Examkin

Question

Difficulty: HardClimate Types and Characteristics of Africa

Arrange the following climatic zones of West Africa in sequential order based on the duration of their wet season, starting from the zone with the longest rainy season to the zone with the shortest rainy season:

  1. 1Equatorial Coastal Belt
  2. 2Guinea Savanna Belt
  3. 3Sudan Savanna Belt
  4. 4Sahelian Semi-Arid Belt

Answer

The correct order from longest wet season duration to shortest is: Equatorial Coastal Belt, Guinea Savanna Belt, Sudan Savanna Belt, and Sahelian Semi-Arid Belt.
The correct sequence orders the climate belts from southern coastal West Africa to northern inland regions. The Equatorial Coastal Belt receives rain for 9 to 12 months due to persistent Maritime Tropical air. Moving north, the Guinea Savanna has a 7 to 9 month wet season, the Sudan Savanna experiences 4 to 6 months of rain, and the Sahelian Semi-Arid Belt receives only 2 to 3 months of brief seasonal rainfall.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Examine the atmospheric driving force controlling West African rainfall
Rainfall duration across West Africa is determined by the seasonal latitude position of the Inter-Tropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ), which separates humid Maritime Tropical (mT) winds from dry Continental Tropical (cT) winds.
Locations closer to the coast remain under moist mT air longer, whereas inland locations spend most of the year under dry cT winds.
2
Determine the length of the rainy season for each climate zone moving inland
The Equatorial Coastal Belt has 9–12 rainy months; Guinea Savanna has 7–9 rainy months; Sudan Savanna has 4–6 rainy months; Sahelian Semi-Arid Belt has 2–3 rainy months.
The duration of mT air dominance decreases progressively as distance from the Atlantic coastline increases northward.
3
Sequence the items from longest rainy season to shortest rainy season
Equatorial Coastal Belt → Guinea Savanna Belt → Sudan Savanna Belt → Sahelian Semi-Arid Belt.
This establishes a clear environmental gradient from equatorial hyper-humid conditions at the coast to semi-arid conditions near the Sahara.

Key Concept

Latitudinal gradient of wet season duration and air mass dominance in West Africa
Rate this question

Topics

Climate Types and Characteristics of Africa

More questions from this topic