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Hajhir Mountains
The Hajhir massif is a mountain range situated on the island of Socotra, Yemen. It is the highest point of the island. Geography The granite spires of the Hajhir massif are located in the hinterland of Socotra and are most easily accessed via the valley approaches north of the coastal town of Hadibo. The highest point of the range is the peak of Mashanig which lies at approximately above sea level. Other peaks of local prominence include Girhimitin, Hazrat Muqadriyoun and Herem Hajhir. Etymology The name "Hajhir" ( Soqotri: ), sometimes transliterated as "Hagghier" or "Hagher" in English, likely derives from the Arabic "ḥijr" (, meaning "stone"). Other possible origins of the range's name include the word "hajar" (, meaning "to flee"). The name "Mashanig" (Soqotri: , meaning "the split one"), likely derives from the Arabic verb "inshaq" (, meaning "to split"), from which one gets the word "munshuq" (, meaning "splittist"). Climbing history Bedouin goatherds have a long hist ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Earth Observatory
NASA Earth Observatory is an online publishing outlet for NASA which was created in 1999. It is the principal source of satellite imagery and other scientific information about the climate and the environment which are being provided by NASA for consumption by the general public. It is funded with public money, as authorized by the United States Congress, and is part of the EOS Project Science Office located at Goddard Space Flight Center. , NASA Earth Observatory has won the Webby People's Voice Award in Education three times. There were a series of publicized images issued by the website in 2008, including imagery of clouds streaming over the Caspian Sea, dust storms curling off the coast of Morocco, the crumbling of the Wilkins Ice Shelf, Hurricane Bertha, and others. See also * Earth observation * Earth observation satellite * Space exploration Space exploration is the process of utilizing astronomy and space technology to investigate outer space. While the expl ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Socotra
Socotra, locally known as Saqatri, is a Yemeni island in the Indian Ocean. Situated between the Guardafui Channel and the Arabian Sea, it lies near major shipping routes. Socotra is the largest of the six islands in the Socotra archipelago as it comprises around 95% of the landmass of the archipelago. It lies south of the Arabian Peninsula and east of the Horn of Africa. The inhabitants of the island are called Soqotri people, Socotrans, and they speak Arabic and Soqotri language, Soqotri. Socotra is home to a high number of unique species that are endemism, endemic to it. Up to a third of its plant life is unique. Due to the island's unusual geography, it has been described as "the most alien-looking place on Earth". The island measures in length and across at its widest. In 2008, Socotra was recognised as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The island is under the control of the Southern Transitional Council (STC), a United Arab Emirates-backed, pro-Presidential Leadership Co ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Yemen
Yemen, officially the Republic of Yemen, is a country in West Asia. Located in South Arabia, southern Arabia, it borders Saudi Arabia to Saudi Arabia–Yemen border, the north, Oman to Oman–Yemen border, the northeast, the south-eastern part of the Arabian Sea to the east, the Gulf of Aden to the south, and the Red Sea to the west, sharing maritime boundary, maritime borders with Djibouti, Eritrea, and Somalia across the Horn of Africa. Covering roughly 455,503 square kilometres (175,871 square miles), with a coastline of approximately , Yemen is the second largest country on the Arabian Peninsula. Sanaa is its constitutional capital and largest city. Yemen's estimated population is 34.7 million, mostly Arabs, Arab Muslims. It is a member of the Arab League, the United Nations, the Non-Aligned Movement and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation. Owing to its geographic location, Yemen has been at the crossroads of many civilisations for over 7,000 years. In 1200 BCE, the Sab ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mountain Range
A mountain range or hill range is a series of mountains or hills arranged in a line and connected by high ground. A mountain system or mountain belt is a group of mountain ranges with similarity in form, structure, and alignment that have arisen from the same cause, usually an orogeny. Mountain ranges are formed by a variety of geological processes, but most of the significant ones on Earth are the result of plate tectonics. Mountain ranges are also found on many planetary mass objects in the Solar System and are likely a feature of most terrestrial planets. Mountain ranges are usually segmented by highlands or mountain passes and valleys. Individual mountains within the same mountain range do not necessarily have the same geologic structure or petrology. They may be a mix of different orogenic expressions and terranes, for example thrust sheets, uplifted blocks, fold mountains, and volcanic landforms resulting in a variety of rock types. Major ranges Most geolo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Granite
Granite ( ) is a coarse-grained (phanerite, phaneritic) intrusive rock, intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly cools and solidifies underground. It is common in the continental crust of Earth, where it is found in igneous intrusions. These range in size from dike (geology), dikes only a few centimeters across to batholiths exposed over hundreds of square kilometers. Granite is typical of a larger family of ''granitic rocks'', or ''granitoids'', that are composed mostly of coarse-grained quartz and feldspars in varying proportions. These rocks are classified by the relative percentages of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase (the QAPF diagram, QAPF classification), with true granite representing granitic rocks rich in quartz and alkali feldspar. Most granitic rocks also contain mica or amphibole minerals, though a few (known as leucogranites) conta ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hadibo
