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33-563: The Grand Erg Oriental is a desert, a natural region receiving very little rainfall. It is the largest Erg in Algeria, the next in size being the much smaller Grand Erg Occidental ('Western Sand Sea'). The largest erg of the Sahara is probably As-Sahra al-Libiyah , which straddles the inland border of Libya and Egypt. Erg is a Tamachek Berber word, and also a geographic term of art . The Grand Erg Oriental used to be associated with

66-760: A particular place. The term is particularly useful where there is no corresponding or coterminous official region. The Fens of eastern England , the Thai highlands , and the Pays de Bray in Normandy, are examples of this. Others might include regions with particular geological characteristics, like badlands , such as the Bardenas Reales , an upland massif of acidic rock, or The Burren , in Ireland . Ouargla Ouargla ( Berber : Wargrən, Arabic : ورقلة )

99-697: A total population of 191,136. According to Ibn Khaldun , the town was founded by Banu Wargla who, accompanied by sections of the Maghrawa and Banu Ifran , left the Tlemcen region and founded Ouargla. These Berbers of Ouarghla then embraced Ibadi doctrines, which later made the town an attractive refuge for the citizens of Tahert. In the 11th century, Banu Hilal , an Arab tribe living between Nile and Red Sea , settled in Tunisia , Tripolitania (western Libya ) and Constantinois (eastern Algeria ) which

132-470: Is now a meat market, surrounded by rows of grocers' and farmers' stalls selling all sorts of fresh produce and fruits. Next to the old market are the two oldest mosques in the city, al-Masjid al-Atiq , which literally means "the old mosque," and the old Ibadi mosque, home to one of the most renowned Islamic scholars of the city, Taleb et-Tayeb. Some of Ouargla's population speak the Wargli language , part of

165-545: Is now served by an international airport. A desert road going east from Hassi Messaoud continues through the Grand Erg , passing by a well named Bordj Sif Fatima ["Fatima's River Tower" perhaps], on its way to the small but ancient settlement of Ghadames at the Libyan frontier. Another and better road from Hassi Messaoud goes south, also crossing the grand erg where it passes a well called Hassi Tartrat , before reaching

198-405: Is part of. The temperature of July, which is the hottest month, is around 110 °F (43 °C). The heat becomes persistent and unpleasant in summer with temperatures sometimes exceeding 120 °F (49 °C). On average, the city of Ouargla has a temperature equal to or greater than 95 °F (35 °C) for more than 135 days and 100 °F (38 °C) for more than 83 days. The year with

231-628: Is situated directly adjacent to the Grand Erg's southeast edge. Tuareg Berbers (a people sourced in the central Sahara) compose the majority in Ghadames. This oasis was known by ancient Egypt , and later by Carthage and by Rome , as Cydamus. A Libyan road from Tarabulus on the Mediterranean coast now leads to present-day Ghadames. The historic Saharan architecture found in its Old Town has received international recognition . In Algeria Oued Irara Airport at Hassi Messaoud (located in

264-604: Is the capital city of Ouargla Province in the Sahara Desert in southern Algeria . It has a flourishing petroleum industry and hosts one of Algeria's universities, the University of Ouargla . The commune of Ouargla had a population of 133,024 in the 2008 census, up from 112,339 in 1998, and an annual population growth rate of 1.7%. However, including the commune of Rouissat , found in Ouargla's urban area , gives

297-461: Is the driest with 0.3 mm (0.012 in). Ouargla rarely sees days with a minimum temperature below 0°C. However, if one moves away from the urban area of Ouargla, frost is much more frequent in the periphery of the city. The record for the number of days below zero was in 1983 with 7 days during the month of January and 7 days during the month of December for a total of 14 days. The city sees an average of 5 days below 0°C per year. The winter with

330-578: The Aurès mountains, then salt lakes by the city of Biskra . Next the road skirts the western edge of the erg. After about 500 km. in all, it reaches the ancient oasis of Ouargla [Wargla]. Since late antiquity Wargla was a stop for the Saharan trade , being situated along a caravan route of several thousand kilometers, stretching from the Mediterranean to the Sahel . In the process such caravans crossed

363-563: The Grand Erg Oriental . In addition to oil in Wargla and Hassi Messaoud (see above), other Algerian hydrocarbon sites include In Salah , a city (pop: 44,000) to the erg's southwest, yielding natural gas , and also El Adeb Larache, Edjelé, Tingentourine, and Zarzaïtine (south of the erg, close to Libya). One of Algeria's largest field of natural gas is near Ghardaïa , west of Touggourt. Gas pipelines have been constructed north to

