| Geography and Climate |
Considerably more than half the area of Saudi Arabia is desert. Rub‘ al Khali (the Empty Quarter) extends over much of the southeast and beyond the southern frontier. An extension of the Syrian Desert projects into northern Saudi Arabia, and extending southeast from this region is An Nafud, an upland desert of red sand. Ad Dahna’, a narrow extension of this desert, links An Nafud and Rub‘ al Khali. A central plateau region, broken in the east by a series of uplifts, extends south from An Nafud. Several intermittent streams, or wadis, which are dry except in the rainy season, cross the plateau region. Its western limits are delineated by a mountain range extending generally northwest and southeast along the eastern edge of the regions of Al Hijaz and Asir. A narrow coastal plain lies between the range and the Red Sea. In the east, along the Persian Gulf, is a low-lying region known as Al Hasa.
Extreme heat and aridity are characteristic of most of Saudi Arabia. The average temperature range in January is 8° to 21°C in the city of Riyadh and 19° to 29°C in the port city of Jiddah. The average range in July is 26° to 42°C in Riyadh and 26° to 37°C in Jiddah. Average annual precipitation in Riyadh and Jiddah is 100 mm and 81 mm, respectively.
Ref. Microsoft, 1996 |