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35-642: Vastrap (Stand firm) is a small military airfield situated in the Kalahari Desert north east of Upington inside a 700 square kilometre weapons test range of the same name belonging to the South African National Defence Force . It was constructed to allow the SAAF to practice tactical bombing operations, and for aircraft to service the SADF 's defunct underground nuclear weapon test site. The area
70-460: A complex climatic history over the past million or so years, in line with major global changes. Changes in the last 250,000 years have been reconstructed from various data sources, providing evidence of former extensive lakes and drier periods. During the latter, the area of the Kalahari has expanded to include parts of western Zimbabwe, Zambia, and Angola. Due to its low aridity, the Kalahari supports
105-466: A cooler climate than that of the Sahel or Sahara . For example, winter frost is common from June to August, rarely seen in the warmer Sahelian regions. For the same reason, summer temperatures certainly can be very hot, but not in comparison to regions of low altitude in the Sahel or Sahara, where some stations record average temperatures of the warmest month around 38 °C, whereas the average temperature of
140-562: A dry desert. The fossil flora and fauna from Gcwihaba Cave in Botswana indicates that the region was much wetter and cooler at least from 30 to 11 thousand Before Present , especially after 17,500 BP. Drainage of the desert is by dry black valleys, seasonally inundated pans, and the large salt pans of the Makgadikgadi Pan in Botswana and Etosha Pan in Namibia. The only permanent river,
175-658: A saline lake, and into Lake Xau and the western end of the Makgadikgadi Pan via the Boteti distributary. The Mopipi Dam [ ceb ] was built on the Boteti to provide water to the Orapa diamond mine . The Selinda Spillway, also known as the Magweqana, Magwekwana or Magweggana, is a distributary channel that connects the Okavango Delta to the Cuando River , a tributary of
210-406: A small region toward the west-southwest of Tsaraxaibis (Southeast of Namibia). The average annual rainfall ranges from around 110 mm (close to aridity) to more than 500 mm in some north and east areas. During summertime in all regions, rainfall may go with heavy thunderstorms. In the driest and sunniest parts of the Kalahari, over 4,000 hours of sunshine are recorded annually on average. In
245-491: A test was hauled away. The airfield is operated by AFB Bloemspruit . This South African military article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Kalahari Desert The Kalahari Desert is a large semi-arid sandy savanna in Southern Africa extending for 900,000 square kilometres (350,000 sq mi), covering much of Botswana , as well as parts of Namibia and South Africa . It
280-465: A variety of flora. The native flora includes acacia trees and many other herbs and grasses. The kiwano fruit, also known as the horned melon, melano, African horned cucumber, jelly melon, or hedged gourd, is endemic to a region in the Kalahari Desert (specific region unknown). Even where the Kalahari "desert" is dry enough to qualify as a desert in the sense of having low precipitation , it
315-650: Is home to the lion ( Panthera leo ), cheetah ( Acinonyx jubatus ), African leopard ( Panthera pardus ), spotted hyena ( Crocuta crocuta ), brown hyena ( Parahyaena brunnea ), and African wild dog ( Lycaon pictus pictus ). Birds of prey include the secretarybird ( Sagittarius serpentarius ), martial eagle ( Polemaetus bellicosus ) and other eagles, the giant eagle owl ( Bubo lacteus ) and other owls, falcons , goshawks , kestrels , and kites . Other animals include wildebeest , springbok , gemsbok and other antelopes , Cape porcupines ( Hystrix africaeaustralis ), and ostriches ( Struthio camelus ). Some of
350-683: Is joined just above its confluence with the Cuito by the Omatako River, which flows northeast from its origin in the Damaraland region of central Namibia . The Okavango continues through the Caprivi Strip of Namibia into Botswana , where it splits into a number of distributaries to form the Okavango Delta , a large inland delta that becomes a seasonally flooded grassland . After the Okavango Delta,
385-630: Is not strictly speaking a desert because it has too dense a ground cover. The main region that lacks ground cover is in the southwest Kalahari (southeast of Namibia, northwest of South Africa, and southwest of Botswana) in the south of the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park . For instance, in the ZF Mgcawu District Municipality of South Africa, total vegetation cover may be as low as 30.72% on non-protected (from cattle grazing) farmlands south of Twee Rivieren Rest Camp and 37.74% in
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#1732858098271420-505: Is not to be confused with the Angolan, Namibian, and South African Namib coastal desert, whose name is of Khoekhoegowab origin and means "vast place". Kalahari is derived from the Tswana word Kgala , meaning "the great thirst", or Kgalagadi , meaning "a waterless place"; the Kalahari has vast areas covered by red sand without any permanent surface water. The Kalahari Desert was not always
