Transcript Physical Geography of SW & Central Asia, and N. Africa

Physical Geography
of SW & Central
Asia, and N. Africa
Ch. 17
Bodies of Water
Black Sea
Dardanelles 
Atlantic
Ocean
Tigris
Euphrates
River
Jordan River
River
Suez Canal
Nile
River
Strait of
Hormuz
Gulf
of
Oman
Arabian
Sea
Gulf of Aden
Indian
Ocean
Seas & Peninsulas
• Arabian Peninsula
– Separated from
Africa by Gulf of
Aden & Red Sea
– Sinai Pen. &
Suez Canal
separate the land to
the north/west
– Persian Gulf is on
the east side
Gulf of Aden
Seas & Peninsulas
• Anatolia Pen.
Bosporus
Strait
Aegean
Sea
ANATOLIA
–Black Sea to N
–Aegean Sea to
W
–Mediterranean
Sea to S
–Many straits
connecting seas
($$)
Dardenelles
Bosporus Strait
Seas & Peninsulas
• Strait of Gibraltar
–Separates Africa from Iberian Pen.
–Only a dozen
miles or so
wide
• ‘gateway to
Africa’
Strait of Gibraltar
Seas & Peninsulas
• Dead Sea
– On Jordan River (border w/ Israel)
– 8X saltier than any ocean- How come?
– In the 50s
• L= 262 m, W= 57 m
– Today
• L= 42 m, W= 11 m
The
Jordan River
System:
Israel &
Jordan--A Fight Over
Water Rights?
Dead Sea: Lowest Point on Earth
2,300’ below sea
level
Highest
Salt
Content
(33%)
Seas & Peninsulas
• Caspian Sea
–Largest inland/landlocked
body of water (lake)
–But it is salt water!!
(remnants of larger sea)
–Facing evaporation
increases, decrease in
flow from feeder rivers,
and increase in
irrigation/industry uses
Seas & Peninsulas
• Aral Sea
– Use to be large & have
productive fishing
– Shrunk drastically due to
USSR draining it for
irrigation
– Ppl build sm. dams to
create basins of
freshwater from rivers
Rivers
• Nile River
–Longest in world
–Flows NORTH to Med. Sea
–90% of Egyptians live in delta or
along river (= 3% of land)
–Faces great flood seasons  built
Aswan High Dam for control
Aswan High Dam
The Mighty Nile River:
“Longest River in the World”
Egypt: The “Gift of the Nile”
Nile Delta
Annual Nile Flooding
90% of the Egyptian
people live on 3% of
the land!
Aswan High Dam, Egypt
Hydroelectric
Power Plant
Suez Canal
Completed by the British in
1869
Rivers
• Tigris & Euphrates
–Mesopotamia or ‘land b/w two
rivers’; aka Fertile Crescent
–Join to form Shatt al Arab
• Border of Iraq &
Iran
• Wars & treaties
over it
Rivers
Wadi in
Oman
• Wadis- dry streambeds that will fill
with heavy rain  flash floods
(seasonal)
–Since they are typically arid, creates
mud quickly dangerous mud flows
Wadis – Instant Springs
Plains, Plateaus, & Mtns.
• Since most is desert/steppe agricultural
base = coastal areas of Med. Sea, Caspian
Sea, & Persian Gulf
• Atlas Mtns
– Longest mtn
range
• Stretches from
Morocco to Algeria
– Northern side of Atlas allows for lots of agric.
(farms, fishing, livestock)
• Rainy side, Med. climate
Plains, Plateaus, & Mtns.
• Hejaz & Asir
–West coast of Arabian Pen.
–Rainshadow effect to Central Plateau
• Caucasus Mtns
–b/w Black & Caspian Sea
–Seen as border b/w
European Russia
& Asia
Mountain Ranges in Mid-East
Elburz Mts., Iran
Lebanese Mts.
Zagros Mts., Iran
Taurus Mts., Turkey
Plains, Plateaus, & Mtns.
• Garagum (Karakum)– Black sand desert, covers 70% of Turkmenistan
• Qizilqum (Kyzyl Kum)– Red sand desert in Uzbekistan & Kazakhstan
Use wide
spaces for
livestock
Desert Bedouins
Swarms of Desert Locusts!
Israel Hit By Worst
Locust Plague Since
the 1950s!
Locusts Swarm
the Pyramids
Complex at Giza!
Fresh Groundwater Sources
Desalination
Plants
Tectonic Activity
• Meeting point of the African,
Arabian, & Eurasian plates
–Reason for mountainous terrain
–Many earthquakes
• Turkey 1999
• Iran has 90% of land on faults
–Landforms still Δing
• Red Sea
Natural Resources
• Oil (petroleum) & nat. gas are region’s
most abundant resources
–70% of world’s oil
–33% of world’s nat. gas
• Reserves are still being discovered!
–WWII sparked production as we moved
to modern industry/reliance
The Natural Resources of the
Middle East
World Oil Reserves
Persian Gulf Oil Exports (2011)
Saudi Oil Fields & Refineries
Kuwait:
An Island Floating on a Sea of Oil
Kuwait
City
Leading U. S. Oil Suppliers
The U. S. imports 30% of its oil needs from the
Middle East.
Natural Resources
Completed Dubai Tower
• Why might such
heavy dependence
on oil be risky?
– Many countries are
now diversifying
• UAE  banking,
info. tech, tourism
• Libya 
infrastructure,
fisheries