Dune 7, the highest sand dune in the world, in the Namib Desert, Namibia.

The Namib Desert is a large desert in South-West Africa. The name "Namib" is Nama for "enormous" and indeed the desert occupies an area of around 50,000 km²), stretching some 1,000 miles (1,600 km) along the Atlantic Ocean coast of Namibia (state of Namibia is called after this desert). Its east-west width varies from 30 to 100 miles (50-160 km).The Namib Desert is also in the southwest part of Angola. This image (C) User:Pcb21, 2000. ... This image (C) User:Pcb21, 2000. ... Jump to: navigation, search A dune in the Egyptian desert Desert in California In geography, a desert is a landscape form or region that receives little precipitation - less than 250 mm per year. ... South-West Africa is the former name (1884-1990) of Namibia under German (as German South-West Africa, Deutsch Süd-West Afrika) and (from 1915) South African administration when it was conquered from the Germans during World War I. Following the war, the Treaty of Versailles declared the territory... Nama is a Khoisan language spoken in Namibia, Botswana, and South Africa. ... To help compare orders of magnitude of different geographical regions, we list here areas between 10,000 km² and 100,000 km². See also areas of other orders of magnitude. ...

The area is considered to be the oldest desert in the world, having endured arid or semi-arid conditions for at least 80 million years. Its aridity is caused by the descent of dry air cooled by the cold Benguela current along the coast. It has less than 10 mm (0.4 inches) of rain annually and is almost completely barren. A dune in the Egyptian desert In geography, a desert is a landscape form or region that receives little precipitation. ... The frigid waters of the north-flowing Benguela current move from the Southern Ocean that surrounds Antarctica along the west coast of Africa as far as Angola. ...

A plant of the genus Welwitschia, native to the Namib Desert.

Although the desert is largely unpopulated and inaccessible, there are year-round settlements at Sesriem, close to the famous Sossusvlei and a huge group of sand dunes, which at up to 340 metres high are the tallest sand dunes in the world. Access is via light aircraft from Windhoek (the capital of Namibia, about 300 miles east of the centre of the desert), Swakopmund and Walvis Bay at the north end of the desert, or overland on gravel roads. Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Jump to: navigation, search Binomial name Welwitschia mirabilis Hook. ... This article is about the sand formations, for other meanings see Dune (disambiguation) Mesquite Flat Dunes in Death Valley National Park In physical geography, a dune is a hill of sand built by eolian (wind-related) processes. ... Windhoek, Namibia Windhoek, «VIHNT hook» (population 230,000), is the capital of Namibia, 22. ... Swakopmund, Namibia Swakopmund is a city in Namibia, with around 35,000 inhabitants. ... Walvis Bay, Namibia Walvis Bay, (Afrikaans: Walvisbaai meaning Whale Bay), is an area in Namibia with a chequered history. ...

Sunset at the Namib Rand Nature Reserve, Namibia.

The interaction between the water-laden air coming from the sea and the dry air of the desert causes immense fogs and strong currents, causing sailors to lose their way. Along with the Skeleton Coast further north, it is notorious as the site of many shipwrecks. Some of these wrecked ships can be found as much as 50 metres inland, as the desert is slowly creeping westwards into the sea, reclaiming land over a period of many years. Early morning fog obscures the surface of this lake in Carrollton, Georgia, but the sky remains clear. ... The Skeleton Coast is located on the west coast of Namibia, where the upwelling of the cold Benguela current gives rise to dense ocean fogs for much of the year. ... Jump to: navigation, search In British usage, a shipwreck is the remains of a ship after it has sunk or been beached as a result of a crisis at sea. ...

A number of unusual species of plants and animals are found only in this desert. Jump to: navigation, search In biology, the most commonly used definition of species was first coined by Ernst Mayr. ... Jump to: navigation, search Divisions Land plants (embryophytes) Non-vascular plants (bryophytes) Marchantiophyta - liverworts Anthocerotophyta - hornworts Bryophyta - mosses Vascular plants (tracheophytes) Lycopodiophyta - clubmosses Equisetophyta - horsetails Pteridophyta - true ferns Psilotophyta - whisk ferns Ophioglossophyta - adderstongues Seed plants (spermatophytes) †Pteridospermatophyta - seed ferns Pinophyta - conifers Cycadophyta - cycads Ginkgophyta - ginkgo Gnetophyta - gnetae Magnoliophyta - flowering plants... Jump to: navigation, search Phyla Porifera (sponges) Ctenophora (comb jellies) Cnidaria Placozoa Subregnum Bilateria  Acoelomorpha  Orthonectida  Rhombozoa  Myxozoa  Superphylum Deuterostomia     Chordata (vertebrates, etc. ...

The Namib is an important location for the mining of tungsten, salt and diamonds. Jump to: navigation, search General Name, Symbol, Number tungsten, W, 74 Chemical series transition metals Group, Period, Block 6, 6, d Appearance grayish white, lustrous Atomic mass 183. ... Jump to: navigation, search In chemistry, salt is a term used for ionic compounds composed of positively charged cations and negatively charged anions, so that the product is neutral and without a net charge. ... Jump to: navigation, search A scattering of round-brilliant cut diamonds shows off the many reflecting facets. ...

References

• National Geographic, January 1992, pp. 54-85.