The Erg Chech ( ar, عرق شاش), is a large erg in southwestern

Algeria ) , image_map = Algeria (centered orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Algiers , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , religi ...

and northern

Mali Mali (; ), officially the Republic of Mali,, , ff, 𞤈𞤫𞤲𞥆𞤣𞤢𞥄𞤲𞤣𞤭 𞤃𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭, Renndaandi Maali, italics=no, ar, جمهورية مالي, Jumhūriyyāt Mālī is a landlocked country in West Africa. Ma ...

Geography

It is an almost uninhabited part of the greater

Sahara Desert , photo = Sahara real color.jpg , photo_caption = The Sahara taken by Apollo 17 astronauts, 1972 , map = , map_image = , location = , country = , country1 = , ...

, an inhospitable desert region with long, extremely hot summers and short, very warm winters. The Erg Chech is a vast sandy expanse including compound and complex linear and star

dune A dune is a landform composed of wind- or water-driven sand. It typically takes the form of a mound, ridge, or hill. An area with dunes is called a dune system or a dune complex. A large dune complex is called a dune field, while broad, fl ...

s. The mean elevation of the Erg Chech is just above 300 m, slightly lower than the neighboring

Erg Iguidi The Erg Iguidi ( ar, عرق إقيدي), is a large erg in the area of Tindouf in southwestern Algeria extending into northern Mali and Mauritania. Geography The Erg Iguidi is a sandy desert with a clear pattern of narrow linear dunes stretching f ...

stretching to the north. The barren plain of the Tanezrouft is located to the southeast. One of the localities of the commune of Akabli in Aoulef District,

Adrar Province Adrar ( ar, ولاية أدرار, ber, ⴰⴷⵔⴰⵔ) is a province (''wilaya'') in southwestern Algeria, named after its capital Adrar. It is the second-largest province, with an area of 424,948 km2, roughly the size of the US state ...

, Algeria, is named 'Erg Chech'.

Meteorites

About of

meteorite A meteorite is a solid piece of debris from an object, such as a comet, asteroid, or meteoroid, that originates in outer space and survives its passage through the atmosphere to reach the surface of a planet or moon. When the original object en ...

s were collected in the Chergach

strewn field The term strewn field indicates the area where meteorites from a single fall are dispersed. It is also often used for the area containing tektites produced by large meteorite impact.''Tektites in the geological record: showers of glass from the sk ...

, located in the Erg Chech north of Taoudenni, during the fall and winter 2007. Desert

nomad A nomad is a member of a community without fixed habitation who regularly moves to and from the same areas. Such groups include hunter-gatherers, pastoral nomads (owning livestock), tinkers and trader nomads. In the twentieth century, the po ...

s reported that during daytime in July 2007 several detonations were heard over a wide area, a smoke cloud was seen and several stones fell from the sky, however no

fireball Fireball may refer to: Science * Fireball (meteor), a brighter-than-usual meteor * Ball lightning, an atmospheric electrical phenomenon * ''Bassia scoparia'', a plant species Arts and entertainment Films * ''The Fireball'', a 1950 film starring ...

was reported. Ouled Bleila was the finder of the first meteorites, but he died in October 2007 in a car accident on his way back from the trip to the Chergach strewn field. According to the

Tuareg The Tuareg people (; also spelled Twareg or Touareg; endonym: ''Imuhaɣ/Imušaɣ/Imašeɣăn/Imajeɣăn'') are a large Berber ethnic group that principally inhabit the Sahara in a vast area stretching from far southwestern Libya to southern Alg ...

people, the elliptical strewn field stretches for more than .The Meteoritical Bulletin, No. 94, September 2008
/ref>

References

{{coord, 24, 35, N, 2, 35, W, type:landmark_source:kolossus-frwiki, display=title Ergs of Africa Deserts of Algeria Landforms of Mali Natural regions of Africa

Geography

Meteorites

See also

References