New
7 Natural Wonders of the World
New Seven Wonders of Nature-One
of 28 nominees. Winners will be announced in 2011.
Kilamanjaro |
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Tanzania, Africa |
New
Seven Wonders of Nature |
Earth's Natural Wonders in
Africa |
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The mountain
and its surrounding forests were
designated a game reserve in the
early part of the 20th century.
In 1973 Mount Kilimanjaro National
Park was established to protect
the mountain above the tree line
as well as the six forest corridors
that extend downslope through
the montane forest belt. The park
was designated a UNESCO World
Heritage site in 1987.[1] |
Kilamanjaro Slideshow |
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Kilimanjaro with its three volcanic
cones, Kibo, Mawenzi, and Shira, is
an inactive stratovolcano in north-eastern
Tanzania rising 4,600 m (15,100 ft)
from its base (and approximately 5,100
m (16,700 ft) from the plains near
Moshi), and is additionally the highest
peak in Africa at 5,891.8 metres (19,330
ft)[4], providing a dramatic view
of the surrounding plains.
Climatic conditions
While the volcano appears to be dormant
on the inside, events on top of the
mountain draw global attention. The
top of the mountain has seen a retreat
of the most recent covering of glaciers,
with the most recent ice cap volume
dropping by more than 80%.
Sources disagree when the glaciers
will be gone due to melting. In 2002,
a study led by Ohio State University
ice core paleoclimatologist Lonnie
Thompson predicted that ice on top
of Africa's tallest peak would be
gone between 2015 and 2020. In 2007,
a team of Austrian scientists from
University of Innsbruck predicted
that the plateau ice cap will be gone
by 2040, but some ice on the slope
will remain longer due to local weather
conditions. Yet, another, the California
Academy of Sciences, predicts that
the [glaciers] will be gone by 2050.
A comparison of ice core records suggests
conditions today are returning to
those of 11,000 years ago. A study
by Philip Mote of the University of
Washington in the United States and
Georg Kaser of the University of Innsbruck
in Austria concludes that the shrinking
of Kilimanjaro's ice cap is not directly
due to rising temperature but rather
to decreased precipitation. In May
2008 The Tanzanian Minister for Natural
Resources, Ms Shamsa Mwangunga, said
that there were indications that snow
cover on the mountain was actually
increasing. In January 2006, the Western
Breach route was closed by the Tanzanian
government following a rockslide that
killed four people at Arrow Glacier
Camp. On December 1, 2007 the Western
Breach route was reopened for climbing
Volcanic conditions
While it is inactive, Kilimanjaro
has fumaroles that emit gas in the
crater on the main summit of Kibo.
Scientists concluded in 2003 that
molten magma is just 400 metres (1,310
ft) below the summit crater. Several
collapses and landslides have occurred
on Kibo in the past, one creating
the area known as the Western Breach.
A National Geographic
documentary. Find out how global warming
and deforestation are melting the vast
snow fields of Mount Kilimanjaro.