The Namib (/ˈnɑːmɪb/NAH-mib;[1] Portuguese: Namibe) is a coastal desert in Southern Africa. According to the broadest definition, the Namib stretches for more than 2,000 kilometres (1,200 mi) along the Atlantic coasts of Angola, Namibia, and northwest South Africa, extending southward from the Carunjamba River in Angola, through Namibia and to the Olifants River in Western Cape, South Africa.[2][3][4] The Namib's northernmost portion, which extends 450 kilometres (280 mi) from the Angola-Namibia border, is known as Moçâmedes Desert, while its southern portion approaches the neighboring Kalahari Desert. From the Atlantic coast eastward, the Namib gradually ascends in elevation, reaching up to 200 kilometres (120 mi) inland to the foot of the Great Escarpment.[2] Annual precipitation ranges from 2 millimetres (0.079 in) in the aridest regions to 200 millimetres (7.9 in) at the escarpment, making the Namib the only true desert in southern Africa.[2][4][5] Having endured arid or semi-arid conditions for roughly 55–80 million years, the Namib may be the oldest desert in the world[2][5] and contains some of the world's driest regions, with only western South America's Atacama Desert to challenge it for age and aridity benchmarks.[A]
The desert geology consists of sand seas near the coast, while gravel plains and scattered mountain outcrops occur further inland. The sand dunes, some of which are 300 metres (980 ft) high and span 32 kilometres (20 mi) long, are the second-largest in the world after the Badain Jaran Desert dunes in China.[2] Temperatures along the coast are stable and generally range between 9–20 °C (48–68 °F) annually, while temperatures further inland are variable—summer daytime temperatures can exceed 45 °C (113 °F) while nights can be freezing.[7] Fogs that originate offshore from the collision of the cold Benguela Current and warm air from the Hadley Cell create a fog belt that frequently envelops parts of the desert. Coastal regions can experience more than 180 days of thick fog a year.[2][5] While this has proved a major hazard to ships—more than a thousand wrecks litter the Skeleton Coast—it is a vital source of moisture for desert life.
The Namib is almost completely uninhabited by humans except for several small settlements and indigenous pastoral groups, including the Ovahimba and Obatjimba Herero in the north, and the Topnaar Nama in the central region.[4] Owing to its antiquity, the Namib may be home to more endemic species than any other desert in the world.[7] Most of the desert wildlife is arthropods and other small animals that live on little water, although larger animals inhabit the northern regions. Near the coast, the cold ocean water is rich in fishery resources and supports populations of brown fur seals and shorebirds, which serve as prey for the Skeleton Coast's lions.[7] Further inland, the Namib-Naukluft National Park supports population of mountain zebras, and other large mammals. Further north near the Skeleton Coast, lions, elephants and rhinos can be found. Although the outer Namib is largely barren of vegetation, lichens and succulents are found in coastal areas, while grasses, shrubs, and ephemeral plants thrive near the escarpment. Several types of trees are also able to survive the extremely arid climate.[7]
^"Namib Desert". Lexico UK English Dictionary. Oxford University Press. Archived from the original on 2022-07-29.
^ abcdefGoudie, Andrew (2010). "Chapter 17: Namib Sand Sea: Large Dunes in an Ancient Desert". In Migoń, Piotr (ed.). Geomorphological Landscapes of the World. New York, NY: Springer. pp. 163–169. ISBN 978-90-481-3054-2.
^Stone, A. E. C. (2013-06-01). "Age and dynamics of the Namib Sand Sea: A review of chronological evidence and possible landscape development models". Journal of African Earth Sciences. 82: 70–87. Bibcode:2013JAfES..82...70S. doi:10.1016/j.jafrearsci.2013.02.003. ISSN 1464-343X.
^ abcGates, Henry Louis; Appiah, Kwame Anthony, eds. (2010). Encyclopedia of Africa. Vol. 2. Oxford: Oxford University Press. p. 213. ISBN 978-0-19-533770-9.
^ abcSpriggs, Amy. "Namib desert (AT1315)". Wild World. World Wildlife Fund. Retrieved 11 December 2011.
^Veloso, José Vicencio; Böhm, Christoph; Schween, Jan H.; Löhnert, Ulrich; Crewell, Susanne (2024). "A comparative study of the atmospheric water vapor in the Atacama and Namib Desert". Global and Planetary Change. 232. doi:10.1016/j.gloplacha.2023.104320.
