1. Physical Geography of Africa

2. A Satellite View

3. The Sahara Desert

4. The Sahara is the world’s largest hot desert
The Sahara is the world’s largest hot desert. Fewer than 10 inches of rain a year, which make it an arid climate. It is covered with sand dunes and rolling rocky hills that go on for miles and miles The Atlas mountains act as a barrier between the desert, the Mediterranean Sea, and the Atlantic Ocean. Most of the people who occupy the Sahara today are nomads.
Nomads move from place to place, usually traveling by camel. Nomadic tribes often trade with each other. These desert nomads were the ones who led the caravan trade across the Sahara in the years before airplanes and desert vehicles were available. Hundreds of years ago, gold and salt came across the Sahara on the backs of camels from central Africa to markets along the Mediterranean coast.

6. Despite its harsh environment, the Sahara is home to a number of plants that can tolerate desert conditions. Those areas that do get a little rainfall or that have access to underground water often have grasses and shrubs as well as palm trees, olive trees, and cypress. In the few places where there is water, an oasis (a small place with water where trees are able to grow and where people can live with grazing animals and a few crops) can be found.

7. Desertification
Desertification is the process of once fertile farmland turning into desert. Desertification reduces the amount of crops that can be grown, increases starvation, and maintains poverty

10. Libyan Desert
Deserts
Sahara Desert
Namib Desert
Kalahari Desert

11. The Sahel

12. The Sahel is a strip of dry grassland south of the Sahara
The Sahel is a strip of dry grassland south of the Sahara. The Sahel’s climate is semiarid, meaning that it gets 6-20 inches of rainfall a year. The word Sahel means “border” or “margin,” and this is the region that borders the Sahara. It is a “transitional” area between the Sahara and the Savanna. The area closest to the desert will look more like it. It is a region between the desert to the north and the grasslands and rainforest to the south. The Sahel is relatively flat with few mountains and hills.

13. The Sahel's wildlife is constantly on the move, scavenging for water and spotty vegetation. Elephants and giraffes frequently raid farmers' plots for greenery. But tough living conditions mean you're more likely to see herds of cattle, sheep and goats. Rodents already reign as the region's most common.
For nine months out of the year, the Sahel is a vast expanse of brown. Greenery comes with the rainy season, but can be quickly consumed by animals in search of food or farmers in search of crop lands. Fields of sorghum and millet are limited to the deltas of the Niger, Gambia and Senegal rivers. 

14. The Sahel is not especially rich in species
The Sahel is not especially rich in species. In ealier times this was different. Big herds of antelopes, zebras and gazelles roamed the region between the sahara and the savanna. However, today it does possess a large area of protected land. In these national parks most of the endangered wildlife of the Sahel is protected.
The Sahel is not especially rich in species. In earlier times this was different. Big herds of antelopes, zebras and gazelles roamed the region between the Sahara and the savanna. However, today it does possess a large area of protected land. In these national parks most of the endangered wildlife of the Sahel is protected.

15. Africa: The “Tropical” Continent
Tropic of Cancer 20° N
Africa: The “Tropical” Continent
Equator 0°
Tropic of Capricorn 20° S

16. The African Savannah: 13 million square miles

17. Closer to the equator, the climate becomes hot and features two seasons dry (winter) and wet (summer). The dry season is long, lasting from October through March and only about four inches of rain falls during the entire season. During the wet season, (summer), the Savanna will experience15-25 inches of rain. It can rain for many hours non-stop. Savannas cover the regions just north and south of the rainforests that lie along the equator. Savannas are hot, dry grasslands, with tall thick grass. Trees are short and scattered. The savanna has a tropical wet dry climate.

18. When rain falls, farmers can grow crops
When rain falls, farmers can grow crops. Many Kenyans make a living growing coffee and tea, which are the country’s major exports.

19. This African landform is where the great cats such as lions stalk their prey and where the African elephants roam. The most famous savanna is the Serengeti Plain, a migration area for 1.5 million animals like buffalo, gazelles, and zebras.
Overgrazing and farming has destroyed much of the savanna. When overgrazing occurs, the grasses don’t grow back and the savanna can turn into desert (desertification). In Africa, the Sahara Desert is expanding into the savanna at the rate of approximately 30 miles per year.

20. African Rain Forest Annual rainfall of up to 17 ft.
Rapid decomposition (very humid).
Covers 37 countries.

21. Along the equator lies the Congo Basin, home to the world’s second largest tropical rainforest (the Amazon is the largest). A rainforest, is a dense evergreen forest with an annual rainfall of at least 60 inches, with a tropical wet climate. In the Congo, trees are so thick and tall that sunlight never reaches the forest floor. Unfortunately, many decades of destructive farming practices and deforestation has shrunk the rainforests substantially.

