Three main physical features of North Africa are the Atlas Mountains,
the Sahara Desert
, and the Nile River. Most of North Africa’s population lives along the Mediterranean coast or along the Nile River. The ethnic majority in the Maghreb are Berber, with Arabs dominating in Egypt.
What physical feature region covers most of northern Africa?
The Sahara
is the worlds largest hot desert, covering 8.5 million square kilometers (3.3 million square miles), about the size of the South American country of Brazil. Defining Africa’s northern bulge, the Sahara makes up 25 percent of the continent.
What is the northern part of Africa covered in?
Geography. North Africa has three main geographic features: the Sahara desert in the south, the Atlas Mountains in the west, and the Nile River and delta in the east. The Atlas Mountains extend across much of northern
Algeria
, Morocco and Tunisia.
Which geographical feature is the furthest north in Africa?
- Northernmost point — Iles des Chiens, Tunisia (37°32’N)
- Southernmost point — Cape Agulhas, South Africa (34°51’15′′S)
- Westernmost point — Santo Antão, Cape Verde Islands (25°25’W)
- Easternmost point — Rodrigues, Mauritius (63°30’E)
What major geographic feature separates North Africa from the rest of Africa?
North Africa is separated from Subsaharan Africa by
the African Transition Zone
, a transitional area between Islamic-dominated North Africa and animist- and Christian-dominated Subsaharan Africa. It is also a transition between the Sahara Desert and the tropical type A climates of Africa’s equatorial region.
What two geographic features dominate Central Africa?
The equator
runs through the middle of Central Africa. Type A climates are dominant in the region, complete with tropical rain forests and jungle environments. In the north is the African Transition Zone, which runs through Chad. In Chad, the arid region of the Sahara Desert transitions into the humid tropics.
What are the geographical characteristics of Africa?
Africa is
the most tropical of all continents
. Climate and vegetation range from equatorial rainforests, tropical deserts and savanna grassland to Mediterranean. The Sahara Desert, the largest of its kind anywhere in the world, is over 10.4 million km2 n North to south is approx. 1800 kms and east-west is 5600km.
What are the main geographic features of Sub Saharan Africa’s four parts?
Subsaharan Africa is a realm of plateaus and basins with four main river systems.
Mountain ranges, volcanic peaks, and large lakes
are found in or along the rift valleys of eastern Africa. The rift valleys were created by tectonic activity.
What are 3 major geographical features?
Mountains, hills, plateaus, and plains
are the four major types of landforms. Minor landforms include buttes, canyons, valleys, and basins. Tectonic plate movement under the Earth can create landforms by pushing up mountains and hills.
What major physical feature dominates North Africa?
Three main physical features of North Africa are
the Atlas Mountains, the Sahara Desert
, and the Nile River. Most of North Africa’s population lives along the Mediterranean coast or along the Nile River. The ethnic majority in the Maghreb are Berber, with Arabs dominating in Egypt.
Where is the geographical Centre of Africa?
The African geographical centre is a pole of inaccessibility and is found in
the Central Republic of Africa
.
Why is North Africa a desert?
The answer lies in the climate of the Arctic and northern high latitudes. … However, around 5,500 years ago there was a sudden shift in climate in northern Africa leading
to rapid acidification of the area
. What was once a tropical, wet, and thriving environment suddenly turned into the desolate desert we see today.
Where is Africa located geographically?
The continent of Africa
borders the southern half of the Mediterranean Sea
. The Atlantic Ocean is to the west and the Indian Ocean is to the Southeast. Africa stretches well south of the equator to cover more than 12 million square miles making Africa the world’s second largest continent.
How is North Africa different from the rest of Africa?
North Africa is
predominantly Arab and relatively more developed
. Many residents identify more with the Middle East than they do with the larger part of the continent. … But when it comes to an African identity, some sub-Saharan Africans believe they have more claim to the continent than their northern counterparts.
What separates northern Africa from southern Africa?
The Sahara
stretches across much of northern Africa creating a formidable barrier and dividing Africa between a Muslim, Arab North and traditional African cultural groups in the south.
What Desert divides North Africa from the rest of the continent?
Sand dunes in
the Sahara
, near Merzouga, Morocco. The Sahara is the world’s largest desert; it extends across most of the northern part of Africa.