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Thursday, 10 November 2022 12:48
Main Physical Features in Eastern Africa - Social Studies CBC Grade 6 Notes
- The Main Physical Features In Kenya
- Map Of Eastern African Showing Main Physical Features
- Conserving The Physical Features Within The Locality
- Physical features are naturally things found on the surface of the earth
- They include:
- Mountains
- Valleys
- Plateaus
- Ocean
- Seas
- Gorges
- Plains
- Lakes
- Rivers
- Swamps
- Hills, rangers
The Main Physical Features In Kenya
- Mountains
- Are masses of very high land.
- They are the highest physical features on the earth.
- Major mountains in Eastern Africa
KENYA TANZANIA UGANDA SUDAN ETHIOPIA Mt.kenya Mt.kilimanjaro Ruwenzori Jabel-marra Ras dashan Mt.longonot Mt.meru Nubadarfur Guna Mt.marsabit Pare mts Kissu Danakil alps Mt .kulal Ngorongoro crater Menengai crater Lool molasin
- Rift valley
- A valley is a low lying are with steep slopes.
- In Eastern African the rift valley has 2 branches that stretch across several countries
- The two branches are the eastern rift valley and the western rift valley
- Lakes
- A lake is a water body that is surrounded by land
- A hollow/depression filled with water
- We have
- Fresh water lakes
- sailty water lakes
- Main lakes in eastern Africa are
KENYA UGANDA TANZANIA ETHIOPIA RWANDA Turkana
Baringo
Bogoria
Nakuru
Elementaita
Naivasha
Magadi
Jipe
ChalaAlbert
Edward
Bunyonyi
Bisini
George
Kyoga
Kivu
mutandaNatron
Manyara
eyasi
Rukwa
Malawi
tanganyikaChamo
Abaya
Steffanie
Shala
tanaruhondo
kivu
- Plains
- Are low lying areas of almost flat land.
- Examples
KENYA UGANDA TANZANIA SOMALIA Lotikipi, awara, kano, Luwero Serengeti Bilesha Kaputei, loita, Nakasongola maasai Sarar Budalangi,kapiti Haded bilesha
Formation Of Main Physical Features Of Eastern Africa
Formation Of Volcanic Mountains
- They are also called volcanoes
- They are formed through the process of volcanicity/eruption.
- Eruption is when the hot molten material underground is forced out by great pressure
- The hot molten material is called magma
- When magma gets to the surface is called lava
- The magma gets out through a main pipe called vent
- The opening at the top of a volcanic mountain is called a crater
- Most mountains in eastern africa are volcaning mountains
KENYA TANZANIA RWANDA Kenya
Elgon
Longonot
Menengai crater
Marsabit
Suswa
KulalMt meru
Mt Kilimanjaro
Ngorongoro
Lool malsinMt karisimbi
Nyiragongo
Formation of Block Mountains
- They are also called horst mountains
- They were formed through faulting and uplifting process
- Faults are lines of weakness
- Faults were developed as a result of forces acting on the layers of the earth
- The forces involved are tensional and compressional forces
- The middle block was pushed upward by underground forces
- The underground forces called up thrust force
- Examples
ETHIOPIA UGANDA TANZANIA Danakali alps ruwenzori Pare
usambara
Formation Of The Rift Valley
- The rift valley was formed when two cracks or fault line formed within the crustal rocks
- The land between the two faults sunk forming a valley
- Was formed through the faulting process
- Formed by either tensional or compressional forces
- When two parallel faults developed the tensional forces pulls the rocks apart
- The middle block between the faults sink
- The steep sides of a rift valley are called escarpments
Formation Of Lakes
- The major lakes in eastern African were formed as a result of
- Faulting
- River deposition
- Down warping
- Volcanicity
Rift Valley Lakes
- During the formation of the rift valley, some parts of the land sunk deeper than others forming depressions.
- The depressions were filled with water to form lakes
- Example – lake Tanganyika in TZ
Lakes Formed As A Result Of Down Warping
- Down warping is a process by which the earth sinks inwards due to pressure forming a big basin.
