A significant part of Africa is located on the African lithospheric plate. This ancient platform in the distant past was part of the vast mainland of Gondwana. In the Triassic period, under the influence of the external forces of the Earth, the high mountain ranges that existed on the ancient mainland collapsed. Faults in the earth's crust, the formation of horsts, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions led to the formation of hilly plains, high plateaus, large basins and new mountain peaks. Africa is the only continent on which new mountain ranges have not formed in the zones of folded structures. The highest mountains of Africa stretch on the East African Plateau. The mountain system of the Dragon Mountains was formed in the east of the southern part of the continent. The south of the mainland is bordered by the flat-topped Cape Mountains, and the Atlas Mountains stretch in the northwest. Their northern ranges are located right at the junction of two plates of the lithosphere.
The Atlas Mountains, or Atlas, form the northwestern ledge of the African continent, which is separated from southern Europe only by the Strait of Gibr altar. northwesternthe coast of the mainland in the west is washed by the Atlantic Ocean, and in the east and north by the Mediterranean Sea. In the south, there is no clearly defined border with the Sahara, it is made up of the southern foothills of the Atlas mountain ranges, into which desert landscapes are wedged.
The Atlas is the most significant elevation in Northwest Africa. The mountain system stretched from the Atlantic coast through Morocco, Algeria to the very coast of Tunisia. It consists of the High Atlas, Tel Atlas, Saharan Atlas, Middle Atlas, Anti-Atlas, interior plateaus and plains. The highest point in North Africa and the High Atlas is Mount Toubkal, reaching a height of 4,167 m. It is also the highest North African mountain. Atlas in this part of the mountain range is very similar to the Alps and the Caucasus. In contrast, the Middle Atlas is a plateau-like peaks cut with deep gorges. To the northeast, the Saharan Atlas is a continuation of the High Atlas. South of the High Atlas is the Anti-Atlas mountain range - the edge of the ancient plate uplifted by Cenozoic movements.
The origin of the Atlas Mountains is associated with deep faults that form lineaments (linear relief elements). Geologically, the Atlas Mountains are also remarkable in that they serve as a recharge area for a real sea of groundwater in a vast artesian basin located under the world's largest desert, the Sahara.
Along the Mediterranean coast, following the contours of the coast, rise young folded mountain ranges of the Rif Atlas, Tel Atlas up to 2,500 m high.are a direct continuation of the mountains of Sicily and southern Spain. Many mountain peaks, including Toubkal, are extinct volcanoes.
Interesting, but the local population of the Atlas does not have a single name for this mountain system, there are only names of individual plateaus and ridges. The very names "Atlas Mountains", "Atlas" are not used by the local population. They are accepted in Europe and originate in ancient myths, which were sung as "the mountains of Atlanta", the mythological titan Atlanta, or Atlas, turned into an African mountain by Perseus for refusing hospitality.
The existence of the Atlas Mountains first became known from the travels of the Phoenicians. A detailed description of the mountain system is contained in the writings of Maxim Tire. But the work of the outstanding German African explorer Gerhard Rolf significantly expanded the ideas about the mountain range. Under the guise of a Muslim, he crossed the High Atlas, refined the map of mountain ranges, studied the largest oases, and from Algeria went deep into the Sahara.
The Atlas Mountains, located near Marrakech, are considered the oldest. Their age is determined by the Cretaceous and Jurassic periods.
The features of the modern relief of the Atlas Mountains depend on a sharply continental and fairly dry climate. Intensive weathering processes lead to the destruction of mountains and the accumulation at their foothills of a large number of fragments, among which high ridges with rather steep slopes and sharp peaks protrude. The relief is also distinguished by strong erosional dissection. Mountain ranges cut throughdeep gorges, the surface of the internal plateaus is intersected by a system of channels - the legacy of a bygone era.
The Atlas Mountains have a Mediterranean climate. However, it is unpredictable and, depending on the height, is quite severe. Thus, the High Atlas region is distinguished by a typical mountain climate with cool, sunny summers and very cold winters. The average temperature in summer reaches +25⁰С, in winter the temperature sometimes drops to -20⁰С. The nearby Atlas Mountains are distinguished by significant precipitation in winter. The area is often flooded.
In summer, the surface of the inner valleys and plateaus gets very warm, the temperature can reach +50⁰С. Nights, on the contrary, are quite cool and with frequent frosts.
The vegetation cover of the Atlas changes as you move from coastal to inland regions. The lower parts of the slopes are covered with dwarf palm groves, evergreen shrubs, and cork oak forests. The higher slopes are covered with forests of yew and Atlas cedar. Inner valleys, plateaus with scarce saline soils are semi-deserts and dry steppes.
Alpine meadows are found high in the mountains, differing in their species composition from European mountain meadows. The peaks of the ridges themselves are devoid of vegetation and are covered with snow for a significant part of the year. At the southern foothills of the mountains there are desert zones with occasional oases.
The fauna of the Atlas is represented by various species of animals from Africa and Southern Europe: hyrax, jerboas, hares, hyenas, jackals, wild cats and viverras. On theMagot is found on the rocks, as well as many snakes and lizards.
The population of the High and Middle Atlas is concentrated at the foot of the mountains and in the valleys, where the land is cultivated and irrigated for planting olives, citrus fruits and other agricultural crops. Grapes are grown on the terraces of the mountain slopes. The local population is also engaged in cattle breeding, cultivation of hard alpha cereal - a valuable raw material for the manufacture of fine paper.
