Main Physical Features in Eastern Africa - Social Studies CBC Grade 6 Notes

• The Main Physical Features In Kenya
  
  • Formation Of Main Physical Features Of Eastern Africa
  • Formation of volcanic mountains
  • Formation of Block Mountains
  • Formation Of The Rift Valley
  • Formation Of Lakes
    
    • Rift Valley Lakes
    • Lakes Formed As A Result Of Down Warping
    • Lakes Formed As A Result Of Volcanicity
  • Formation Of Plains
• Map Of Eastern African Showing Main Physical Features
• Conserving The Physical Features Within The Locality

• Physical features are naturally things found on the surface of the earth
• They include:
  1. Mountains
  2. Valleys
  3. Plateaus
  4. Ocean
  5. Seas
  6. Gorges
  7. Plains
  8. Lakes
  9. Rivers
  10. Swamps
  11. Hills, rangers

The Main Physical Features In Kenya

1. Mountains
   • Are masses of very high land.
   • They are the highest physical features on the earth.
   • Major mountains in Eastern Africa
     

     KENYA	TANZANIA	UGANDA	SUDAN	ETHIOPIA
     Mt.kenya	Mt.kilimanjaro	Ruwenzori	Jabel-marra	Ras dashan
     Mt.longonot	Mt.meru		Nubadarfur	Guna
     Mt.marsabit	Pare mts		Kissu	Danakil alps
     Mt .kulal	Ngorongoro crater
     Menengai crater	Lool molasin

2. Rift valley
   • A valley is a low lying are with steep slopes.
   • In Eastern African the rift valley has 2 branches that stretch across several countries
   • The two branches are the eastern rift valley and the western rift valley
     
3. Lakes
   • A lake is a water body that is surrounded by land
   • A hollow/depression filled with water
   • We have
     1. Fresh water lakes
     2. sailty water lakes
   • Main lakes in eastern Africa are
     

     KENYA	UGANDA	TANZANIA	ETHIOPIA	RWANDA
     Turkana  Baringo  Bogoria   Nakuru    Elementaita   Naivasha  Magadi  Jipe  Chala	Albert Edward Bunyonyi  Bisini  George Kyoga  Kivu mutanda	Natron Manyara eyasi   Rukwa Malawi   tanganyika	Chamo Abaya  Steffanie Shala tana	ruhondo kivu

4. Plains
   • Are low lying areas of almost flat land.
   • Examples
     

     KENYA	UGANDA	TANZANIA	SOMALIA
     Lotikipi, awara, kano,	Luwero	Serengeti	Bilesha
     Kaputei, loita,	Nakasongola	maasai	Sarar
     Budalangi,kapiti			Haded
     bilesha

Formation Of Main Physical Features Of Eastern Africa

Formation Of Volcanic Mountains

• They are also called volcanoes
• They are formed through the process of volcanicity/eruption.
• Eruption is when the hot molten material underground is forced out by great pressure
• The hot molten material is called magma
• When magma gets to the surface is called lava
• The magma gets out through a main pipe called vent
• The opening at the top of a volcanic mountain is called a crater
• Most mountains in eastern africa are volcaning mountains
  
  

  KENYA	TANZANIA	RWANDA
  Kenya  Elgon  Longonot  Menengai crater Marsabit Suswa Kulal	Mt meru  Mt Kilimanjaro Ngorongoro Lool malsin	Mt karisimbi Nyiragongo

Formation of Block Mountains

• They are also called horst mountains
• They were formed through faulting and uplifting process
• Faults are lines of weakness
• Faults were developed as a result of forces acting on the layers of the earth
• The forces involved are tensional and compressional forces
• The middle block was pushed upward by underground forces
• The underground forces called up thrust force
• Examples
  

  ETHIOPIA	UGANDA	TANZANIA
  Danakali  alps	ruwenzori	Pare usambara

  
  

Formation Of The Rift Valley

• The rift valley was formed when two cracks or fault line formed within the crustal rocks
• The land between the two faults sunk forming a valley
• Was formed through the faulting process
• Formed by either tensional or compressional forces
• When two parallel faults developed the tensional forces pulls the rocks apart
• The middle block between the faults sink
• The steep sides of a rift valley are called escarpments
  

Formation Of Lakes

• The major lakes in eastern African were formed as a result of
  
  1.  Faulting
  2. River deposition
  3. Down warping
  4. Volcanicity

Rift Valley Lakes

1. During the formation of the rift valley, some parts of the land sunk deeper than others forming depressions.
2. The depressions were filled with water to form lakes
3. Example – lake Tanganyika in TZ

Lakes Formed As A Result Of Down Warping

1. Down warping is a process by which the earth sinks inwards due to pressure forming a big basin.
2. Water fills this basin to form a lake.
   Example: lake Victoria in Kenya

Lakes Formed As A Result Of Volcanicity

1.  Lava dammed
   
   • Lava dammed lakes are formed when lava flow on the surface of the earth and comes int contact with a river, blocking it
   • This leads to the formation of a lake
     Example: lake kivu in Rwanda
2. Crater lakes
   
   • When volcanic eruption occurs, the top of the mountain may be blown of forming a hallow depression called crater.
   • Water fills the hallow depression forming a crater lake.
   • Example; Lake paradaise in Kenya, Ngozi in Tanzania and Shalla in Ethiopia.

Formation Of Plains

• Plains are wide low lying areas of flat land.
• Plains are formed as a result of erosion and deposition of the eroded materials.
  
  

Map Of Eastern African Showing Main Physical Features

Conserving The Physical Features Within The Locality

We should protect and conserve physical features found in our locality

1.  Prevent overuse and deforestation of forest.
2. Avoid pollution of water bodies.
3. Educate people on importance of physical features.