- Water fills this basin to form a lake.
Example: lake Victoria in Kenya
Lakes Formed As A Result Of Volcanicity
- Lava dammed
- Lava dammed lakes are formed when lava flow on the surface of the earth and comes int contact with a river, blocking it
- This leads to the formation of a lake
Example: lake kivu in Rwanda
- Crater lakes
- When volcanic eruption occurs, the top of the mountain may be blown of forming a hallow depression called crater.
- Water fills the hallow depression forming a crater lake.
- Example; Lake paradaise in Kenya, Ngozi in Tanzania and Shalla in Ethiopia.
Formation Of Plains
- Plains are wide low lying areas of flat land.
- Plains are formed as a result of erosion and deposition of the eroded materials.
Map Of Eastern African Showing Main Physical Features
Conserving The Physical Features Within The Locality
We should protect and conserve physical features found in our locality
- Prevent overuse and deforestation of forest.
- Avoid pollution of water bodies.
- Educate people on importance of physical features.
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Monday, 20 September 2021 12:16
Physical Environment - Class 6 Social Studies Revision Notes
- Physical Environment
- The Countries of Eastern Africa
- Latitudes And Longitudes
- Map interpretation
- Physical Features
Physical Environment
- The physical environment is what is found around us
The Countries of Eastern Africa
- Eastern africa is the region located in the eastern region of africa.
- It is made up of eleven independent countries namel
- Sudan
- Ethiopia
- Tanzania
- Somalia
- South Sudan
- Kenya
- Uganda
- Eritrea
- Burundi
- Rwanda
- Djibouti
- Sudan is the largest country in eastern africa
- South Sudan became independent in JULY 2011
- Djibouti is the smallest country in Eastern Africa
- Countries without a coastline are called landlocked e.g
- B - Burundi
- U - uganda
- R - rwanda
- E - ethiopia
- S – south sudan
Position And Size of The Countries of Eastern Africa
- Eastern africa lies within latitudes 22 ºN AND 12 ºS and between longitudes 22 ºE and 51 ºE/52 ºE.
COUNTRY SIZE Sudan 1.886 million km² Ethiopia 1.104 million km² Tanzania 945,087 km² Somalia 637,657 km² South sudan 644,329 km² Kenya
580,367 km² Uganda 241,037 km² Eritrea 117,600 km² Burundi 27,834 km² Rwanda 26,338 km² Djibouti 23,200 km²
Latitudes And Longitudes
Latitudes
- These are imaginary lines that runs from west to east
- They are also called parallels
- The main line of latitude is equator at 0º
- Equator divides the earth into two equal halves called hemisphere.
- They are parallel
- They are of different lengths
- They affect climate
- They are measured in degrees from the equator
- They are 180 lines of latitudes in total
Other important lines of latitudes are;
- The tropic of cancer 231/2 ̊ N
- The artic circle 66 ½ ̊ N
- The tropic of capricorn 231/2 S
- The antartic circle 661/2 ̊ S
Longitudes
- These are imaginary lines that run from north pole to south pole of the earth
- They are also called meridians or horizontals
- Main line of longitude is greenwich meridian at 0 ̊
- Greenwich meridian is also called prime meridian
- Prime meridian passes through the greenwich town in london and accra in ghana
- They run from north to south
- They are not parallel
- They meet at the polesthey affect time
- They are of the same length
- They are measured in degrees east por west of prime meridian
- They are 360 ̊ lines of longitudes in total.
