SNOWFALL IN THE SAHARA DESERT: AN UNUSUAL WEATHER PHENOMENON

SNOWFALL IN THE SAHARA DESERT: AN UNUSUAL WEATHER PHENOMENON

TOPIC: Geography

Context- Snowfall in a hot desert may seem a contradiction but snow has been recorded several times in the Sahara Desert over the last decades, most recently in January 2022.

Concept-

• In order for snow to form, two distinctive weather properties are needed:
  • cold temperatures and
  • moist air.
• Although the Sahara commonly experiences very high temperatures (more than 50°C), low temperatures are also recorded (in particular at night) because of the bare land surface and the cloudless skies.
• A maximum cold of -14°C was recorded in Algeria in January 2005 during the northern hemisphere winter.
• Winter air circulation patterns draw cool, moist air towards the northern Sahara from the Atlantic and Mediterranean. This results in higher winter precipitation along the Saharan fringe in this season.
• It is under these weather conditions, and in these mountainous areas, that snow in the Sahara can occasionally be found.
• Wet air comes into the region from the Atlantic Ocean, the Mediterranean Sea, and the Indian Ocean, by low-pressure cyclones in the northern Sahara during winter, and monsoon rains in the southern Sahara during summer. The peripheries of the desert are therefore wetter than its centre. This means that snow is more likely to form at the periphery of the desert.
• The Atlas Mountains in particular act as a snowtrap because of their proximity to the Atlantic and elevation.
• Globally, however, climate change is leading to more unpredictable weather patterns. In the Sahara, this may mean increased variability of rainfall along its wetter Sahelian fringe and along the Atlantic and Mediterranean seaboards (including in the Atlas Mountains).

About Sahara Desert:

• The Sahara is the world’s largest hot desert.
• It spans across 11 countries in northern Africa: Algeria, Chad, Egypt, Libya, Mali, Mauritania, Morocco, Niger, Western Sahara, Sudan and Tunisia.
• It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean on the west, the Red Sea on the east, the Mediterranean Sea on the north and the Sahel Savannah on the south.
• It has gravel plains and elevated plateaus with a bare rocky surface.
• Flora: Vegetation in the Sahara desert includes cactus, date palms and acacia. We can find an oasis in some places.
• Fauna: The animal species found here are camels, hyenas, jackals, foxes, scorpions and many varieties of snakes and lizards.