Friday, June 3, 2011

Sahara Desert - Algeria, Africa(3rd largest desert on Earth)






SAHARA DESERT is the third-largest desert on Earth after Antarctica and the Arctic, and it is the world's largest hot desert. At over 9,000,000 square kilometers (3,500,000 sq mi), it covers most of Northern Africa, making it almost as large as the United States or the continent of Europe. The desert stretches from the Red Sea, including parts of the Mediterranean coasts, to the outskirts of the Atlantic Ocean. To the south, it is delimited by the Sahel: a belt of semi-arid tropical savanna separating the Sahara from Sub-Saharan Africa..
The Sahara's boundaries are the Atlantic Ocean on the west, the Atlas Mountains and the Mediterranean Sea on the north, the Red Sea and Egypt on the east, and the Sudan and the valley of the Niger River on the south. The Sahara is divided into western Sahara, the central Ahaggar Mountains, the Tibesti Mountains, the Aïr Mountains (a region of desert mountains and high plateaus), Tenere desert and the Libyan desert (the most arid region). The highest peak in the Sahara is Emi Koussi (3,415 m/11,200 ft) in the Tibesti Mountains in northern Chad.
The Sahara divides the continent of Africa into North and Sub-Saharan Africa. The southern border of the Sahara is marked by a band of semiarid savanna called the Sahel; south of the Sahel lies the lusher Sudan and the Congo River Basin. Most of the Sahara consists of rocky hamada; ergs (large sand dunes) form only a minor part.
Villages or Cities surrounding the Desert may well be the entry way into the main Desert regions. Visitors can enjoy the different cultures in and around Sahara Desert, my first choice would be Egypt as a city to visit before entering the desert reserves. There are over 1.4 Million visitors that come to visit this natural wonder.

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