Geography & Climate
Senegal is a coastal West African nation located 14 degrees north of the Equator and 14 degrees west of the Prime Meridian. The country's total area is 196,190 km² of which 192,000 km² is land and 4,190 km² is water, making the nation slightly smaller than Britain.
In total, Senegal has 2,640 km of land borders, and 531km of coastline and shoreline.
The country has well-defined dry and humid seasons result from northeast winter winds and southwest summer winds. Dakar's annual rainfall of about 610 mm (24 in) occurs between June and October when maximum temperatures average 27 °C (82 °F); December to February minimum temperatures are about 17 °C (63 °F). Interior temperatures are higher than along the coast, and rainfall increases substantially farther south, exceeding 1.5 m (60 in) annually in some areas.
The lowest point in Senegal is the Atlantic Ocean, at sea level. The highest point is an unnamed feature near Nepen Diakha in the Founta Djallon foothills at 581 m (1900 ft).
Climate: tropical; hot, humid; rainy season (May to November) has strong southeast winds; dry season (December to April) dominated by hot, dry, harmattan wind.
The Senegal River
The Sénégal River is a 1790 km long river that forms the border between Senegal and Mauritania. It was called Bambotus by Pliny the Elder (from phoenician "behemoth" for hippopotamus) and Nias by Claudius Ptolemy. There was probably trade from here to the Mediterranean World, until the destruction of Carthage and its west African trade net in 146 BC.
Satellite image of the Senegal River
As it is formed by the confluence (a geography term, describing the meeting of two or more bodies of water) of the Semefé (Bakoy) and Bafing rivers in Bafoulabé. The Semefé and Bafing rivers have their mutual source in Guinea; the Bafing River flows through Mali and the Semefé is on the Malinese-Senegalese border.
Approaching its mouth, the Senegal passes through Biffeche and the island on which the city of Saint-Louis, Senegal is located, then turns south. It is separated from the Atlantic Ocean by a thin strip of sand called the Lange de Barbarie before it pours into the ocean itself. The river has two large dams along its course, the Manantali Dam in Mali, and the Maka-Diama dam on the Mauritania-Senegal border, near the outlet to the sea. The Manantali dam was build as a reservoir. The Maka-Diama dam prevents access of salt water into the inner country.
The Senegal River has a drainage basin of 483,181 km² and an estimated annual discharge of 8 million km³.
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