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396-599: The Zenati languages subgroup of the Northern Berber languages , and Wargli speakers reside in N'Goussa , as well. Ouargla has a desert climate ( Koppën Classification BWh ) typical of the Sahara Desert in which it is located. The city has very long and extremely hot summers and short and pleasant winters. The average temperatures of the city are the highest of the big cities of Algeria which Ouargla

429-497: The great desert ( Ar : aṣ-ṣaḥrā´ al-kubra). Wargla was the capital of late medieval M'zab , an Ibadi political entity descended from the earlier Rustamid polity. Wargla is today a mid-sized modern city ( pop : 129,000) and provincial capital, with a focus on the oil industry. The above north-south Algerian road from Constantine passes through other oases . North of Wargla [Ouargla] lies Touggourt [Tuggurt, Taghit] (pop: 153,000), where date palms are grown commercially. Touggourt

462-583: The Mediterranean port of Bourgie, and later northeast through Tunisia. Along the north rim of the Grand Erg Oriental , both the physical ecology and the human culture surviving there since ancient times are said to form a continuum. From Biskra (pop: 200,000) in Algeria by the Aurès mountains, this region extends east to the Djerid of Tunisia. It is a low-lying area of chotts (salt pans), and occasional oases, where exists intensive cultivation of date palms in

495-649: The Wadi Igharghar, a mostly dry and buried river with a sizable network of tributaries which, should it possess any water, would flow north into the erg from the Ahaggar mountains of the central Sahara . Yet such dry, anciently-made river beds, lying seemingly useless beneath the desert sands, can preserve the infrequent rain water, by carrying it off underground and so rescue the moisture from an otherwise "intense and almost instantaneous" evaporation. A buried river bed "not only serves in certain cases to carry into

528-433: The city of Ouargla is limited to only 55 mm (2.2 in) per year in average. The most rainy year lived in Ouargla was that of 1903 with 135 mm (5.3 in). The most arid year was that of 1929 with 0 mm. The year of 1903, which was the rainiest in Ouargla, still had nine constant months with a rainfall of 0 mm, from February to October. January is the rainiest month with 12.4 mm (0.49 in). August

561-405: The east and southeast slopes" toward Ghadames at the Libyan border. Winds over time will sweep desert sand into heaps which, given enough sand, form into a series of hills. In some types of dunes the slope on the windward side is gradual, on the leeward steep, and such dunes may "roll" forward being blown in the direction of the wind is taking. These dunes tend to be perpendicular to

594-429: The edge of the Grand Erg Oriental . 30°00′N 6°00′E  /  30.000°N 6.000°E  / 30.000; 6.000 Natural region A natural region (landscape unit) is a basic geographic unit. Usually, it is a region which is distinguished by its common natural features of geography , geology , and climate . From the ecological point of view, the naturally occurring flora and fauna of

627-430: The erg's far side. Further south lies the Ahaggar mountains. The cities of Wargla and Touggourt lie outside the western limits of the erg. Nearby, within the accepted boundaries of the Grand Erg Oriental , the landscape is described as being "practically free from [sand] dunes" evidently due to strong, persistent winds. Petroleum and other hydrocarbons have been extracted in Algeria , from areas in and surrounding

660-426: The erg) serves a few international flights and also national flights. Ouargla Airport (OGX) has limited international and national flights. North of the erg Guemar Airport , 20 km. from El Oued , has only national flights. In Libya Ghadames Airport schedules only national flights. In Tunisia Djerba – Zarzis Airport (DJE/DTTJ) serves international and national flights, it being over 100 km. north of

693-624: The fruits of "some buried wadi". To the north of the erg, the Aurès mountains provide abundant runoff. These waters feed the artesian aquifer of the Jerid , despite its surface covering of salt lakes . These geographic conditions lie adjacent to the Grand Erg Oriental. Here grow "the finest dates of all the Maghrib ". In winter, winds blow from the northwest and the north. The Grand Erg Oriental "appears to have been pushed forward on

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726-449: The heart of the desert the waters of distant rains which have fallen outside the desert domain, but in it the waters of the local storms are concentrated and carried swiftly to the alluvial basins where they are imbibed by the lighter earth and form lasting reserves within its depths. The result is that what vegetation survives is localized along the wadi beds or in their basins; in fact the words wadi and pasturage are interchangeable in

