africa physical features
DESCRIPTION
Africa Physical Features. Sahara Desert. Largest desert in the world. Covers almost all of North Africa Almost as large as China or the United States. Countries located in the Sahara include… Algeria , Chad, Egypt , Libya, Morocco , Niger, Sudan , and Western Sahara. Sahara Desert. - PowerPoint PPT PresentationTRANSCRIPT
Africa Physical Features
Sahara Desert
Largest desert in the world. Covers almost all of North
Africa
Almost as large as China or the United States.
Countries located in the Sahara include… Algeria, Chad, Egypt,
Libya, Morocco, Niger, Sudan, and Western Sahara.
Sahara Desert
The Sub-Saharan desert has poor soil and suffers from deforestation The destruction of trees and other vegetation
Desertification has been a huge contribution towards the Sahara as well. The process of the desert expanding into areas that had formerly been
farmland
There are long periods of little to no rainfall which causes this problem. (called droughts)
People may cause it too by letting livestock overgraze the savanna and by cutting down trees.
The Kalahari Desert
A desert on the coast of the Atlantic Ocean Located in Botswana,
Namibia, and South Africa
It is a large semi-arid, sandy savanna However, it supports
more animals and plants than a regular desert
Small amounts of rainfall with hot summers
Sahel
A region in West/Central Africa
Between the Sahara in the North and savannas in the South
Desertification has contributed to the Sahel areas.
Savanna
A tropical grassland region.
During the rainy season the savanna gets 15-25 in. of rain.
During the dry season they get 4 inches.
The savanna is the area of Africa that you think of for having the wild animals (lions, giraffes, zebras, etc.)
People use the land for cattle grazing which kills the grass and turns the savanna into a desert. People also poach (illegally kill animals)
Africa’s savanna
Nile River
The longest river in the world 4000 miles long!
Flows through northeastern Africa into the Mediterranean Sea
Flows through Ethiopia, Sudan, South Sudan, Egypt, Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania and Rwanda
Nile River
The Nile banks are heavily populated Why?
People farm the land surrounding the Nile River
Floods leave a layer of silt Fertile soil
The Nile ends in a large delta that ends in the Mediterranean Sea What is the symbol used to
represent a delta?
Congo River
A river that flows through the rainforest of Central Africa. 2900 miles long Deepest river in the world
Flows through: Angola, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic,
Democratic Republic of the Congo, Gabon, Republic of the Congo, Rwanda, Tanzania, and Zambia
Provides hydroelectric power, transportation and water for irrigation.
Congo River
Niger River
Africa’s third longest river It is 2600 miles long
It begins in Western Africa in Guinea VIP river to Western Africa
Provides water for farms in the river valley.
It provides some relief for people in Sahel
Vital transportation route
Lake Tanganyika
Second LARGEST and LONGEST Freshwater lake
Located in four countries Burundi, Democratic Republic of the Congo,
Tanzania, and Zambia
The water flows into the Congo River and eventually into the Atlantic Ocean
Commercial fishing and industrial fisheries are all important on this lake.
How the heck do I say that?!?!
Lake Victoria
Named after Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom
Largest tropical lake in the world
Receives most of its water from precipitation
Large amount of fishery’s
Atlas Mountains
Stretches across Northern Africa and extends about 2500 km through Morocco, Algeria, and Tunisia.
The Atlas separate the Mediterranean and Atlantic coastlines from the Sahara Desert
The mountains are home to many plants and animals(endangered)
Tropical Rainforest
An ecosystem around the equator. Between the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of
Capricorn
Located in Southern/Central Africa(Democratic Republic of Congo)
Experiences HIGH amounts of rainfall and HIGH temperatures
Mount Kilimanjaro
Dormant volcano located in Kilimanjaro National Park, Tanzania
Highest mountain in Africa (19,341 ft)
Serengeti National Park
Located in north Tanzania and southwest Kenya. Serengeti means “Endless Plains” Regarded as the best wildlife reserve in Africa
Animals found here include Lion, African leopard, African elephant, black rhinoceros, African
buffalo, cheetah, gazelle, hyena, baboon, giraffe, ostrich, stork, vultures, zebra
