AFRICAN PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY

1. AFRICAN PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY

2. Introduction • Massive continent, 2nd largest. • Large, complex, and often misunderstood • Equally in North and South hemisphere

3. The Nile River • Longest River in the World • White Nile and Blue Nile meet in Sudan to form the Nile River • Flows northward, emptying in the Mediterranean Sea • Without the annual flooding in Egypt land would not be arable

4. THE NILE RIVER The Nile Lower Nile Upper Nile

5. SUEZ CANAL • Located in Egypt • Divides the mainland Egypt from the Sinai Peninsula • Connects the Mediterranean Sea with Red Sea • One third the distance that it was before

6. SUEZ CANAL

7. SAHARA DESERT • Sahara Desert is the largest desert in the world • Why 1. On the Tropic of Cancer 2. Permanent high pressure system 3. Rain Shadow by Atlas Mountains

8. SAHARA DESERT • There are two main types of landscape in the Sahara • Erg – sand dunes • Reg – gravel covered plain

9. SAHEL • Semi-arid region just south of the Sahara • Dry grasslands with scattered trees • Desertification is a growing problem • Growing of the desert caused by climate changes and over grazing

10. SAVANNAS • Tropical grasslands with scattered trees and shrubs • This is where many of the African Safaris take place • Large populations of wildlife • Serengeti – means “endless plains” • Largest mammal migration and game reserve

12. Tsetse Fly The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly • Bad – Carries a disease the make its victims (humans and domesticated animal) have “Sleeping Sickness” • Good – Wildlife are immune. Humans and livestock avoid some of these areas creating a natural game preserve

13. A Vast Plateau • Huge plateau covers most of Africa (1,000 ft. above sea level). • Basins - huge depressions on plateau (Chad, Sudan, Congo Basins). Water collects here. • Plateaus separated by escarpments—steep slope with flat plateau on top

15. CONGO RIVER BASIN • Located near the equator in central and western Africa • This is where the majority of Africa’s tropical rain forests are located

16. The Great Rift Valley • Located in Eastern Africa • Largest Rift Valley in the world • Caused by the diverging Indian Tectonic Plate • Surrounding lakes and rivers are very deep

17. Mount Kilimanjaro: • Africa’s highest mountain at 19,341 feet • Located on the Equator in Tanzania near Kenya • Formed by volcanic activity from the Great Rift Valley • Only year round snow capped mountain in Africa • Known in Swahili as “Shining Mountain”

18. Lake Victoria • Located in the middle of the Great Rift Valley of Eastern Africa • It is a shallow depression • Largest lake in Africa

19. Victoria Falls • Forms a border between Zambia and Zimbabwe • Largest waterfall in the world

20. Okavango Swamp/River • Worlds largest inland river delta • River is absorbed by the Kalahari Desert • Large game reserve in the desert

21. Kalahari Desert • Largest Desert in southern Africa • Has many oasis which makes it habitable • Oasis – vegetated areas in a desert caused by fresh water springs

22. CAPE OF GOOD HOPE • Southern most point of Africa • Converging currents from the Indian and Atlantic Oceans make waters dangerous for sailing but great wildlife Only Place in the world Great Whites breach South African Penguins