carry dust and sand to Europe and the Atlantic Ocean.

Sahara - cities walled up with sand

According to historians, the Sahara has not always been a dry and lifeless land. During the Paleolithic period, which falls on the period of 10,000 years ago, there were more than humid climate and instead of endless sands there were savannahs and steppes. The local population was engaged in agriculture, hunting, fishing, cattle breeding. As confirmation of these words, there are many rock paintings in all corners of the desert.

Since that time, many large cities and villages of the present Sahara have been buried under the sand. Archaeologists still find elements of houses and various structures under a large thickness of sand.

Boston scientists claim that in the west of Sudan, in the place where the desert is now, there used to be a huge lake similar to Baikal. According to them, there was a lake at a level of 570 meters. Scientists believe that several rivers took their sources from this reservoir. Now, like many villages, the lake is hidden under a layer of sand.

It is very difficult to determine the age of the buried lake, but in the old days it was regularly replenished from heavy rains.

The drought in what is now the Sahara began 5,000 years ago. At first, the grass dried up here because of the scorching sun, the waters gradually evaporated and soaked into the ground for recharge. Herbivores instinctively began to run away to better feeding places. They were followed by predatory groups of animals of the Sahara desert. Most of the animal species of those times are still preserved. They found shelter in Central Africa where they live today.

The last to leave the territory, which was already unsuitable for existence, were people. Only a few decided to stay, claiming that this was their home. Centuries later, they began to be called nomads or Tuareg.

The only place that now reminds of the former valley on the site of the Sahara is the plateau of many rivers. It was in this form that life once flourished here.

Sahara - a vast sandy plateau pierced by a river

The Sahara is far from being one huge desert, as we used to think. For Africans, the Sahara is a generalized name for a huge number of small areas that are connected by the relief space and the climate of the Sahara Desert. East End The Sahara is called the Libyan Desert, the voids from the right bank of the Nile to the Red Sea are the Arabian. South of the Arabian - Nubian. In addition to the above deserts of the Sahara, there are many small ones that we will not mention. Most of them are separated by mountain ranges and massifs.

The Sahara has several high mountains, heights up to 3.5 kilometers and the dried crater of the Emi-Kushi volcano. Its diameter is 12 kilometers. But most of the territory is occupied by sand dunes, hollows, occasionally decorated with salt marshes and oases. Do not forget about dry depressions, one of which is located in the Libyan desert. Its bottom is at a level of 150 meters below ocean level.

All these elements perfectly complement the desert. When viewed from above, an unimaginable outlook opens up, which causes great delight.

But in general, the Sahara is a huge plateau, which is broken only by the depressions of the Nile valleys and Lake Chad. Mountain ranges are located only in three places, the rest of the territory is a once-existing plain covered with sand.

Plants of the Sahara Desert

The northern part of the desert is much richer in flora than the southern part and is categorically different in plant species. The northern part is more characteristic of the Mediterranean flora. southern part The Sahara has rare patches of paleotropic flora.

Most of the plants here belong to the endemic genus of plants, which, in turn, belong to the red-flowered, composite and haze families. Vegetation is very sparse in drier and extra-arid areas.

The southwest of Libya is rich in only nine plants of the Sahara desert, which can exist in European countries. If you drive along the southernmost border of the Libyan desert, you can not meet a single plant. But in the Central Sahara, the diversity of flora is wider than in other regions. Big variety Vegetation is achieved here only at the expense of two desert uplands Ahaggat and Tibesti. At the highlands of Tibetsi, near water bodies, ficus and ferns grow. The territory of Ahaggat is rich in relic specimens of the Mediterranean cypress.

After light rains, ephemera sprout in the desert. Often you can find grass-shrub formations, tiers in the form of acacias, undersized randonia and cornulaka. In the northern belt you can find jujube.

The extreme west of the desert is rich in large succulent plants. Here you can quite often meet cactus euphorbia, sumac, wolfberry, acacia. The coast of the Atlantic Ocean is covered with Afghan trees. Cereal plants of the Sahara Desert, feather grass, mallow, ragwort, bonfire, etc. dominate on the mountain ranges.

Throughout the desert, you can find date palms that grow near rivers and oases.

Sahara Desert Animals

The desert fauna is very rich, unlike the flora. More than 500 species representatives of different groups live here, including:

• About 70 species of mammals;
• More than 300 representatives of beetles;
• More than 200 representatives of birds and winged animals;
• Approximately 80 species of ants.

Touching upon species endemism, it is worth noting that in some groups it can reach 70%, for example, in insects. There are no endemics among birds, and only 40% among mammals.

Among mammals, rodents are the most common. In particular, the families of squirrels, jerboas, hamsters and mice are common. Large ungulates in the Sahara are only partly distributed. The harsh conditions of survival in the desert do not allow them to exist normally here. Moreover, the population of nearby countries is actively catching them for their own needs.

