Black and White Desert

Black and White Desert

“The Black Desert” is located south of Al Farafra Oasis in the Western Egypt in the Sahara Kobra. Kobra in Arabic means the biggest as this desert is occupieng many countries in nord Africa, Egypt, Libia, Tunisia, Algeria, Marocco
The Sahara is a desert spanning across North Africa. With an area of 9,200,000 square kilometres (3,600,000 sq mi), it is the largest hot desert in the world and the third-largest desert overall,
The Egyptian part offers various kind of desert life and oasis, one of them is the white and black desert, these 2 desert are not so far from Cairo, so you can drive abut 4 hours to arrive Baharia oasis then by 4x4 you can go to black desert, then white desert, The black desert name  stems from the fact that there is a layer of black volcanic stones and black stones powder covering the desert and mountains, highlands, and sand. This powder covers the tops of some mountains and highlands so they seems looking  like they are wearing black hats and  Beige evening dresses, the color of sand, covered with black lace, they are amazing. On the other hand, other mountains and highlands are fully covered in this powder, draping down its sides, as if they are wearing black velvet robes.

"Jabal Al Marsousa" is one of the most well known mountains in the Black Desert (). It is a volcanic hole totally surrounded by volcanic jasper. This material is beautifully covering  the mountain, as if it paints the wrinkles of millions of years on its stones, and provides it the honor and glory of history. Another mountain is "Jabal Elpanorama", which tourists to the Black Desert used to climb it to enjoy the panorama and taking panoramic photos of the Black Desert from the Jabal top, hence they call it "Jabal Panorama".

After discovering the second largest dinosaur skeleton in the world, in the neighbourhood of  the mountains of Al-Dust and Al-Maghrafa, on the borders of the Black Desert (not so far from El Bahariya Oasis), the Black Desert was announced a nature reserve as of 2010. in addition, remnants of petrified shrubberies and forests were found there, showing that this desert once wore a green and fresh garment. It not only supported them, but was also a rich and fertile land that provided food and shelter for various herbivores and carnivores, and even dinosaurs.

The White desert

The White Desert, the first geological park created by nature that preserves its features.
The White Desert in Egypt is located 45 kilometers north of the Farafra Oasis in the New Valley Governorate, 500 kilometers from Cairo. It was declared a nature reserve in 2002, and was called the White Desert because it has the white color that covers most of its parts. Its total area is 3010 square kilometers, and it contains many formations that were formed as a result of an occasional sandstorm in the region. As a result, it turned into what is considered an open museum for studying the desert environment, geography, fossils, and wonderful wildlife. It contains some natural forms that amaze everyone who visits it, as the winds formed many rock patterns in the form of a crow's nest, a camel's head, and others in the form of white stone columns, chalk walls, or cones.

The UNESCO Regional Office for Arab States unanimously announced the White Desert Reserve, the first Egyptian geological park, on the international list. Its file was submitted to the "Geopark" administration at UNESCO headquarters in Paris. The White Desert contains a group of sand dunes and valleys with a vegetation cover containing most of the wildlife living in the region. It also contains antiquities and tools dating back to prehistoric times. It also contains remains of rare tombs, caves and ancient mummies.

The calcifications of the White Desert were formed 80 million years ago and are considered unique calcifications called karst, which is a very old geological phenomenon. Over time, these calcifications have formed caves that have in turn been transformed by erosion into high crystals of calcite ore in different shapes such as the mushroom plant and other different shapes. It has a special area called the mushroom area, which is very attractive to tourists.

Geological studies indicate that the White Desert Reserve was an ancient ocean floor called the Tessian Sea, where calcium carbonate was deposited and formed large mountains and huge chalk shapes. It was once a single, wide-ranging limestone plateau. With erosion over the ages, it was exposed to what is called wind erosion, little by little, and these rare shapes were formed. Wind erodes the weak parts, and the harder the part of the rock, the more it resists erosion. Among its most famous rocks are the Mushroom Rock, the Camel's Head, and other different shapes in the shape of a bird's head or a high dome, which is considered an artistic and touristic masterpiece that attracts tourists.

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