455-675: Is situated in the Kalahari Basin . In 1996, De Beers evaluated the potential of diamond mining at Gope. In 1997, the eviction of the San and Bakgalagadi tribes in the Central Kalahari Game Reserve from their land began. In 2006, a Botswana High Court ruled in favor of the San and Bakgalagadi tribes in the reserve, finding their eviction unlawful. The Government of Botswana granted a permit to De Beers' Gem Diamonds/Gope Exploration Company (Pty) Ltd. to conduct mining activities within
490-425: Is sub-humid rather than semi-arid in the north and east, where the dry forests, savannahs, and salt lakes prevail. South and west, where the vegetation is predominantly xeric savanna or even a semi-desert, the climate is "Kalaharian" semi-arid . The Kalaharian climate is subtropical (average annual temperature greater than or equal to 18 °C, at peaks reaching 40 °C and above, with mean monthly temperature of
525-516: The Koeberg nuclear power station contract. David Albright reported that South African officials believed that an attempt to re-use the site in the late 1980s was detected by Western or Soviet intelligence agencies, and that this discovery influenced the Tripartite Accord . In an effort to mask activities, a shed was built over one of the shafts, and the water that was pumped out in preparation for
560-643: The Makgadikgadi Pans of Botswana . This area, for example, supports numerous halophilic species and, in the rainy season tens of thousands of flamingos visit these pans. The source of the Okavango Delta's waters in Angola and Namibia remain unaffected by any upstream dams or significant water abstraction and the three riparian states have established a protocol under the Permanent Okavango River Basin Water Commission (OKACOM) for
595-524: The Namib Desert to the west. There is little rainfall, and the summer temperature is very high. The driest areas usually receive 110–200 mm (4.3–7.9 in) of rain per year, and the wettest just a little over 500 mm (20 in). The surrounding Kalahari Basin covers over 2,500,000 km (970,000 sq mi) extending farther into Botswana, Namibia, and South Africa, encroaching into parts of Angola , Zambia and Zimbabwe . The climate
630-449: The Okavango , flows into a delta in the northwest, forming marshes that are rich in wildlife. Ancient dry riverbeds—called omuramba —traverse the central northern reaches of the Kalahari and provide standing pools of water during the rainy season. A semi-desert, with huge tracts of excellent grazing after good rains, the Kalahari supports more animals and plants than a true desert, such as
665-853: The Zambezi . In periods of very high water in the Okavango, the water flows eastward towards the Cuando-Linyanti-System. The last time this happened was in August 2009 after 30 years of falling dry. In times of high water in the Kwando, the water can flow west from the Cuando towards the Okavango Delta, but often evaporates before it reaches the delta. Other streams in the basin include the Eiseb , an intermittent stream that originates in Namibia's Herreroland and flows east into
700-522: The Kalahari "desert", but in the Kalahari basin, halophytic vegetation to the north is adapted to pans, lakes that are completely dry during the dry season, and maybe for years during droughts, such as in Etosha ( Etosha Pan halophytics AT0902) and Makgadikgadi ( Zambezian halophytics AT0908). A totally different vegetation is adapted to the perennial fresh water of the Okavango Delta , an ecoregion termed Zambezian flooded grasslands AT0907. The Kalahari
735-597: The Kalahari Desert was once a much wetter place. The ancient Lake Makgadikgadi dominated the area, covering the Makgadikgadi Pan and surrounding areas, but it drained or dried out some 10,000 years ago. It may have once covered as much as 120,000 square kilometres (46,000 sq mi). In ancient times, there was sufficient moisture for farming, with dikes and dams collecting the water. These are now filled with sediment, breached, or no longer in use, though they can be readily seen via Google Earth. The Kalahari has had
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#1732858098271770-573: The Kalahari, there are three main mechanisms of atmospheric circulation, dominated by the Kalahari High anticyclone in winter, and by the Kalahari Heat Low in summer: There are huge subterranean water reserves beneath parts of the Kalahari; the Dragon's Breath Cave , for example, is the largest documented non-subglacial underground lake. Such reserves may partly be the residues of ancient lakes;
805-536: The Okavango Delta, and the Nata River , which originates in western Zimbabwe to flow into the eastern end of the Makgadikgadi Pan . Despite its aridity, the Kalahari Basin supports a variety of fauna and flora on soils known as Kalahari sands. The native flora includes acacia trees, African rosewood and a large number of herbs and grasses. Some of the areas within the Kalahari are seasonal wetlands , such as
840-683: The areas within the Kalahari are seasonal wetlands , such as the Makgadikgadi Pans of Botswana . This area, for example, supports numerous halophilic species, and in the rainy season, tens of thousands of flamingos visit these pans. The following protected areas were established in the Kalahari: The San people have lived in the Kalahari for 20,000 years as hunter-gatherers . They hunt wild game with bows and poisoned arrows and gather edible plants, such as berries, melons and nuts, as well as insects. The San get most of their water requirements from plant roots and desert melons found on or under
