Geography of Ghana

The geography of Ghana is characterized by a total of relatively low relief. About half of the whole country is not higher than 150 meters. Average of Ghana is situated at an altitude of 450 meters above sea level. Only at the border with Togo is to find a mountain range that runs consistently just below the altitude of 900 meters and draws up to Togo. Five different geographic regions can be distinguished.

The climate in Ghana is influenced by the proximity to the equator. From the coast to the center of the country, there is still a humid tropical climate. Here also the vegetation in the form of rain forest is most dense. Due to the dry continental air flows from the Sahara to the north of the country is greatly influenced. Already the center of the country is to be regarded as a tree savanna in the north, this then goes in dry steppe. The annual average temperature ranges between 26 ° C regularly and 29 ° C, with an annual rainfall of 2100 mm in the southwest of the country and from about 1000 mm in the north.

Location and size

Ghana is located over a length of about 540 km along the Gulf of Guinea, directly on the Atlantic Ocean. The geographical location is set to 4 ° 45 ' to 11 ° 10' north latitude and 3 ° 15 ' West to 1 ° 12 ' East. The so-called zero meridian, which also passes through Greenwich, near London, Ghana cuts in the city of Tema, just east of Accra, the capital of Ghana. In addition, the equator is only about 540 km south of the coast of Ghana, Ghana which nearly brought the same long days and nights.

Ghana thus extends in a north-south direction over a distance of about 700 km, in east- west direction for about 450 km, almost in the rectangle. Thus Ghana covers an area of ​​238,537 km ² and is about as big as the old colonial power Great Britain or the old Federal Republic of Germany. However, the long coast of Ghana has no natural harbor. With Takoradi Ghana got its first man-made harbor by the colonial power. In 1961, the second of the two artificial harbors was completed in Tema.

The natural areas of Ghana

Roughly speaking, Ghana has three geographical zones: the coastal plain, the rain forest zone and the savanna. Because of the additional possible subdivision of the surface structure of Ghana is geographically divided, however, into five natural areas:

• Low Plains - lowland steppe
• Highlands of Ashanti
• Akwapim - Togo - chain
• Volta Basin
• High Plains - upland steppe

All natural areas differ considerably and have a different vegetation and wildlife on. An important distinguishing feature of the individual zones is the amount of rainfall.

Waters

Ghana is drained by a large number of different streams and rivers. A special feature in the river system of Ghana is the Bosumtwi lake located with a circular shape without a drain, just south of Kumasi, which not only has religious significance within the population, but also points to a meteorite impact. The Volta Lake was created in 1964 than at the time the largest fully erected by people dam a milestone for the geography of Ghana as well as in supplying the population with water energy.

The Volta River and its tributaries have a total length of 1,600 miles and drain the entire northern and central Ghana so a total area of approximately 388,000 km ², of which more than half ( 158,000 km ²) in Ghana (area: 238,537 km ²) are located. In the highlands of Ashanti also arises from a number of rivers that drain in a southerly direction into the Atlantic. To you count the Pra flows through with its tributaries Anum, Birimian and Offin. In addition to the Pra - system flow through yet Bia, Tano, Densu and Ankobra than larger independent rivers to the south of Ghana.

Except for the smaller rivers dry out in the rule in the dry season not but lead water all year round. Ankobra and Tano are navigable to a great extent with ships.

Climate

Ghana is a tropical country with a close proximity to the equator, which runs about 540 km south of the coast. Ghana has no four seasons, but only dry season and rainy season. As a tropical country, Ghana has an average air temperature of 28-32 ° C. However, the north of the country is due to the influence of dry and hot desert winds usually to higher average temperatures. This is also the place that holds the temperature record in Ghana with 42.2 ° C, the city Navrongo. In the north of the country, there are also greater temperature differentials than in the south. In Kumasi and Tafo in (some say a district of Kumasi Tafo see others in the immediate proximity to Kumasi located as your own city on ) the lowest temperature of Ghana has been measured at 12 ° C.

The climatic conditions, for example in terms of temperature and rainfall, are strongly influenced by the movement of dry tropical continental air mass from the area of the Sahara and the tropical maritime air mass over the Atlantic. The continental wind from the Sahara has the upper hand during the dry season and is in Ghana also called Harmattan.

The rains in Ghana can not be compared due to the tropical climate with rain in temperate climates, but almost always occur with a great vehemence, like a cloudburst. Not infrequently, the soil can not absorb the water masses, floods are the consequence that cost often in larger cities and in Accra lives. The heaviest rainfalls are to be registered in the area of ​​Axim in the southwest of the country. Kumasi, the second largest city in Ghana situated in the Ashanti highlands, has an average rainfall of 1400 mm. Tamale, located in the north in the northern Volta Basin, has to make do with 1000 mm of precipitation per year. In the coastal plain between Takoradi in the west and the Volta Delta, the rainfall reaches an average of only 750-1000 mm per year.

In the period from April to June and in September / October prevail in Ghana rainy seasons. The humidity is then about 90 %, since at that time the dominant winds blowing almost saturated with water air from the Atlantic over the country. The highest temperatures are measured in Ghana Immediately before this monsoon. The months between the rainy months (July and August) are directly the coldest in the coastal plain in Ghana. Often the rain comes down in the afternoon.

In the dry season, ie from November to February is dominated by the Harmattan coming from the Sahara, blowing from the north-east trade wind storm, the whole country. The temperature differences between day and night are larger, the average temperature falls in these months at 25-27 ° C, at night it can ever be close to 20 ° C. In northern Ghana, the nights can be cool even at 15 ° C. Fine sand from the Sahara is during the dry season in the air. Each year it distributes billions of tons from the deserts north of Ghana over the country. During the dry season the humidity drops to as low as 25%.