^ abcdNicholson, Sharon E. (2011). Dryland Climatology. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. pp. 385–388. ISBN 978-0-521-51649-5. Retrieved 13 December 2011.
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The Namib (/ˈnɑːmɪb/ NAH-mib; Portuguese: Namibe) is a coastal desert in Southern Africa. According to the broadest definition, the Namib stretches for...
The Namib Desert horse (Afrikaans: Namib Woestyn Perd) is a feral horse found in the Namib Desert of Namibia. It is the only feral herd of horses residing...
inhabitants per square kilometre (7.0/sq mi)). Namibia got its name from the Namib desert that stretches along the coast of the Atlantic. It is also known...
Namib Mills Ltd, established in 1982, is the largest grain processing company in Namibia. It produces flour, pasta, animal feeds and other products from...
commonly known as the Namib melon, or the reins melon, is a species of annual melon in the family Cucurbitaceae that is native to the Namib Desert, Namibia...
Pachydactylus rangei, the Namib sand gecko or Namib web-footed gecko, is a species of small lizard in the family Gekkonidae. It inhabits the arid areas...
Stipagrostis sabulicola, the Namib dune bushman grass, is a species of grass endemic to the dunes of the Namib desert. The perennial grass grows up to...
TransNamib Holdings Limited, commonly referred to as TransNamib, is a state-owned railway company in Namibia. Organised as a holding company, it provides...
gracilipes. Stenocara gracilipes is a species of beetle that is native to the Namib Desert in southern Africa. This is one of the most arid areas of the world...
Citrullus ecirrhosus, commonly known as Namib tsamma, is a species of perennial desert vine in the gourd family, Cucurbitaceae, and a relative of the...
It 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"...
had increased to 75,921 people. The city is situated at the edge of the Namib Desert and is the fourth largest population centre in Namibia. Swakopmund...
(2015). It is Time to Identify Selected Plants and Animals of the Namib (2nd ed.). Namib Desert Environment Education Trust (NaDEET). p. 8. Mhloniswa Dlamini...
The NamibRand Nature Reserve is a private nature reserve in Southwestern Namibia in the Namib Desert. Founded in 1984 by J.A. (Albi) Brückner, it has...
Namib round-eared sengi or Namib round-eared elephant shrew) is a species of elephant shrew in the family Macroscelididae found in the central Namib desert...
more famous salt pan of Sossusvlei, in a valley between the dunes in the Namib-Naukluft Park in Namibia. Also written DeadVlei or Dead Vlei, its name means...
The Namib Desert dune ant (Camponotus detritus), is a large ant species distinguished by white and black symmetrical stripes and markings on its hairy...
wheel spider (Carparachne aureoflava), is a huntsman spider native to the Namib Desert of Southern Africa. This spider is distinct from Leucorchestris arenicola...
carrying miners to their jobs in Grootfontein and Tsumeb. Suidwes merged into Namib Air on 1 December 1978. The South West African government became the major...
The Khoekhoe /ˈkɔɪkɔɪ/ KOY-koy language (Khoekhoegowab), also known by the ethnic terms Nama (Namagowab) /ˈnɑːmə/ NAH-mə, Damara (ǂNūkhoegowab), or Nama/Damara...
Namibia, east of the coastal Namib Desert. The woodlands cover the Namib escarpment, which rises from the low-lying Namib coastal plain to the Southern...
front parts of their heads are directly exposed. The fogstand beetle of the Namib Desert, Stenocara gracilipes, is able to collect water from fog, as its...
Trans Namib Ground (also known as the Centre for Cricket Development Ground) is a cricket ground in Windhoek, Namibia. The first recorded match on the...
surrounded by high red dunes, located in the southern part of the Namib Desert, in the Namib-Naukluft National Park of Namibia. The name "Sossusvlei" is often...
(Afrikaans for "Coleman's peak", German: Kolmannskuppe) is a ghost town in the Namib in southern Namibia, 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) inland from the port town of...
zones. The climatic zones range from the extreme desert of the southern Namib in the farthest northwest to the lush subtropical climate in the east along...
Southern Africa, presented with comedic elements. It was filmed in the Namib Desert, the Kalahari Desert and at the Okavango River and Okavango Delta...
The Namib rock agama (Agama planiceps) is a species of agamid lizard that is native to granite rocky outcrops in northwestern Namibia and southwestern...
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