Use of latitude and longitudes to locate places
- They are used to give positions of places on the earth’s surface
- Latitudes locates a place either to the north or south
- Longitudes locates a place either to the west or east
Map interpretation
- A map is a representation of the whole or part of the earth’s surface
- Is a drawing on a flat surface to represent information on the real ground
- Map interpretation is the process of giving meaning to the features shown on a map
- To interpret/understand the map, we must study the main elements namely;frame , key, compass, scale and title
- Frame - It shows the border line of the area covered by the map
- Title - It is also called the heading of a map .It shows the name of the area covered by the map
- Key - It contains the symbol and their meaning. It is the main element of a map
- Scale - Is the relationship between distances on a map and the actual distances on the ground. Is normally presented as a straight line that is divided into several equal divisions
- Compass directions - They are used to tell the direction of an object from another on a map
Interpreting human activities
- Human activities include
- Keeping livestock
- Crop farming
- Mining
- Trade
- Forestry
- Tourism
- Transpotation
- Lumbering
Economic activity Evidence Dairy farming Creameries, dairy farms, cattle dip Beef farming Ranches, slaughter houses Cash crop Tea, coffee,pyrethrum, sisal, cotton Mining Quarry, murram pits, mining company Trade Markets, shops,towns, urban centers Lumbering Saw mills Tourism Game parks/reserves, museum,tourist resorts Forestry Forests Fishing Fish ponds,fishing villages, fish traps, fish processing Transportation Roads,railways,airstrips
Interpreting drainage features
- These include rivers,lakes, oceans, dams, boreholes, swamps
- Permanent rivers are shown by a continous blue line
- Seasonal rivers are shown by an identend/broken, blue line.
- Blue colour is used to show waterbodies
Interpreting settlement
- These are people living areas
- They are shown by the use of small black dots
- Settlement patterns include;
- Linear settlement along thr roads, railway lines and rivers
- Nucleted/clustered settlement where people settle at one point in the map
Interpreting administration in the area
- Administrative features include boundaries for location, divisions, districts, county,constituency and world boundaries.presence of offices e.g.chiefs camp, district officer’s offices, disrict commissioner’s office, county commissioner’s office, county governor’s office.
Physical Features
- Are things that occur naturally on the earth’s surface
- They include:
- Mountains
- Valleys
- Plateaus
- Ocean
- Seas
- Gorges
- Plains
- Lakes
- Rivers
- Swamps
- Hills, rangers
Relief Physical Features
Mountains | Location | Mountains | Location |
Mt.kenya | KENYA | Jabel-marra | SUDAN |
Mt.longonot | KENYA | Nubadarfur | SUDAN |
Mt.marsabit | KENYA | Jebel Kissu | SUDAN |
m.kulal | KENYA | Ras dashan | ETHIOPIA |
Menengai crater | KENYA | Mt.meru | TANZANIA |
Mt.margaret | KENYA | Guna | ETHIOPIA |
Mt.kilimanjaro | TANZANIA | Pare mts | TANZANIA |
Danakil alps | ETHIOPIA | Ngorongoro crater | TANZANIA |
Moroto | UGANDA | Ruwenzori | UGANDA |
Elgon | UGANDA | mfumbiro | UGANDA |
- Plateaus are the largest relief features in Eastern Africa
Country | Plateau |
KENYA | Uasin gishu, Laikipia, Nyika, Lerochi, Merti, Kinangop |
SUDAN | Jabel abyad, Teiga plateau |
SOMALIA | Somali |
SOMALIA/ ETHIOPIA |
ogaden |
TANZANIA | Fipa, Central tanzania, Lesongonoi, makonde |
- Are low lying areas of almost flat land
Country | Plain |
TANZANIA | Serengeti, maasai |
KENYA | Lotikipi, awara, kano, Kaputei, loita, Budalangi,kapiti |
UGANDA | Luwero, Nakasongola, Bilesha |
SOMALIA | Bilesha, Sarar, Haded |
- A lake is a water body that is surrounded by land
- A hollow/depression filled with water
- We have
- Fresh water lakes
- Salty water lakes
- Lake victoria is the largest lake in Eastern Africa and second in the world
- Lake Tanganyika is the longest lake in Eastern Africa and second deepest in the world
- Lakes may either be natural or man-made lake.
