Physical-Features-of-Africa - PPT 1 - 1

Physica
l Map
of
AFRICA
2nd largest continent
The ONLY continent

which lies in all four
hemispheres.
Divided by Equator in half,

lies between 37°21′ N to
34°51′15″ S
Prime meridian also

divides the continent,
spread from 17°31′13″W
to 51°27′52″ E
Surrounded by
North – Mediterranean Sea &

Europe
North-East –Suez Canal, Red

Sea, Gulf of Aden & Asia
East & SE – Indian Ocean
West – North & South

Atlantic Ocean
AFRICA
• Covering an area of approx. 3,03,68,609 km2 including adjacent
islands
• 6% of Earth’s surface; Nearly 20.3% of land area
• Resided by 14% of Earth’s population.
• Surrounded by multiple small islands. Except Madagascar, fourth
largest island on Earth, with an area of nearly 5,87,041 km2.
• Madagascar lies in Indian Ocean, off the S.E. coast of Africa,
separated from it by Mozambique channel
5 Largest Islands
1. Greenland – autonomous territory; part of Denmark – N. Atlantic Ocean,
geographically N. America, Politically & Culturally Europe.
2. New Guinea – Oceania - West Pacific Ocean
3. Borneo – Asia - West Pacific Ocean
4. Madagascar – Africa – Indian Ocean
5. Baffin Island – N. America
– N. Atlantic Ocean
54 sovereign states
Largest: Algeria
7% of the continent
Smallest: Seychelles
(451 km2)
Most Populous: Nigeria

almost 14% of Africa’s
population
AFRICA Tectonic Plates
• Africa's land mass is made up of a simple
tectonic plate
• Some geographers separate the Rift Valley
system from the rest of the continent
The Rift Valley begins
from the Red Sea and
extends through the
Ethiopian highlands to
the Lake Victorian region
where it subdivides into
an east and west
segments and continues
southward through Lake
Malawi to Mozambique.
AFRICA
• The continent is made up of very old
crystalline, metamorphic, and sedimentary
rocks of great hardness (collectively known
as 'basement complex').
• Africa suffered little in terms of folding

hence young folded mountain are missing
(except Atlas Mountains in the North and
the Drakensburg mountains in the South)
• Some extensive areas of faulted plateau.

• Most highlands and mountains are result
of
African Deserts
• Sahara
• Kalahari
• Namib
Sahara Desert
• 3rd largest; Largest hot desert in world
• Area: 92,00,000 km2
• Location: Mauritania, Mali, Niger, Chad,
Sudan, Eritrea, Egypt, Libya, Algeria,
Morocco, Tunisia
• It ranges in elevation from 100 ft. below

sea level, to peaks in the Ahaggar and
Tibesti mountains that exceed 11,000 ft.
• Highest peak in Sahara is Emi Koussi 3,415

m (11,204 ft), in Tibesti range of northern
Chad.
Sahara Desert
• Defining Africa's northern bulge, the Sahara makes up 30% of the continent.
• Has a number of distinct physical features, including Ergs, Regs, Hamadas, and
Oases
• Ergs - sand dunes- cover 20% of the Sahara
• Regs - plains of sand and gravel - make up 70 % of Sahara
• Hamadas - elevated plateaus of rock and

stone - reach heights of 3,353m (11,000 feet) -
Kalahari Desert
• Kalahari means great thirst
• Location: Botswana, Namibia
and South Africa
• Area- 2,59,000 sq. km
• Land of famous San people
(hunters)
• Famous for diamond
mining
• River: Okavango (Orange
river)
Namib Desert
•One of the oldest deserts in world
•Coastal desert in southern Africa
•Stretches for more than 2,000

km along the Atlantic coasts
of Angola, Namibia and South Africa,
Namib-Naukluft National Park

present here
Sahel
• Narrow band of semi-
arid land
• Forms a transition
zone between the
Sahara to the north and
Sudanian savannas to
the south.
• Sahel suffers from
desertification and
drought
The Sahel spans 5,900 km from the Atlantic
Ocean in the west to the Red Sea in the east
African Savannas
• Covers 40 % of Africa
• Also known as Tropical grasslands
• Rolling grassland of shrubs and
isolated trees
• Found between desert biome and
tropical rainforest
• Found between either sides of
equator
Among Africas many savanna regions,

