How many years will it take for the Sahara desert to reach South Africa?

<h3>How many years will it take for the Sahara desert to reach South Africa?</h3>

My first question is how fast is the Sahara Desert growing and how long till it reaches South Africa and also how fast is the desert growing that's in the center of China?


<strong>South Africa best answer:</strong>
<p><i>Answer by Bearwithme</i><br/>The Sahara Desert both expands and contracts depending upon a number of factors including weather conditions and human activity.

If the Sahara were to reach South Africa it would take hundreds or thousands of years at the current rate of movement. This will not occur during our lifetime.

Data from polar-orbiting meteorological satellites have been used to determine the extent of the Sahara Desert and to document its inter annual variation from 1980 to 1990.

The Sahara Desert ranged from 8,633,000 square kilometers in 1980 to 9,982,000 square kilometers in 1984. The greatest annual north-south latitudinal movement of the southern Saharan boundary was 110 kilometers from 1984 to 1985 and resulted in a decrease in desert area of 724,000 square kilometers.

Another source claims, the Sahara Desert is expanding southwards, engulfing degraded grasslands, at a rate of 30 miles every year. This is more of a general figure that varies from year to year.

If desertification of South Africa were threatened from the North we would most likely take measures to halt and possibly reverse this advance in order to preserve a more livable habitat.


Check out the links below.</p>
<p><strong>Night in South Africa</strong>
<img alt="South Africa" src="http://farm2.staticflickr.com/1072/578995811_7fa577e28b.jpg" width="400"/><br/>
<i>Image by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/8469464@N05/578995811">Ramy Alaa</a></i>
Night in the bushes

South Africa - Pilanesberg - June 2007</p>

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