Namibia Geography and Climate

Namibia is located in southern Africa. The country is known for its colossal reserves of uranium and diamonds, the mining of which plays a major role in the Namibian economy. In addition to an abundance of mineral wealth, Namibia has a wide variety of landscapes: from sandy deserts to swampy plains, from ocean coasts to mountainous plateaus. Namibia attracts tourists with numerous protected areas where you can go on a safari or hike and see a wide variety of African animals, the highest sand dunes in the world, which are located in the coldest and most arid desert in the world – the Namib, a long ocean coast with beautiful places for fishing, where one of the largest colonies of Cape seals in the world settles, and rivers teeming with crocodiles.

The best time to travel in Namibia is during the winter between May and October, when there is the least chance of rain.

The hunting season runs from February 1st to November 30th.

The official language is English, but in fact it is the main language for only 7% of the population. Most of the locals still use the Bantu languages in everyday life, mainly Oshiwambo. Most whites and non-whites speak Afrikaans. German is also spoken in Namibia.

Geography in Namibia

According to top-engineering-schools, Namibia is located in southwestern Africa. The total area of the country is 825.4 thousand square meters. km. In the north , Namibia borders on Angola, in the northeast – on Zambia, in the east – on Botswana, in the southeast and south – on South Africa. From the west, the country is washed by the waters of the Atlantic Ocean.

Much of Namibia occupied by highlands, a vast plateau extends here with average heights from 900 to 1500 m, divided into several plateaus, the largest of which are Kaoko and Ovambo in the north, Damara in the center and Nama in the south. Here is the highest point of the state – Mount Königstein (Brandberg) (2606 m). From the west, the plateau is bounded by the Great Escarpment, which breaks off to the Namib coastal desert. The Namib Desert stretches in a narrow strip along the western coast of the state, washed by the cold Benguela current. The sand dunes of the Namib Desert are the highest in the world (their height reaches 300 m). From the east, the Central Plateau is bounded by the Kalahari Desert.

The largest rivers in Namibia – Orange, Okavango and Kuene. They form the southern and northern borders of the state. All other rivers are filled only during the rainy season. In the north of Namibia, in a drainless basin at an altitude of 1065 m, there is the Etosha salt marsh, whose area in the rainy season reaches 5 thousand square meters. km, and the depth is 1.5 m. This is the largest salt marsh in Africa. During a drought, its bottom is covered with a lime-clay crust. The Salt of Etosha is a place where salt is mined.

Climate in Namibia

Most of the territory of Namibia is dominated by a tropical desert type of climate. The northeast of the country is dominated by a subtropical type of climate. Namibia is located in the southern hemisphere, so winter here falls on April-August, and summer – on September-March.

In winter, daytime air temperatures in the central and southern parts of the country reach +20..+22 degrees, in the north +23..+25 degrees, and on the Atlantic coast +17..+19 degrees, night temperatures in these regions are respectively: +6..+8 degrees, +8..+10 degrees and +10..+12 degrees. In summer, during the daytime in the central and southern parts of the country, the air warms up to +28..+30 degrees, in the north to +32..+34 degrees, on the coast to +22..+24 degrees, at night in the listed regions the air cools down to +18..+20 degrees, +19..+21 degrees and +15..+17 degrees respectively. The climate of the inner part of the Namib Desert differs sharply from the climate of other regions of Namibia, it is the coldest desert in the world, frosts can occur here even in summer at night.

The “rainy season” lasts from September to March and is most pronounced in the northeast of the country. The amount of precipitation on the coast of Namibia does not exceed 25 mm per year, and most often they fall here only in the form of fogs. In the central and southern parts of the country, about 400 mm of precipitation falls annually, and in the extreme northeast – up to 700 mm.

Best time to visit:

The best time to visit Namibia is during the winter between May and October, when there is the least chance of rain.

The hunting season runs from February 1st to November 30th.

Namibia Geography