Atar, Mauritania

Atar
Commune and town

Atar Market
Atar

Location in Mauritania

Coordinates: 20°31′N 13°03′W / 20.517°N 13.050°W
Country  Mauritania
Region Adrar Region
Elevation 270 m (890 ft)
Population (2013 census)
 • Total 26,144

Atar (Arabic: أطار‎, Berber for mountain) is a town in northwestern Mauritania, the capital of the Adrar Region and the main settlement on the Adrar Plateau. It is home to an airport, a museum and a historic mosque, constructed in 1674. In 2013 it had a population of 26,144.[1]

Tourism

Today, the Atar is best known to outsiders as an entryway for tourists to visit the ruins of the ancient Moorish cities of Ouadane and Chinguetti. It was a key stop in the world's longest off-road race, the Paris Dakar Rally, held every January.

Water Supply

While the city sits within the Sahara Desert, a nearby water supply of considerable size was recently discovered. An underground river was discovered by Russian scientists using geoinformation to study the topography of the desert with satellites. They were operating at the request of the Mauritanian government. The find has been confirmed by the Mauritanian military. Eventually, the river will provide water enough to support Atar's entire population. . The Terjit oasis is near Atar.

Geology and geography

The Adrar's mountains are from the primary era against the precambrian Tiris Zemmour. Near Atar, you can find stromatolites. In the North, you can find Choum with the train that comes from Nouadhibou and goes to Zouerate. East of Atar is the difficult way to Chinguetti, Ouadane and the astonishing Richat Structure.

Climate

Köppen-Geiger climate classification system classifies its climate as hot desert (BWh).

The highest record temperature was 49 °C (120 °F) on August 5, 1965, while the lowest record temperature was 4 °C (39 °F) on December 21, 1979.[2]

Climate data for Atar
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 38
(100)		 44
(111)		 43
(109)		 45
(113)		 48
(118)		 48
(118)		 48
(118)		 49
(120)		 48
(118)		 44
(111)		 44
(111)		 37
(99)		 49
(120)
Average high °C (°F) 28
(82)		 30
(86)		 32
(90)		 34
(93)		 38
(100)		 41
(106)		 42
(108)		 41
(106)		 40
(104)		 37
(99)		 32
(90)		 28
(82)		 35.3
(95.5)
Average low °C (°F) 13
(55)		 14
(57)		 16
(61)		 19
(66)		 22
(72)		 26
(79)		 27
(81)		 27
(81)		 26
(79)		 23
(73)		 18
(64)		 14
(57)		 20.4
(68.8)
Record low °C (°F) 5
(41)		 8
(46)		 10
(50)		 10
(50)		 14
(57)		 17
(63)		 20
(68)		 14
(57)		 18
(64)		 15
(59)		 10
(50)		 4
(39)		 4
(39)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 2
(0.08)		 2
(0.08)		 1
(0.04)		 0
(0)		 0
(0)		 2
(0.08)		 6
(0.24)		 25
(0.98)		 24
(0.94)		 4
(0.16)		 3
(0.12)		 4
(0.16)		 73
(2.88)
Avg. rainy days 1 1 0 0 0 0 1 2 2 0 1 0 8
Mean daily sunshine hours 8 9 9 10 10 9 9 9 9 9 8 7 8.8
Source #1: Weather2Travel[3]
Source #2: Voodoo Skies for record temperatures[2]
Aerial view of Atar, 1967

Small business sector

The "samaras" (from Arab smela : sole) are made in Atar and well known in Mauritania. It's a leather sole with straps.

Military

Recently an air force school was founded in Atar, to train pilots and crew for the Military of Mauritania.[4]

Notable people

References

  1. ↑ "Statistiques Demographiques: Résultats du RGPH 2000 des Wilayas". République Islamique de Mauritanie. Retrieved January 14, 2009.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Atar, Mauritania". Voodoo Skies. Retrieved 2014-01-15.
  3. ↑ "Atar Climate and Weather Averages, Mauritania". Weather2Travel. Retrieved 2014-01-15.
  4. ↑ The Directorate of Air

Coordinates: 20°31′N 13°03′W / 20.517°N 13.050°W

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