A lot of antelopes live in the Sahara. The largest antelope is the aryx. Maned sheep can be found on plateaus and coasts.

From the class of predators, one can single out striped jackals, which are very numerous here, Egyptian mongooses, miniature chanterelles and velvet cats.

Birds in the Sahara are very rare. Fritillaries, larks, desert sparrows are regulars of the desert. Less often you can meet the desert crow, eagle owl, sandpipers. Representatives of lizard-like and serpent-like animals have adapted very well to sugar.

The most important symbol of the Sahara desert has long and still remains the camel.

Mirages - the most mysterious phenomenon of the Sahara

A rare inhabitant of the planet earth dare to travel to the Sahara. Along the way through the sandy expanses, you may encounter mirages more than once. It is worth noting that they always appear in the same places. Some travelers of the desert even managed to draw up a map-plan of the appearance of mirages. Now mirage maps contain about 160 thousand marks of their location. The maps contain a detailed description of what is seen at these points: oases, wells, mountain ranges, groves, etc.

The sunset in the desert lands looks no less beautiful. The sky, adorned with the rays of the setting sun, daily creates a new harmony of shades of blue, red and Pink colour. All this beauty gathers on the horizon in several layers, sparkles, burns and changes in form, gradually fading away. After a couple of minutes, a gloomy night sets in, in which the brightest stars are barely visible.

Now a trip to the Sahara is available to anyone. If you leave Algiers, you can get to the Sahara along a good road in one day. Along the way, you can see the stunning El Kantara Gorge. The gorge got its name because it connects the populated area and the desert. Translated from the African dialect as the Gateway to the Sahara. The road here runs through clay and rocky plains, as well as small rocks. When viewed from afar, the rocks resemble a fortress or a tower.

Guell Er Richat - The largest structure in the world

The object is located in the Sahara in Mauritania. Its diameter is almost 50 kilometers. According to ancient legends, this ring was formed more than one and a half billion years ago. No one knows the reasons for the appearance of the structure, but some scientists believe that Guel-er-Rishat arose as a result of a meteorite fall. Today, research teams continue to study this piece from space and cannot explain how the perfectly even shape was preserved.

The company site offers you excursions to the Sahara. These are short-term trips for 3-4 days to exhausting desert regions. You will be able to ride camels with the overseer. The most daring travelers and thrill-seekers can go through the entire desert. Before committing such madness, consult a doctor.

The most famous and largest desert on Earth, covering approximately 5,000 km in northern Africa. The Sahara stretched from the Red Sea to the Atlantic. Its landscape gives way to high dunes, flat sandy areas and dunes, as well as rare but lush oases. This endless desert was included in the version of our site.

Despite the fact that the Sahara passes through 11 African states, it can only be visited freely in Morocco and. Translated from Arabic, the name of the desert means a monotonous brown desert plain. The climate in this area is perhaps the hottest on Earth. In places here summer temperatures exceed 57 degrees Celsius, and if rare rains occur, the drops may not reach the ground, drying in the air. It is best to visit the Sahara, or rather its northern part, from October to May, until the air temperature becomes unbearable.

In the western regions of Egypt, a rather vast region of the Sahara is concentrated. Alas, it is not as picturesque as those areas that remain in remote countries, but it also deserves the attention of tourists. To the south of Siwa is a chain of oases interspersed with rocky deserts. You can also go to the heart of the desert by camel or jeep from El Kharga, Dakhla or Bahariya. Moving south, you can reach the places where the famous movie "The English Patient" was filmed.

The most beautiful landscapes of the Sahara open, of course, in its interior regions, for example, in Algeria, Libya or Mauritania. The longest and most deserted sand dunes are in Algiers. Many would like to take a look at these fantastic landscapes, and there are many excursions in this direction, but there are not so many risky ones.

Attraction Photo: Sahara Desert

Sahara desert in Tunisia

Sahara Desert in Morocco

One of the largest and most famous deserts on the planet is the Sahara, which covers the territory of ten African countries. In ancient writings, the desert was called "great". These are endless expanses of sand, clay, stone, where life is found only in rare oases. Only one river flows here, but there are small lakes in oases and large reserves of groundwater. The territory of the desert occupies more than 7.7 million square meters. km, which is slightly smaller than Brazil and larger than Australia.

The Sahara is not a single desert, but a combination of several deserts that are located in the same space and have similar climatic conditions. The following deserts can be distinguished:

Libyan

Arabian

Nubian

There are also smaller deserts, as well as mountains and an extinct volcano. You can also find several depressions in the Sahara, among which Qatar can be distinguished, with a depth of 150 meters below sea level.