22. There are several levels to life in the rainforest
There are several levels to life in the rainforest. The floor of a rainforest is home to thousands of varieties of insects, including many types of butterflies. These butterflies play an important role in pollinating the flowers and making it possible for them to reproduce. The rivers and streams in a rainforest support fish, alligators, and crocodiles. Up into the trees, are the canopy layers of the rainforest, home to birds, frogs, toads, and snakes, as well as monkeys and chimpanzees. Rainforest canopies grow in multiple layers, with taller trees shading those at lower levels and allowing a wide variety of plants and animals to grow.

24. Central Africa's deforestation rate since 1990 has been the lowest of any major forest region in the world. Reasons for deforestation in the Congo rainforest has been small-scale subsistence agriculture, clearing for charcoal and fuel wood, urban expansion, and mining. Industrial logging has been the biggest driver of forest degradation. It is important not to understate the impact of logging in the region. Logging roads have opened up vast areas of the Congo to commercial hunting, leading to a poaching epidemic in some areas and a more than 60% drop in the regions elephant population.

26. Every day, thousands of acres of tropical forest disappear
Every day, thousands of acres of tropical forest disappear. Approximately less than 10% of the world’s original rainforests remain today. Most African countries are working hard to limit tree harvesting, and are replanting where trees have been cut down.

28. Mountains & Peaks Atlas Mts. Δ Mt. Kenya Δ Mt. Kilimanjaro
Ruwenzori Mts.
Drajensburg Mts.

29. Atlas Mountains
The Atlas mountain range separates the temperate coastal areas of Morocco, Algeria, & Tunisia from the harsh Sahara Desert

30. The Drakensberg Mountains stretch across Southern Africa
The Drakensberg Mountains stretch across Southern Africa. There are many game reserves and national parks.
Another notable feature of the region is the Kalahari Desert.
Thanks to underground water supplies, grass, shrubs, and a number of wild animals manage to live in the Kalahari Desert

31. Mt. Kilimanjaro

32. Great Rift Valley
3,000 miles long

33. Bodies Of
Water
Mediterranean Sea
Red Sea
Nile River
Niger River
L. Chad-->
<--Gulf of Aden
L. Albert-->
Congo River
Much of Africa has trouble having enough water for people to live. Countries with large river systems have enough water for farming and for people in villages, towns, and cities.
L. Victoria
L. Tanganyika->
Indian Ocean
Atlantic Ocean
Zambezi River
Limpopo River
Orange River
Pacific Ocean

34. Lake Victoria is the largest lake in Africa and the second largest freshwater lake in the world (only Lake Superior is bigger). It extends into three countries: Tanzania, Uganda, and Kenya .

35. The Mighty Nile River: “Longest River in the World”

36. The Congo River Basin Covers 12% of the continent.
Extends over 9 countries.
2,720 miles long.

37. The Congo River provides water to villages and towns, water for irrigation, and a fishing industry. It serves as a major transportation route for those who need to go from the interior of Africa to the Atlantic Ocean. Much of the timber from the rainforests is transported down the river, and people travel the river in search of work.

38. The Niger River Basin Covers 7.5% of the continent.
Extends over 10 countries.
2,600 miles long.

39. The Niger is also a vital transportation route and supplies water to surrounding countries. When the Niger reaches the sea in the country of Nigeria, it broadens into what is known as the “Oil Delta.” This area is rich in petroleum.

40. The Topography Of AFRICA
Mediterranean Sea
Atlas Mts.
The
Topography Of
AFRICA
Libyan Desert
Tropic of Cancer 20° N
Sahara Desert
Nile River
Red Sea
Sahel
Niger River
L. Chad-->
Great Rift Valley
L. Albert-->
Equator 0°
Δ Mt. Kenya
Congo River
L. Victoria
Δ Mt. Kilimanjaro
L. Tanganyika->
Indian Ocean
Ruwenzori Mts.
Atlantic Ocean
Zambezi River
Namib Desert
Kalahari Desert
Limpopo River
Tropic of Capricorn 20° S
Orange River
Drajensburg Mts.
Pacific Ocean

41. Physical Geography Assignment Questions:
Answer the following questions on a sheet of notebook paper using complete sentences.
How are the Sahel and the Savanna different from each other?
Is deforestation of the rainforests currently increasing or decreasing in Africa? Explain your answer.
Which area do you think might be wealthier – the Congo River Basin or the Niger River Basin? Why?
What layer of the rainforest will you find butterflies? What important role do they play in reproduction?
Which landscape is your favorite? Why?