Africa and Adjacent Ocean Environments

Africa is a land of tropical (A), arid (B), and mesothermal (C)Arid climates affected by theBermuda Bermuda-Azores HighAzores High, South Atlantic HighSouth Atlantic High, and South Indian OceanGyreSouth AtlanticSouth Indian Ocean High (also known as the Mascarene High), and the major ocean currentsOcean currents (see currents) that they drive. From north to south are the world’s largest desert—the Sahara, the semi-aridArid SahelAfricaSahel region, the Tropical Wet-dry, also known as the Tropical Savanna (Aw) climate, and the Tropical Monsoon (Am) and Tropical Rain Forest (Af) climates, with Aw and higher-elevation Mesothermal—Winter dry (Cw) climates, B climatesB climates, and finally Humid SubtropicalJerusalem, IsraelSomalisubtropical (Cfa) andMediterranean (Cs) climatein Africa Mediterranean (Cs) climates in the southernAfricaSouthern tip of the continent. For a variety of reasons, the African Af climates are not as rainy in other places, and the massive Sahara DesertSahara Desert can exert influences elsewhere in Africa and beyond, such as throughWindHarmattan the Harmattan windsHarmattan wind in west AfricaAfricaWest, deserts of the Horn of Africa, and the Saharan air layer in the Americas.