Country | Lake |
ETHIOPIA | Chamo, Abaya, Steffanie, Shala |
KENYA | Turkana, Baringo, Bogoria, Nakuru, Elementaita, Naivasha,Magadi, Jipe, Chala, Kenyatta |
UGANDA | Albert, Edward, Bunyonyi, Bisini, George, Kyoga, Kivu, mutanda |
RWANDA | ruhondo |
TANZANIA | Natron, Manyara, eyasi, Rukwa, Malawi, tanganyika |
- A river is a continuous channel of flowing water
- We have permanent and seasonal rivers
- River Nile is the longest river in eastern africa
- Some rivers drain their water into;indian ocean, lake victoria, other lakes, mediterranean sea
Country | River |
KENYA | Turkwel, Kerio, Suguta, Ewaso nyiro N,Ewaso nyiro S, Nzoia, Yala, Nyando, Mara, Migori, Athi, tana |
TANZANIA |
Pangani, Wami, Rufiji, Matandu, Malagarasi |
SOMALIA | Shibeli, juba |
- A swamp is an area covered with soft mud and some vegetation
- Vegetation found in swamps is papyrus reeds
Country | Swamp |
KENYA | Lorian, Lotagipi, Yala |
TANZANIA | Kilombero, Malagarasi |
S.SUDAN |
Sudd swamp, Bahr-el-ghazal |
UGANDA | kyoga |
Formation of mountains
- Eastern africa has two types of mountains namely
- Block mountains
- Volcanic mountains
- They are also called hurst mountains
- They were formed through faulting and uplifting process
- Faults are lines of weakness. Faults were developed as a result of forces acting on the layers of the earth.
- The forces involved are tensional and compressional forces
- The middle block was pushed upward by underground forces
- The underground forces are called upthrust force
Exercise:
Draw the diagram on pg 16 our lives today bk 6
Examples of block mountains
- D – Danakil alps in ethiopia
- A – aberdare ranges in kenya
- M – mau ranges in kenya
- P – pare mountains in tanzania
- U – usambara mountains in tanzania
- R – ruwenzoris mountains in DRC/uganda
Formation of volcanic mountains
- They are also called volcanoes
- They are formed through the process of volcanicity/eruption
- Eruption is when the hot molten material underground is forced out by great pressure
- The hot molten material is called magma
- When magma gets to the surface is called lava
- The magma gets out through a main pipe called vent
- The opening at the top of a volcanic mountain is called a crater
- Most mountains in eastern africa are volcaning mountains
- There are three types of volcanoes namely;
- Active
- Dormant
- Extinct
Examples of volcanic mountains in eastern africa
Country | Volcanic Mountain |
TANZANIA | Kilmanjaro, Meru, Ngorongoro, Lool malsin |
RWANDA/DRC | nyiragongo |
KENYA | Elgon, Longonot, Menengai crater, Marsabit, Suswa, Kulal |
UGANDA | Muhavura, mfumbiro |
ETHIOPIA | Ras dashan |
SUDAN | Jabel el mara |
Formation of the Rift Valley
- Was formed through the faulting process
- Formed by either tensional or compressional forces
- When two parallel faults developed the tensional forces pullsthe rocks apart
- The middle block between the faults sink
- The steep sides of a rift valley are called escarpments
- Features found on the floor of the firt valley include
- Volcanic mountains
- Rivers
- Fault lakes
Exercise:
Draw diagram on pg 18 our lives today bk 6
Formation of Lakes
- Lakes are huge depressions on the earth’s surface that have filled with water.
- Lakes were formed in different ways namely
- Earth processes
- Volcanic processes
- Erosion processes
- River action
- Human made lakes
- Fault lakes
- Downwraping lakes
- Fault lakes
- They are also called rift valley lakes
- They were formed through faulting and sinking process
- They are usually long and have steep side
- They are usually deep
- They are found on the floor of the rift valley
- They include chala, abaya, chamo, stephanie, turkana, baringo, bogoria, nakuru, elemeitaita, naivasha, magdi, natron, eyasi, manyara, rukwa, malawi, tanganyika, kivu, edward,albert.