875-594: The basin, and occupying the centre, is the large Kalahari Desert . The perennial river bifurcation of Selinda Spillway (or Magweggana River), on the Cuando River , connects the Kalahari basin to the Zambezi Basin . The Okavango River is the chief stream in the basin. It is formed by the confluence of the Cubango and Cuito rivers, which originate on the Bié Plateau of central Angola and flow southeast. The Cubango
910-595: The climate is drier, it becomes a true semi-desert with ground not entirely covered by vegetation: "open" as opposed to "closed" vegetation. Examples include the north of the ZF Mgcawu District Municipality , itself in the north of South Africa, and the Keetmanshoop Rural in the southeast of Namibia. In the north and east, dry forests cover an area of over 300,000 km in which Rhodesian teak and several species of acacia are prominent. These regions are termed Kalahari Acacia-Baikiaea woodlands AT0709. Outside
945-537: The coldest month strictly below 18 °C), and is semi-arid with the dry season from April to September, the coldest six months of the year. It is the southern tropical equivalent of the Sahelian climate with the wet season during summer. The altitude has been adduced as the explanation why the Kalaharian climate is not tropical; its altitude ranges from 600 to 1600 meters (and generally from 800 to 1200 meters), resulting in
980-429: The desert floor. They often store water in the blown-out shells of ostrich eggs. The San live in huts built from local materials—the frame is made of branches, and the roof is thatched with long grass. Most of their hunting and gathering techniques replicate pre-historic tribes. Bantu -speaking Tswana , Kgalagadi , and Herero and a small number of European settlers also live in the Kalahari desert. The city of Windhoek
1015-474: The protected (from cattle grazing) South African side of the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park: these southernmost Kalahari xeric savanna areas are truly semi-deserts. However, in all the remaining Kalahari, except on salt pans during the dry season, the vegetation cover can be denser, up to almost 100%, in some limited areas. In an area of about 600,000 km in the south and west of the Kalahari,
1050-770: The reserve. Botswana Namibia South Africa 23°S 22°E / 23°S 22°E / -23; 22 Kalahari Basin The Kalahari Basin , also known as the Kalahari Depression , Okavango Basin or the Makgadikgadi Basin , is an endorheic basin and large lowland area covering approximately 725,293 km (280,037 sq mi) — mostly within Botswana and Namibia , but also parts of Angola , South Africa , Zambia , and Zimbabwe . The outstanding physical feature in
1085-803: The supervision of the International Atomic Energy Agency in July 1993. The site was first detected by the Soviet spy satellite , Cosmos 922 when it photographed the area from 21–25 July 1977, and reported to the Americans on 6 August, who in turn confirmed its existence with an overflight of the Lockheed SR-71 spy plane. The US then applied pressure on the South Africans for it to be closed; France also insisted on closure, threatening cancellation of
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1120-518: The vegetation is mainly xeric savanna . This area is the ecoregion identified by World Wide Fund for Nature as Kalahari xeric savanna AT1309. Typical savanna grasses include Schmidtia , Stipagrostis , Aristida , and Eragrostis ; these are interspersed with trees such as camelthorn ( Acacia erioloba ), grey camelthorn ( Acacia haematoxylon ), shepherd's tree ( Boscia albitrunca ), blackthorn ( Acacia mellifera ), and silver cluster-leaf ( Terminalia sericea ). In certain areas where
1155-407: The warmest month in any region in the Kalahari never exceeds 29 °C, though daily temperatures occasionally reach up to close to 45 °C (113 °F) (44.8 °C at Twee Rivieren Rest Camp in 2012). The dry season lasts eight months or more, and the wet season typically from less than one month to four months, depending on location. The southwestern Kalahari is the driest area, particularly
1190-556: The waters of the basin enter a zone of strong evaporation, already within the Kalahari Desert depression. A series of salt pans lie in the lowest points of the basin, including the Nwako Pan south of the Okavango Delta and the vast Makgadikgadi Pan southeast of the Delta. At times of high flow, the Okavango spills into the Nwako Pan via the Xudum and Nhabe distributaries to replenish Lake Ngami ,
1225-450: Was selected for nuclear weapons testing due to its remoteness, low population density, stable geological formations and lack of underground rivers. Two underground shafts 385 metres (1,263 ft) and 216 metres (709 ft) in depth and 1 metre (3.3 ft) in diameter were drilled from 1975–1977. Neither was ever used to perform a detonation, although instrumented tests were performed. The shafts were sealed with sand and concrete under
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