the african landscape:
DESCRIPTION
The African landscape: . North Africa: . North Africa:. Physical Features: . The Nile (union of Blue and White Nile) Silt deposits Aswan High Dam The Sinai Peninsula ( E.of Nile) Suez Canal between Sinai and Egypt - connects Red Sea to Med. The Sahara : world’s largest desert - PowerPoint PPT PresentationTRANSCRIPT
The African landscape:
North Africa:
North Africa:Physical Features:
• The Nile (union of Blue and White Nile)
• Silt deposits • Aswan High Dam • The Sinai Peninsula (E.of
Nile)• Suez Canal between Sinai
and Egypt - connects Red Sea to Med.
• The Sahara: world’s largest desert– Sand dunes and dry streambeds
• Atlas Mountains N.west side of Sahara (13,600 ft)
North Africa
• 3 Main Climates: 1)Desert (136 deg.
In Libya)2)Mediterranean
(mild)3)Steppe (between
Sahara and coast)
• Oil & gas (Libya, Algeria & Egypt)• Moroccan mines iron ore & minerals • Sahara coal, oil, natural gas
Climate: Resources:
West Africa:
West Africa: Physical Features:
• Plains & Highlands • Coastal plan has lots
of cities• Interior plain people
farm • Plateaus & cliffs in SW • Tibesti Mountains • The Niger River =
most impt. Flows into interior of region bringing life giving water to W. Africa
• Transportation and divides into channels swamps and lakes
Climate & Vegetation
• 4 Different Climates: 1) Desert- Sahara zone • Sahel- strip of land
that divides desert from wetter areas
2) Steppe – varied rainfall
3) Tropical Savanna 4) Humid Tropical Resourcv
East Africa:
East Africa: Physical Features• The Rift Valleys- land
arches and splits- volcanoes & thick rock
• The Great Rift Valley – E & W up to 6,000 ft. high
• Mt. Kilimanjaro- highest mtn, in Africa 19,340 ft. High
• Ethiopian Highlands: rugged with deep River Valleys
Mt. Kilimanjaro, Kenya http://my.hrw.com/ss2/ss06_07_08/student/flash/wgeaf_m5enf_phL2/assets/video.html
The Ethiopian Highlands
East Africa Rivers & Lakes
• Nile begins in E Africa flows N.
• Lake Victoria • Chain of lakes in W.
rift valleys• Some lakes near east
rift so hot cannot even swim
Climate & Vegetation: • Some areas cooler
climate further from Equator drier and suffer from drought
• Nth of Eqtor -plateaus, mtns, and highland climate, forests
• South of Eqtor: Tropical Savanna
• Rift floor dry with grasslands & shrub
• Areas of East highlands of I.O. are at a lower elevation – desert and steppe climates
Central Africa:
Central Africa: Physical Features:
• Landforms: • Congo Basin• Lake Nyasa (Malawi) &
Tanganyika • Rivers: Congo River- fed
by 100s of smaller ones • Swampy basin • Zambezi River flows E.
toward I.O. Victoria Falls • Rapids and waterfalls –
make it difficult for ships
Climates, Vegetation & Animals
• Central Africa- low latitude along Equator
• Humid tropical climate • Nth and Sth of Congo
savanna climate • Large dense tropical
forest – few light • Gorillas, elephants
wild boar & okapis, birds,, monkeys, bats, snakes, and insects
• Endangered species (hunting, logging, and farming)
Victoria Falls http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hzN1sMcLWEo
Central Africa: Resources: • Good farming- most were subsistence farmers-
now selling their crops • Periodic Markets- an open air-market
set up 1-2 times a week • Forests provide timber• Rivers- travel & trade• Dams-hydroelectricity• Oil, Nat. gas, coal • Minerals- Copper, Uranium, tin, Zinc, • Diamonds, gold and cobalt
South Africa:
Physical Features: • Plateaus and Mtns: most of
South Africa lies on large plateau (4,000 ft. above sea level)
• Escarpment: Steep face at edge of plateau
• SE Africa Drakensburg “Dragon Mtns.” 11,425 ft.
• The Okavango River – from Angola swampy inland delta
• Orange River flows to Atlantic • Limpopo River flows into IO
waterfalls• Kalahari desert- most of
Botswana
Climate & Vegetation:
• Wettest = Madagascar (winds from Indian Ocean bring moisture)
• Savanna & deserts • Veld- open grassland areas• Driest = Namib desert on
Atlantic coast ½ and in. of rain a yr.
• Tropical forests – Madagascar- lemurs & endangered species
South Africa:
South Africa: • Resources: • Madagascar- forests
timber • Rivers hydroelectricity • Farming • Minerals (gold)• S. Afr., Botswana, &
Namibia diamonds • Coal, Platinum, rubber,
iron
Source
• Google Images • HOLT World Cultures