759-522: The language of the nomads , who habitually reside in such places." For these and similar reasons concerning the desert ecology of water, the geographer and historian of the Sahara E.-F. Gautier once wrote referring to the Grand Erg Oriental as "the great Igharghar Erg". Accordingly, surface moisture, seasonal pastures, and wells may reflect unseen conditions beneath the sands. What appears as an entirely inhospitable erg can elsewhere, in stark contrast, offer

792-460: The most days with a temperature equal to or greater than 100 °F was in 2014 with 99 days, while the lowest total was 39 days in 1981. By comparison, the city of Carpentras in France had a total of 16 days since 1963 when the temperature was equivalent or above 100 °F. The highest minimum temperature recorded at Ouargla was 36.6 °C (97.9 °F) on July 31, 2005. The highest temperature

825-502: The region are likely to be influenced by its geographical and geological factors, such as soil and water availability , in a significant manner. Thus most natural regions are homogeneous ecosystems . Human impact can be an important factor in the shaping and destiny of a particular natural region. The concept "natural region" is a large basic geographical unit, like the vast boreal forest region. The term may also be used generically, like in alpine tundra , or specifically to refer to

858-430: The slope being steep on both sides. Seif dunes generally form long rows whose parallel ridge lines follow the wind's direction. There are other types of dunes , as well as "complex" dunes. Saharan winds are also known to clear an area of sand altogether, leaving bare rock ( hamada ) or gravel (reg). The Grand Erg Oriental is accessible overland by an Algerian road, which goes south from Constantine . It passes through

891-516: The tens of thousands. Between Biskra and the Djerid, but a little to the south, lies El Oued , a mid-sized Algerian city (pop: 139,000), graced with domes and arches of Saharan architecture. Also an oasis, it's located about 100 km. east of Touggourt and by the northern frontier of the erg. The thirst of El Oued is quenched by a subterranean river . South of the Tunisian sea port of Gabès , in

924-540: The vicinity of the Grand Erg's northeast edge, there are a number of Berber villages, among them Tataouine . From here a bleak Tunisian paved road leads south along the Libyan border, by sand dunes of the Grand Erg's eastern limits, terminating at Borj El Khadra, an oasis, near Ghadames. The ancient oasis town of Ghadames (pop: 7,000) in Libya is located by where the frontiers of Algeria, Tunisia, and Libya meet. The city

957-404: The wind's direction. Vegetation does not survive in such spreads of hot dry sand. Only in rare areas where moisture can endure is there life. Common in the Sahara desert are seif dunes : here the air currents form sand dunes parallel to the prevailing direction of the wind. These dunes have long, sharp ridge lines. Cross-winds, however, may alter the height or width of such lengthy dunes, with

990-525: Was Ouargla party. In the 19th century, the town was known for being on a caravan route to the south, and a starting point for exploring the southern Sahara . The city was a significant tourist attraction until the civil unrest of the 1990s. Many tourists shopped for sand roses at the souk l'ehjar , the old rock market. The souq , or market, had many traditional shops filled with antiques, traditional crafts, and various local items ranging from dresses to stuffed reptiles. The area across from these shops

1023-432: Was formerly a medieval Sultanate and a northern oasis on a Trans-Saharan trade route. South of Wargla on this road, lies Hassi Messaoud ["blessed well"], which is located within the Grand Erg . Until recently Hassi Messaoud was a small Saharan village, but has grown substantially on account of the local discovery of oil in 1956. An oil refinery has since been built, and the city (current population estimated at 60,000)

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1056-403: Was recorded on August 13, 1984, at 53.5 °C (128.3 °F), although that reading is disputed by some meteorologists thus leaving reading 51.3 °C (124.3 °F) recorded on 5 July 2018 as the highest reliable reading for Ouargla, for Algeria and for whole continent of Africa. The climate is particularly arid and not very rainy with clear skies most of the time. The rainfall recorded in

1089-430: Was used to display sand roses and mineral specimens of all sizes and shapes. The market has since gone through a renovation process. Not far from the souk l'ehjar is the old farmers’ market, or the "Sunday market", as it is called by the locals. It, too, is located in the centre of the old city, La Kasbah. At its centre, the original old market is shaped as a circle and split into small arcs. The centre circular structure

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