Gabriela BermudezDiana Ghawi

Countries of the Middle East

• Palestine (Palestinian Territories)

• Lebanon• Syria• Jordan• Saudia Arabia• Iran • Iraq

• Beirut• Bahrain• Oman• Qatar• Yemen• The United

Arab Emirates • Turkey• Israel

Physical Coordinates

•The Middle East is approximately:

•Between 42 degrees N and 17 degrees N

•Between 30 degrees E and 72 degrees E

Location In Comparison To . . .

• Tropic of Cancer: passes through the Middle East

• Tropic of Capricorn: approximately 47 degrees N

• Equator: approximately 17 degrees N

• South Pole: approximately 113.5 degrees N

• North Pole: approximately 66.5 degrees S

• The Middle East

Days and Nights•The days and the nights of the

Middle East are relatively the same length.

•The nights are only slightly longer, in the winter.

•The days are only slightly longer in the summer.

•The nights are much colder then the days no matter what the season is.

Time Zones•The entire Middle East

spans over three time zones.

•The westernmost of which is only two time zones away from the Prime Meridian.

•The easternmost of which is eight time zones away from the International Date Line.

Rocks and Minerals

• Sandstone• Sedimentary Rocks• Metamorphic Rocks• Ore Minerals, such as gold and silver

Plate Tectonics• Three major tectonic plates converge on the Middle

East; the African, Eurasian, and Arabian plates. • The boundaries between the tectonic plates make

up the Azore-Gibaltrar Ridge, extending across North Africa, the Red Sea, and into Iran.

• The Arabian Plate is moving northward into the Anatolian plate (Turkey) at the East Anatolian Fault, and the boundary between the Aegean and Anatolian plate in eastern Turkey is also seismically active.

Mountain RangesElburz (Alborz, Alburz) Mountains

Kopet-Dag Range

Zagros Mountains

Hejaz Asir

Taurus Mountains

Caucasus Mountains

Pontic Mountains (Dogukaradeniz Daglari)

Libanus Mountain Range

Wind Patterns•Northeast

Trade Winds•Horse Latitudes (Subtropical High)

Humidity• For the most part,

the Middle East has a dry, arid environment, so there are very low levels of humidity for the majority of the region.

• For the areas that are closer to bodies of water, the humidity levels are somewhat higher, although they are still very low.

Climate• Continental climate is marked by dry, sunny weather

with low humidity. Have large annual temperature range (hot summer and cold winter).  The Sahara Desert has the highest recorded temperature in a continental climate zone at 58°C.Most of the Middle East has a continental climate.

• Marine climates have larger amounts of moisture and

smaller temperature changes from summer to winter than continental climates. Seen in Middle Eastern countries bordering the Mediterranean sea and the Arabian Sea.

Carbon Dioxide Levels

• The carbon dioxide levels of the major cities are much higher than the carbon emissions of the small towns and villages.

• The Middle East has much lower Carbon Dioxide emissions than most other developed countries in the world, due to the fact that they do not use “modern” technology.

The Climate

Mostly temperate but Mostly temperate but tropical in southern Saudi tropical in southern Saudi Arabia.Arabia.

The Middle East is mostly The Middle East is mostly arid with hot, dry summers arid with hot, dry summers and cool winters.and cool winters.

Mostly temperate but Mostly temperate but tropical in southern Saudi tropical in southern Saudi Arabia.Arabia.

The Middle East is mostly The Middle East is mostly arid with hot, dry summers arid with hot, dry summers and cool winters.and cool winters.

Climate is Affected by Several Factors

• Proximity to bodies of water Places that are closer to the sea experience moderate winter temperatures. Proximity to water affects precipitation also.

• Altitude It strongly affects the temperature of an area.

Microclimates:Urban Microclimate in the

Middle East

• Cities tend to be warmer than surrounding suburbs and rural areas.

• Photochemical smog increases temperature

• Greater presence of condensation nuclei over urban areas.

• Airflows are disturbed over urban areas.

Oceans of the Middle East

Oceans of the Middle East

Mediterranean Sea

Arabian Sea

Caspian SeaBlack Sea

Red Sea

Middle Eastern Severe Weather Disturbances

• Droughts: a period of dry weather, which causes an extended shortage of water.

• Sandstorms: a windstorm, usually occurring in a desert, that blows along great clouds of sand.

• Earthquakes: a series of vibrations induced in the earth's crust by the abrupt rupture and rebound of rocks in which elastic strain has been slowly accumulating.

Earthquakes in the Middle East

Middle East Biomes

Severe Weather Disturbances

• Mostly pre-reproductive population.

• The largest percent of the population are younger than fifteen.

• Middle Eastern population has been growing exponentially after 1915.

• It will continue to grow increasingly in the future

Grassland

Temperate Forest

Desert

Population Distribution

Informative Maps

Atmospheric Pressure

Dew Point

Wind Speeds

Humidity

Temperature

Heat Index

Wind Chill

Peak Ground

Acceleration