Facts about Sahara Desert?

Some Interesting Facts about the Sahara Desert 

1. It’s a common confusion about the Sahara desert that it is the largest desert around the world. But the real truth is it is the largest hottest desert behind the arctic and Antarctica desert which are both cold deserts. It is common in the Sahara desert to hit the temperature of 38-46°C.

 

2. Some of the Sahara desert dunes reach the height of 180 meters tall; these dunes are referred to as the Mount Koussi In chad Which has an elevation of  3,415 meters.

 

3. Dunes and sheets cover solely around the 25th of the Sahara’s actual surface. This desert additionally has varied land options together with salt flats, gravel plains, plateaus, and even mountains wherever snow has been recorded.

 

4. Around 2.5 million individuals additionally decide the Sahara Desert home, most of that have Berber or Arabic roots. They either sleep in permanent settlements close to water sources or have an unsettled mode, traveling from place to position with herds of sheep, goats, or camels.

 

5. Saharan trade routes compete a vital half within the economies of Ancient Africa. merchandise like copper, salt, and gold were transporting exploitation Even-toed ungulates mammal caravans, which in their peak consisted of thousands of camels.

 

 There’s even a record that mentions caravans of twelve,000 camels traveling between Egypt and Sudan.

 

6. Some areas of this desert don’t have any vegetation at all. Especially the Tanezrouft region along the borders of Algeria, Niger, and Mali, is one of the most desolate landscapes on the planet.

 

Most parts of the desert, however, receive enough hurry for some sort of vegetation to exist. These plants have developed adaptations to deal with these extremely arid conditions and some of these include acacia trees, palms, succulents, spiny shrubs, and various types of grasses.

 

Some of these remarkable features are:

 

Growing lower so they can avoid strong winds which cause water loss.

Growing thick stems so they can store water in them and use it in the driest periods.

Having long roots that travel horizontal so they can find as much surface moisture as possible.

 

Having small thick leaves or needles that additionally prevent water loss.

 

7. Desert is the home of many animals. Like some species of foxes. And the addax is an animal that developed the body with the nature of the Sahara desert to live in hot temperature. And some species of lizard also live there but the most common animal is camel .

 

One of the most dangerous animals in the Sahara is only about 10 centimeters (3.9 inches) long but is famous for being extremely poisonous. This animal is called the deathstalker scorpion and it’s best not to come across these at all.

 

Perhaps the most interesting animal living in some parts of the desert is one of the biggest cats in the world called the “northwest African cheetah,” one of the cheetahs native to Africa.

 

Unfortunately, these cheetahs are critically endangered as only about 250 individuals roam around in Algeria, Togo, Niger, Mali, Benin, and Burkina Faso.

 

8. Apart from a wide variety of animals, parts of the deserts have been inhabited by human beings for thousands of years.

 

 A large number of cultures have lived in or on the edges of the desert, most famously the Ancient Egyptians which were preceded by the predynastic Egyptians around 6000 B.C.

 

The Romans occupied large parts north of the Sahara which they referred to as the “Desertum Africanum,” located south of the Roman province of Africa.

The most important event in the history of the Sahara is the Muslim Conquest of North Africa halfway through the 7th century. After this, most of the desert was heavily influenced by Islamic culture.

 

9.  Scientists estimate that the Sahara’s overall size has grown to be 10% larger than it was nearly a century ago. While this is partly due to natural climate cycles, human-driven climate change is also responsible.

10. The Sahara Desert spans some 8,600,000 square kilometres. However, this changes over time as the actual area of the desert expands and contracts with the seasons.