Serengeti (or Serengeti Plains) is the most
Tropical Rain Forest
• Occurs in regions where high
temperatures are combined with
heavy precipitation
• 80 % of Africa’s rain forest is
concentrated in central Africa
• Extends along western coast,
Congo (Zaire) basin, and on the
island of Madagascar)
• Called - Jewels of earth,
World’s
largest pharmacy
African Rivers
5 longest rivers in Africa
Nile
Congo (Zaire)
Niger
Zambezi
Orange
Nile River
• Longest river in the world (flows north),
• Rising from the highlands of southeastern
Africa
• about (6,693 km) in length
• It's a series of dams, rapids, streams,
swamps, tributaries and waterfalls.
• Numerous (major) rivers comprise the overall
system, including Blue Nile and White Nile.
Congo River
• Located in Central Africa
• The river basin is about 3.7
million sq. km in size and
contains almost 20% of the
world's rain forest.
• The second longest river in
Africa; one of the deepest in
world
• Crosses equator twice
The basin begins in the
highlands of the East African
African Great Lakes
1. Lake Victoria,
2. Lake Tanganyika,
3. Lake Malawi,
4. Lake Turkana,
5. Lake Albert,
6. Lake Kivu, and
7. Lake Edward
African Great Lakes
• The Great Lakes are located in countries that surround
the Great Rift Valley.
• As the African continent separated from Saudi
Arabia, large, deep cracks were created in the Earths
surface. These cracks were later filled with water.
• Lake Victoria - Africa's largest lake by area, the world's
largest tropical lake, and the world's second-
largest fresh water lake by surface area after Lake
Superior in North America
• Lake Tanganyika - world's longest freshwater lake,
second largest by volume & second deepest lake
after Lake Baikal in Siberia
The Ethiopian Highlands
•Rugged mass of mountains in central and northern Ethiopia
and its northernmost portion reaches into Eritrea.
• Forms largest continuous area of

its elevation in the continent, little
of its surface falling below (4,921
ft), while the summits reach
heights of up to 4550 m (14,928
ft)
• Tallest peak - Ras Dashen (4,550m)

• It is called the Roof of Africa for its
height and large area.
East African Plateau
• Eastern part of
Central Africa in Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania.
•Its elevation is mostly between 1000

- 1500 meters
•subdivided into of mountain ranges,
tablelands, and rift valleys
•East African Plateau is highest in Kenya,
where
it is often 8,000 feet or more
• Highest mountain Kilmanjaro -19,340 ft

Other Important Points
• The highest peak of Atlas Mountains is Mt. Toubkal (4,167 m)
• The Ruwenzori (Rwenzori) Range—sometimes called the Mountains
of the Moon
• Rift Valley’s total length is estimated to be 6,000 miles (9,600 m);
Average width ranges between 20 miles (32 km) and 50 miles (80
km).

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Physica

The ONLY continent

Divided by Equator in half,

Prime meridian also

North – Mediterranean Sea &

North-East –Suez Canal, Red

East & SE – Indian Ocean

West – North & South

Most Populous: Nigeria

• Africa suffered little in terms of folding

• Some extensive areas of faulted plateau.

• It ranges in elevation from 100 ft. below

• Highest peak in Sahara is Emi Koussi 3,415

• Regs - plains of sand and gravel - make up 70 % of Sahara

• Hamadas - elevated plateaus of rock and

•Coastal desert in southern Africa

•Stretches for more than 2,000

Namib-Naukluft National Park

Among Africas many savanna regions,

• Forms largest continuous area of

• Tallest peak - Ras Dashen (4,550m)

•Its elevation is mostly between 1000

• Highest mountain Kilmanjaro -19,340 ft

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