- Downwarping lakes
- Are also called depression lakes
- They are usually shallow
- Formed when parts of the earth warped downwards and the sorrounding areas warped upwards They include
- Vi – victoria
- Ba - bangweull
- Cha - chad
- Kyo - kyoga
- Crater lakes
- Lava-dammed lakes
- Crater lakes
- They are formed when water collects in a volcanic crater
- They include l.chad, jipe, paradise, shala, kalwe, nyungu,ngozi.
- Lava-dammed lakes
- They are formed when lava flow blocks a river valley
- They include;l.tana, bunyonyi, kivu, mutanda, ruhondo
- They are formed when a moving ice on high mountains erodes the sides of the mountain thus creating depression. Depressions created are called tarns/corriel/cotque
- These lakes are also called glacial lakes
- They include lakes on mountains
Mt Kenya | Gallery tarn, Hanging tarn, Teleki tarn, Nanyuki tarn, Michelson tarn |
Ruwenzori mts | Speke tarn, Catherine tarn |
- They are also called deposition lakes or ox-bow lakes
- They are formed in the old stages of a river
- At the stage rivers form numerous mmeanders
- Due to continued erosion and deposition the water cuts off the meander
- They include;
- Kanyaboli along r.yala
- Utange along r.rufiji
- Bilisia along r.tana
- Shakababo along r.tana
- Gambi along r. Tana
- They are also called artificial lakes
- They are formed when a huge wall is built across rivers
- Water collects behind the wall forming a big artificial lake
- They include;
- Masinga along r.tana
- Kiambere along r.tana
- Kamburu along r.tana
- Gitaru along r.tana
- Merowe along r.tana
- Nalubaale along r.tana
Exercise: Test yourself on pg 20-21 our lives today bk 6
Relief Regions of Eastern Africa
- Relief refers to how high or low an area is from the sea level
- Relief regions are areas where physical features have been grouped according to their height above sea level
- astern africa is divided into five relief regions namely.
- The coastal plains and lowlands
- The plateaus
- The highlands and mountains
- The rift valley
- The lake victoria basin
The coastal plains and lowlands
- Are low-lying strips of land that border
- The red sea
- The gulf of aden
- The indian ocean
- They lie between 0 – 200m a.s.l
- They are narrow toeards the south
- They are wide towards the north, Widest part in somalia
The plateaus
- They lie between the coastal plains and the highlands
- They lie between 300m-2080m a.s.l
- Are the largest relief regions
- We have
- Low lying plateau
- High lying plateau
Low lying plateaus
- They lie between 400m-1000m a.s.l.
- They are immediately after the coastal plains
- This region is also known as the nyika plateau
High lying plateau
- They lie between 1000m-2000m a.s.l.
- Small scattered hills that have resisted erosion are found near inselbergs
Highlands and mountains
- They generally lie above 2000m a.s.l.
- Highlands are densely populated due t
- Fertile soils
- Favourable climate
- Mt. Kilimanjaro is the highest mountain at 5895m
- Examples of highlands are;
- Western highlands of uganda
- Ethiopian highlands
- Kenyan highlands
- North-eastern highlands of tanzania
The Rift Valley
- It was formed through faulting and sinking process
- A valley is a low lying area between two raised grounds
- Begins in jordan in the middle east and ends at beira in mozambique
- In eastern africa the valley is divided into;
- Ethiopian rift valley
- Eastern rift valley
- Western rift valley
Ethiopian rift valley
- Starts from the red sea and evtends down to l.turkana
- Runs through ethiopia to kenya
Eastern rift valley
- Runs from L.Turkana through Kenya down to Tanzania then North of L.Malawi
Western rift valley
- Runs from north of L.Malawi Tanzania,Uganda,DRC border to L.Albert Lake
Victoria Basin
- It lies between the eastern and western section of the rift valley.
- Was formed through downwarping process
- It lies between 1000m-1500m a.s.l
- Is the source of river nile
- Is densely populated due to
- Fertile soil
- Favourable climate i.e.adequate rainfall
Exercise on pg 23-24 our lives today bk 6
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