Geography of Mali

Mali is one of the hottest countries in the world, and has overall a hot, sunny and dry climate dominated by the subtropical ridge. The thermal equator, which matches the hottest spots year-round on the planet based on the mean daily annual temperature, crosses the country. and comes close to in the Taoudenni region during July. Sunshine duration is high in Mali, reaching the highest levels in the northern arid zone with about 3,600 – 3,700 h a year. Examples {{Weather box {{Cite FTP | url = ftp://ftp.atdd.noaa.gov/pub/GCOS/WMO-Normals/TABLES/REG__I/M1/61297.TXT {{Weather box {{Weather box {{Cite FTP | url = ftp://ftp.atdd.noaa.gov/pub/GCOS/WMO-Normals/TABLES/REG__I/M1/61265.TXT {{Weather box|location = Timbuktu (1950–2000, extremes 1897–present) {{cite web {{Cite FTP | url = ftp://ftp.atdd.noaa.gov/pub/GCOS/WMO-Normals/TABLES/REG__I/M1/61223.TXT {{Weather box ==Geology==

of Mali Geologically, Mali consists mostly of vast flatlands of granite and shale covered by sandstone and alluvial quartz. Mali extends over two main geological structures, the West African craton in the west and the Tuareg shield in the southeast, which came together at the end of the Precambrian era between 600 and 550 million years ago. The suture zone is to the west of the Adrar des Ifoghas mountains. The underlying rocks of the West African craton are covered in the northwest by sediments of the Taoudeni basin, with two main outcrops of crystalline rocks in the northern Reguibat shield in Mauritania and the southern Leo shield which includes the Bougouni and Kenieba outcrops, both of which contain valuable minerals. == Borders ==

Mali shares a total of 7,243 kilometers (4,500 miles) of land boundaries with seven bordering states: North and northeast: Algeria- 1,376 km/855 mi East: Niger- 821 km/510 mi Southeast: Burkina Faso- 1,000 km/621 mi South: Ivory Coast- 532 km/330 mi Southwest: Guinea- 858 km/533 mi West: Senegal and Mauritania- 419 km/260 mi and 2,237 km/1,390 mi (respectively) ==Natural resources==

Mali is endowed with bauxite, copper, diamonds, gold, Granite, gypsum, iron ore, kaolin, limestone, lithium, manganese, phosphates, salt, silver, uranium, and zinc. Not all deposits are being exploited, and some may not be commercially viable. Mali also has ample hydropower. ==Land use==

65% of Mali's land area is desert or semi-desert. According to estimates in 2011, only 5.63% of Mali's area can be classified as arable land, and 0.1% was planted to permanent crops. Mali was estimated to have 2,358 km2 of irrigated land in 2003. Mali has 100 cubic kilometers of total renewable water resources as off 2011 estimates. ==Environmental issues==

Mali faces numerous environmental challenges, including desertification, deforestation, soil erosion, drought, and inadequate supplies of potable water. Deforestation is an especially serious and growing problem. According to the Ministry of the Environment, Mali's population consumes 6 million tons of wood per year for timber and fuel. To meet this demand, 400,000 hectares of tree cover are lost annually, virtually ensuring destruction of the country's savanna woodlands. Mali is a party to international treaties on Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands, and Whaling. It has signed, but not ratified the selected agreements. ==Natural hazards==

Natural hazards in Mali include: • Desert sandstorms in the north • Dust-laden harmattan wind is common during dry seasons, bringing a dust haze which may ground aircraft and damage computers and sensitive electronics and machines, as well as aggravating respiratory diseases. • Recurring droughts • Wildfires in the south • Occasional floods, for example in July 2007. • Tropical thunderstorms in the south, which may bring wind and lightning damage as well as flash floods. • Occasional Niger River flooding == Extreme points ==

This is a list of the extreme points of Mali, the points that are farther north, south, east or west than any other location. • Northernmost point – the northern section of the border with Mauritania, Tombouctou Region* • Easternmost point – the eastern section of the border with Niger** • Southernmost point – Fonto Kourou on the border with Côte d'Ivoire, Sikasso Region • Westernmost point – the tripoint with Senegal and Mauritania, Kayes Region • *Note: Mali does not have a northernmost point, the border being formed by a straight east–west line • **Note: Mali does not have an easternmost point, the border being formed by a straight north–south line ==See also==