Top 10 Most Interesting Facts about Sahara Desert

Before we start the discussion of the facts about Sahara, we should be familiar with where it is located. Take a peek at the north African on a map, and you will see Sahara desert to be present there. It is one of the most famous deserts in the world. Sahara stretches its arms from the Atlantic. To the north, it has joined to the Mediterranean, and east to the Red Sea. Much part of Africa’s northern area consists of this desert. Let us now check out the top 10 most interesting facts about Sahara desert.

10. Not the Biggest Desert

Many individuals believe that Sahara is the biggest desert in the world, but it is actually not. The largest and biggest desert in the world is Antarctica. But Sahara is pretty darn big in size, and gets bigger day by day. It is spread in an area of 3.6 million square miles.

9. Covering High Land Area

According to an estimate, this desert comprises eight percent of the world’s land area. It is unbelievable that we can fit three to four states like USA within the Sahara, and will still have few thousand square miles of desert left over. This is an interesting fact. Sahara has its border-line with Libya, Algeria, Egypt, Tunisia, Chad, Morocco, Eritrea, Niger, Mauritania, Mali, and Sudan.

8. Cannot be Home of Many

The continent of America is the home to over 250 million individuals. But when it comes to Sahara, it is hardly called the home by many living things. It covers a wide land area, and has approximate population density of 1/150th of that of the US.

7. Used to be Fertile

The Sahara used to be a fertile farmland. It was once poorly populated, until 6,000 BC. Later on, the growth of grains and millet in Sahara covered much of its area, and now it is believed that Sahara once had many more plant species. It used to be a fertile land, but not so nowadays.

6. Sahara, Very Warm

It is absolutely true that Sahara is a very warm desert, not fit for many living things to live and survive at. It has short of water. During January to October, Sahara has scarce water, making it impossible for the desert plants and animals to get sufficient wetness for their survival.

5. Getting Warmer Day-by-Day

Sahara desert is undergoing severe climatic changes, and is getting warmer day by day. The reason is said to the global warming and direct exposure to sun-rays. The direct fall of the sun-rays and the earth’s warmth are the two key factors in making Sahara have a temperature of about 136 degrees F.

4. Some Parts Fertile Even Today

Crops grew here abundantly since 7000 years. It makes us believe that some parts of Sahara are fertile even today. It gets its water from underground rivers that flow out of Atlas Mountains towards the west. It is covering an approximate area of 80,000 sq mi, where fertile land is present.

3. Transformation by Irrigation

In Egypt, the land which is situated close to the Nile, so many miles of Sahara are transformed by irrigation. This is unbelievable yet true. The researchers are of the view that in upcoming years, more part of Sahara will also be transformed by irrigation, making it fit for living things.

2. Ten Million Plant Species

More than ten million plant species grow in Sahara. Having lack of water doesn’t mean Sahara has no plants, it in fact has so many species of plants which are capable to hibernate and live without water days after days. Many of such plants are found in the south Libyan area of Sahara Desert.

1. Has Not Much Sand

Sahara has not much sand as you might think of it. Thoughts that this is like other deserts with giant sand dunes are not true. It has sand dunes in the south of Libya, some tower to more than 400 feet high.