When the Sahara Was a Seaway
Muse Science Magazine for Kids|April 2022
HOW SCIENTIFIC EVIDENCE EXPOSED THE WATERY PAST OF THE DRIEST PLACE ON EARTH.
Devin A. Reese
When the Sahara Was a Seaway

Encompassing much of northern Africa, the Sahara Desert is well known as a scorching hot, dry place. Early European explorers, lacking experience in these harsh conditions, had a harrowing time exploring the Sahara. All too frequently, they never returned from their expeditions.

But the Sahara was not always a dry place. Believe it or not, 100 million years ago, the Sahara hosted a wetland teeming with aquatic life: fishes, turtles, crocodiles, and sharks! And many of these animals were gigantic.

Traces of a Seaway

How do we know the Sahara was a seaway? The Tuareg people, who are native to the Sahara Desert, first found traces of the wetland in fossil shells. The first published descriptions came from European scientists. And in 1850, a team of explorers, originally led by geologist Adolf Overweg, brought back sandstone from the central Sahara. Sandstone rocks typically form when layers of sand build up in lakes, rivers, or oceans.

Later that century, the Frenchman François Élie Roudaire came across natural basins that fill up and become small, salty lakes after rainfall. He wondered whether these "chotts" in the northern Sahara in Algeria were remnants of a channel to the sea. Roudaire teamed up with Ferdinand de Lesseps, the man famous for building the Suez Canal, which connected the Mediterranean Sea with the Red Sea in 1869. The two men envisioned bringing water in from the Mediterranean Sea through a 120-mile-long canal to farm the Sahara.

Recruiting engineers and businessmen, they went forward with surveys for the project. What they hadn't anticipated was a ridge of hard limestone that cut right across the canal's path. De Lesseps tried to convince people that the canal was still a good idea, but he never got enough support for the project.

هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة April 2022 من Muse Science Magazine for Kids.

ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.

هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة April 2022 من Muse Science Magazine for Kids.

ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.

المزيد من القصص من MUSE SCIENCE MAGAZINE FOR KIDS مشاهدة الكل
A Mars Rock Found With Leopard Spots Could Be a Sign of Ancient Life
Muse Science Magazine for Kids

A Mars Rock Found With Leopard Spots Could Be a Sign of Ancient Life

IN JULY, NASA'S PERSEVERANCE ROVER CAME ACROSS A SPOTTED ROCK IN WHAT WAS ONCE A RIVERBED IN THE JEZERO CRATER ON MARS.

time-read
1 min  |
Muse November-December 2024: Pets on the Mind
Para Athlete Uses Exoskeleton Suit to Carry the Olympic Torch
Muse Science Magazine for Kids

Para Athlete Uses Exoskeleton Suit to Carry the Olympic Torch

In July, a 36-year-old French tennis para athlete, Kevin Piette, got a chance to participate in this summer’s Olympic torch relay without using a wheelchair.

time-read
1 min  |
Muse November-December 2024: Pets on the Mind
Ancient Egyptians May Have Used a Water System to Lift Stones to Build Pyramid
Muse Science Magazine for Kids

Ancient Egyptians May Have Used a Water System to Lift Stones to Build Pyramid

HOW ANCIENT EGYPTIANS BUILT THE MASSIVE PYRAMIDS IN EGYPT MORE THAN 4,000 YEARS AGO HAS LONG BEEN A TOPIC OF WONDER AND DEBATE.

time-read
1 min  |
Muse November-December 2024: Pets on the Mind
Seals Can Make Big Dives Thanks to Their Big Hearts
Muse Science Magazine for Kids

Seals Can Make Big Dives Thanks to Their Big Hearts

SEALS AND SEA LIONS, WHICH ARE SEMI-AQUATIC MAMMALS, CAN HOLD THEIR BREATHS UNDERWATER FOR ESPECIALLY LONG PERIODS OF TIME.

time-read
1 min  |
Muse November-December 2024: Pets on the Mind
THE BIG-CITY LIFE OF STEVEN J.BIKE SHOP RABBIT IN BROOKLYN, NEW YORK
Muse Science Magazine for Kids

THE BIG-CITY LIFE OF STEVEN J.BIKE SHOP RABBIT IN BROOKLYN, NEW YORK

Bicycle Roots is a full-service bike shop. It's in the heart of Brooklyn, New York. Joe Lawler is the co-owner and service manager. Perhaps more important, he's \"dad\" to the shop's most popular employee. That's Steven J. Lawler.

time-read
1 min  |
Muse November-December 2024: Pets on the Mind
Wild Ones
Muse Science Magazine for Kids

Wild Ones

WHAT FACTORS DRIVE PEOPLE TO BUY MONKEYS, TIGERS, AND OTHER WILD ANIMALS?

time-read
3 mins  |
Muse November-December 2024: Pets on the Mind
HOW TO CONQUER THE WORLD
Muse Science Magazine for Kids

HOW TO CONQUER THE WORLD

A brief history

time-read
4 mins  |
Muse November-December 2024: Pets on the Mind
What would happen if meteors hit Earth?
Muse Science Magazine for Kids

What would happen if meteors hit Earth?

You may have seen Ameteors fly into Earth's atmosphere, in the form of shooting stars.

time-read
2 mins  |
Muse November-December 2024: Pets on the Mind
WORKING WORMS
Muse Science Magazine for Kids

WORKING WORMS

DON'T JUST THROW THOSE TABLE SCRAPS AWAY! LET A BOX OF WORMS TURN THEM INTO SOMETHING USEFUL.

time-read
5 mins  |
Muse November-December 2024: Pets on the Mind
Dog Rescue Saves Lives
Muse Science Magazine for Kids

Dog Rescue Saves Lives

THE ARGUMENT FOR ADOPTING A NO-KILL GOAL

time-read
4 mins  |
Muse November-December 2024: Pets on the Mind