Geography Of Libya
| Geography of Libya | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Continent | Africa |
| Region | North Africa |
| Contact | 25 N 17 E |
| Area |
|
| Coast | 1 770 km |
| Borders | Total 4 383 km Egypt 1,150 km, Chad 1,055 km, Algeria 982 km, Tunisia 459 km, Sudan 383 km, Niger 354 km |
| Maximum altitude | 2267 m ( Bikku Bitti ) |
| Minimum altitude | - 47 m ( Sabkhat Ghuzayyil ) |
| Longest river | ? |
| Largest body of water | ? |
Located between Egypt and Tunisia on the southern coast of the Mediterranean , the Libya is the 4th largest country in Africa and the 16th largest country in the world.
Summary |
Relief
The two main geographical areas of the country are the Mediterranean coast and the desert of Sahara. There are several highlands but no true mountain ranges except the Tibesti massif , near the border with Chad, which rises to over 2200 meters. These are the Jebel Tripolitanian ( Jebel Nafusah ), the Jebel Akhdar in Cyrenaica near the coast (872 meters), the Jabal as-Sawda behind the Gulf of Sidra and finally the small massif Hulayq al Kabir (1200 meters) in the Al Jufrah. Agricultural land is concentrated in a narrow band near the coast and high plains immediately following the South. Farther south, the desert of Fezzan above the Sahara. Sparsely populated, agriculture is possible only in a few oases isolated.
Fertile areas of the coast are separated by the Gulf of Sirte and 500 km of desert. The Tripoli extends to the west, Cyrenaica in the east. This area is traditionally considered the boundary between the Maghreb and Mashreq.
The coastline alternates between Tripoli oasis, lagoons and sandy areas. In the interior lies the plain of Djeffara , a triangular area 15 000 km 2. At 120 km from the coast, the plain terminates in an escarpment that forms the Jebel Nafusah , a plateau rising to 1000 meters. This extends to the south by a larger whole, the Hamada al Hamra.
The oases are fewer in Cyrenaica. The plain of Marj Al , smaller than the plain Djeffara , form a crescent of 210 km long between Benghazi and Darnah , for a maximum width of 50 km. The terrain then rises rapidly to form the Jabal al Akhdar (Green Mountain), named for the forests of pines , of cypress and olive trees that cover it wild. It is a plateau limestone whose maximum altitude is 900 meters. From there, Cyrenaica extends southward along the Fezzan.
Climate
There are five different climate regimes in Libya, with the Mediterranean Sea and the Sahara as overriding factors. The coastal climate is Mediterranean , with hot summers and mild winters and little rainfall. The climate is cooler in the highlands, with the risk of freezing to higher altitudes. In the inland, summers are hot and the temperature variations between day and night are very high.
Less than 2% of the country receives enough rainfall for farming there, the maximum being recorded in the Jebel al Akhdar region with 400 to 600 mm of rain per year. The rest of Libya receives less than 400 mm per year, the minimum being reached in the Sahara with 50 mm. Rainfall is erratic and droughts are not uncommon.
Hydrology
Because of low rainfall, there is no permanent river in Libya and all permanent lakes, twenty, salted or brackish. The Libyan government has built a network of dams in the wadis to serve both the water storage and flood control and erosion. The regions covered by wadis are heavily populated due to the fertility of their soil and their water table. The latter, however, reduce to a speed that is alarming, particularly in heavily agricultural areas and near urban centers. The government has responded to this situation by moving water facility operator, among others around Tripoli, to areas where underground water demand is lower. Extensive reforestation projects are also underway.
Sources are quite numerous, those of Jebel Nafusaht and Jebel al-Akhdar is considered most suitable for future development projects. The largest aquatic resources, although large aquifer underground desert. The best known is located near the oasis of Al-Koufrah south-east of Cyrenaica, but there is one more near Sabha in the Fezzan. In 1984 started a large project ( Great Manmade River ) to tap into aquifers Al-Koufrah, Sarir and Sabha and bring water to the Mediterranean coast to supply agriculture and industry.
Desert
The Libyan Desert, which covers 90% of the country is, say the experts, the finest in the world.
In the mountains of the Akakus , south-west, the sandstone has been carved by erosion, revealing countless petroglyphs.
Behind the dunes, emerges an oasis of 150 000 inhabitants who looks like a capital of Sahara.
Resources
Natural resources: petroleum , natural gas , gypsum.
Cultivation:
- arable land: 1%
- permanent crops: 0%
- permanent pastures: 8%
- Forest: 0% (est. 1993).
Irrigated land: 4,700 km 2.
Environment
Environmental problems: desertification , water scarcity.
Natural disasters: ghibli , sandstorms and dust.
International treaties on the environment:
- party to: Climate Change, Desertification, Nuclear Test Ban, protection of the ozone layer.
- signed but not ratified: Biodiversity, Law of the Sea
Sources
- (In) This article is partially or entirely from the article in English entitled " Geography of Libya "(see the list of authors )
(1 votes, average: 4.00 out of 5, rated)
Loading ...