Climate conditions in the desert

The Sahara has an extra-arid climate, that is, dry and hot tropical, but on far north- subtropical. In the desert, the temperature maximum on the planet was recorded at +58 degrees Celsius. As for precipitation, they are absent here for several years, and when they fall, they do not have time to reach the ground. A frequent occurrence in the desert is the wind that raises dust storms. The wind speed can reach 50 meters per second.

There are strong daily temperature fluctuations: if during the day the heat is over +30 degrees, which makes it impossible to breathe or move, then coolness sets in at night and the temperature drops to 0. These fluctuations cannot withstand even the hardest rocks that crack and turn into sand.

In the north of the desert is the Atlas mountain range, which prevents the penetration of Mediterranean air masses into the Sahara. Humid atmospheric masses move from the south from the Gulf of Guinea. The climate of the desert affects the neighboring natural and climatic zones.

Plants of the Sahara Desert

Vegetation spread unevenly throughout the Sahara. More than 30 species of endemic plants can be found in the desert. Flora is most represented in the Ahaggar and Tibesti highlands, as well as in the north of the desert.

Plants include the following:

Acacia

Animals in the Sahara Desert

The animal world is represented by mammals, birds and various insects. Among them, jerboas and hamsters, gerbils and antelopes, maned sheep and miniature chanterelles, jackals and mongooses, dune cats and camels are found in the Sahara.

There are lizards and snakes here: monitor lizards, agamas, horned vipers, sand ephs.

The Sahara Desert is a special world where an extra-arid climate has formed. Here is the hottest place on the planet, but there is life here. These are animals, birds, insects, plants and nomadic peoples.

Desert location

The Sahara Desert is located in North Africa. It occupies the expanse from the western part of the continent to the eastern one over 4.8 thousand kilometers, and from north to south 0.8-1.2 thousand kilometers. The total area of ​​the Sahara is approximately 8.6 million square kilometers. FROM different parts light desert is bordered by such objects:

• in the north, the Atlas Mountains and the Mediterranean Sea;
• in the south - the Sahel, a zone passing to the savannahs;
• in the west - the Atlantic Ocean;
• to the east is the Red Sea.

Most of the Sahara is occupied by wild and uninhabited spaces, where you can sometimes meet nomads. The desert is divided between such states as Egypt and Niger, Algeria and Sudan, Chad and Western Sahara, Libya and Morocco, Tunisia and Mauritania.

Sahara desert map

Relief

In fact, sand occupies only a quarter of the Sahara, and the rest of the territory is occupied by stone structures and mountains of volcanic origin. In general, we can distinguish such objects in the desert:

• Western Sahara - plains, mountains and lowlands;
• Ahaggar - highlands;
• Tibesti - plateau;
• Tenere - sandy expanses;
• Air - plateau;
• Talak - desert;
• Ennedi - plateau;
• Algerian desert;
• Adrar-Iforas - plateau;
• Al-Hamra;

The largest accumulations of sands are in such sandy seas as Igidi and the Great Eastern Erg, Tenenre and Idekhan-Marzuk, Shesh and Aubari, the Great Western Erg and Erg-Shebbi. Meet more different shapes dunes and dunes. In some places there is a phenomenon of moving, as well as singing sands.

If we talk in more detail about the relief, sands and the origin of the desert, then scientists argue that the Sahara was previously the ocean floor. There is even the White Desert, in which white rocks are the remains of various microorganisms of antiquity, and during excavations, paleontologists find the skeletons of various animals that lived millions of years ago.
Now the sands cover some parts of the desert, and their depth in some places reaches 200 meters. Sand is constantly carried by the winds, forming new landforms. Under the dunes and dunes of the sands there are deposits of various rocks and minerals. When people discovered deposits of oil and natural gas, they began to extract them here, although it is more difficult than in other places on the planet.

Water resources of the Sahara

The main source of the Sahara desert is the Nile and Niger rivers, as well as Lake Chad. Rivers originated outside the desert, they are fed by surface and underground waters. The main tributaries of the Nile are the White and Blue Nile, which merge in the southeastern part of the desert. The Niger flows in the southwest of the Sahara, in the delta of which there are several lakes. In the north, there are wadis and streams that form after heavy rains and also flow down from the mountain ranges. Inside the desert itself there is a network of wadis, which was formed in antiquity. It is worth noting that under the sands of the Sahara there are groundwater that feeds some reservoirs. They are used for irrigation systems.

River Nile

Among the interesting facts about the Sahara, it should be noted that it is not completely deserted. More than 500 species of flora and several hundred species of fauna are found here. variety of animals and flora forms a special ecosystem on the planet.

In the bowels of the earth sandy seas deserts have sources of artesian water. One of the interesting phenomena is that the territory of the Sahara is changing all the time. Satellite images show that the area of ​​the desert is either increasing or decreasing. If the Sahara used to be a savanna, now it is a desert, it is very interesting what a few thousand years will do with it and what this ecosystem will turn into.