Hadibu ( '), formerly known as Tamrida (), is a coastal town in northern Socotra, Yemen. It is the largest town in the small archipelago, with a population of 8,545 as of the 2004 census. Hadibu is the capital of the Socotra Governorate and the larger eastern district of Socotra's two administrative districts, Hidaybū. Animal husbandry is the main source of income for the town's inhabitants. Socotra Airport is located about west of Hadibu, and close to the third-largest town in the archipelago, Qād̨ub. Diesel generators make electricity widely available in Socotra. A paved road runs along the north shore from Qalansiyah in the west to Hadibu and then to the DiHamri area in the east. Another paved road runs from the northern to the southern coast, through the Dixsam Plateau. The former capital of Socotra, Suq, is located a few kilometers to the east of Hadibu. See also *List of cities in Socotra archipelago The following are towns and cities in the island archipelago, So ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Soqotri Language
Soqotri (; ) is a South Semitic language spoken by the Soqotri people on the island of Socotra and the two nearby islands of Abd al Kuri and Samhah, in the Socotra archipelago, in the Guardafui Channel. Soqotri is one of six languages that form a group called Modern South Arabian languages (MSAL). These additional languages include Mehri, Shehri, Bathari, Harsusi and Hobyot. All are spoken in different regions of Southern Arabia. Classification Soqotri is often mistaken as a variety of Arabic but is typically classified as an Afro-Asiatic, Semitic, South Semitic and South Arabian language. Scholars believe there are no longer any grounds for associating the Modern South Arabian languages so directly with Arabic. They consider these dialects to be not Arabic, but Semitic languages in their own right. Dialects The Soqotri dialectology is very rich, especially considering the surface of the island and number of inhabitants. Soqotri speakers live on their islands, but r ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Golden Hour (photography)
In photography, the golden hour is the period of daytime shortly after sunrise or before sunset, during which daylight is redder and hard and soft light, softer than when the sun is higher in the sky. The golden hour is also sometimes called the magic hour, especially by cinematographers and photographers. During these times, the brightness of the sky matches the brightness of streetlights, signs, car headlights and lit windows. The period of time shortly before the magic hour at sunrise, or after it at sunset, is called the "blue hour". This is when the sun is at a significant depth below the horizon, when residual, indirect sunlight takes on a predominantly blue shade, and there are no sharp shadows because the sun either has not risen, or has already set. Details When the sun is low above the horizon, sunlight rays must penetrate the atmosphere of Earth, atmosphere for a air mass (astronomy), greater distance, Extinction (astronomy)#Atmospheric extinction, reducing the in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Socotra Island Xeric Shrublands
The Socotra Island xeric shrublands is a terrestrial ecoregion that covers the large island of Socotra and several smaller islands that constitute the Socotra Archipelago. The archipelago is in the western Indian Ocean, east of the Horn of Africa and south of the Arabian Peninsula. Politically the archipelago is part of Yemen, and lies south of the Yemeni mainland. Socotra has a uniquely diverse ecosystem. The islands are home to a high number of endemic species; up to a third of its plant life is endemic. It has been described as "the most alien-looking place on Earth." Socotra is considered the jewel of biodiversity in the Arabian Sea.FACTBOX-Socotra, jewel of biodiversity in Arabian Sea Reuters, 2008-04-23 In the 1990s, a team of United Nations biologists conducted a survey of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hadhramaut Mountains
The Hadhramaut Mountains (), also known as the "Mahrat Mountains" (), are a mountain range in Yemen. They are contiguous with the Omani Dhofar Mountains to the northeast, and James Canton considered Aden in the southwest to be in the mountains' recesses. Historically, the area was ruled by Qu'aiti and Kathiri sultanates. The tribal society (Hadramatis) grows wheat and millet, produces also dates, coconuts, and coffee. The area was also known for its frankincense. Geology The south side of the mountains touches the Gulf of Aden, with steep cliffs descending onto a narrow and arid coastal plain. The northern slopes are lowering onto the Rub' al Khali desert (the "Empty Quarter"). The broad mountain plateau is intersected by deep wadis cut by seasonal streams that generally flow in the northern and northeastern direction emptying into a main channel ( Wadi Hadhramaut, changing the name to Wadi Masila downstream) that makes a southeast swing of to the ocean. Despite ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sarawat Mountains
The Sarawat Mountains (), also known as the Sarat in singular case, is a mountain range in the western part of the Arabian Peninsula. In a broad sense, it runs parallel to the eastern coast of the Red Sea, and thus encompasses the mountains of Fayfa, Asir, Taif, and the Hijaz (which can be seen as including the Midian Mountains). In a narrow sense, the Sarawat start in Taif city in Saudi Arabia, and extend to the Gulf of Aden in the south, running along the entire western coast of Yemen, in what used to be North Yemen, and extend eastwards into part of what used to be South Yemen, thus running parallel to the Gulf of Aden. Geology These mountains are mainly rocky though some contain vegetation. Many of the peaks are fairly young and jagged, but some are smoother from weathering. Nearing the Yemeni border, the Sarawat begin to spread into individual peaks, and the Hejaz turns from a cliff to a gradual ascent up to the Yemeni Plateau. In Yemen, the Sarawat are divided i ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jabal Haraz
Jabal Haraz () is a mountainous region of Yemen, between Sanaa and Al-Hudaydah, which is considered to be within the Sarat range. In the 11th century, it was the stronghold of the Sulaihid dynasty, many of whose buildings still survive today. It includes Jabal An-Nabi Shu'ayb, the highest mountain in Yemen and the Arabian Peninsula. History and location Because of its location between the Tihamah coastal plain and Sanaa, this mountainous area has always been strategically important. A caravan stopping point during the Himyarite Kingdom, the Haraz was later the stronghold of the Sulayhid dynasty, which was established in Yemen in 1037. Then and subsequently the population has been Ism'aili Shi'ite Muslims. Haraz is as famous for its fortified villages which cling to nearly inaccessible rocky peaks. Their imposing architecture meets two needs: defending the villagers, while leaving plenty of space for crops. Each town is built like a castle; the houses, themselves, form ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
