"The Sahara Sea: A French Mirage in North Africa" Topic
8 Posts
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Tango01 | 11 Oct 2013 10:21 p.m. PST |
"In 1870s France, Ferdinand de Lesseps was a rock star. This was the man who had dared to dream the Suez Canal into being. Finished in 1869, the canal not only shaved off 6,000 km (nearly 4,000 miles) off the sea voyage from Europe to Asia, it also turned Africa into an island. De Lesseps was a world-changer. French public opinion hailed him as le grand Français; the imperial government made him a viscount. Casting about for the next world-changing scheme, de Lesseps fell upon a plan to create a giant inland sea in the North African desert. The idea was not his own , but it took the Great Frenchman's seal of approval to propel the plan from obscurity to nationwide prominence. The father of the 'Sahara Sea' was François Élie Roudaire, a French army captain who had been tasked in 1864 with mapping the more inaccessible parts of Algeria, then a French colony . In 1874, the military geographer was the first to establish that the so-called Chott el-Mehrir, in the south of Constantine province and close to the border with Tunisia, was situated well below sea level
" link link
Full article here link Hope you enjoy!. Amicalement Armand |
Militia Pete | 12 Oct 2013 3:38 a.m. PST |
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mass mosc | 12 Oct 2013 8:46 a.m. PST |
Thank you for your suggestions, I find them always interesting |
Shagnasty | 12 Oct 2013 9:14 a.m. PST |
They could easily do it now using nuclear demolition charges. A similar plan was mooted in the 60's for a new Nicaraguan inter ocean canal. |
jpattern2 | 12 Oct 2013 9:39 a.m. PST |
John Wyndham wrote a pretty cool sci-fi novel, The Secret People, that involved the modern-day creation of the Sahara Sea and a race of pygmies living under the desert. Worth checking out for scenario ideas. In reality, the loss of that much unique desert ecology would be catastrophic in and of itself, not to mention the unpredictable impact on climate in the region and worldwide. For every area made more "pleasant," how many more would be changed for the worse? |
Tango01 | 12 Oct 2013 10:01 a.m. PST |
Happy you enjoyed the link guys!. (smile). Amicalement Armand |
Joes Shop | 12 Oct 2013 11:18 p.m. PST |
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capncarp | 04 Mar 2014 6:53 p.m. PST |
So, I guess the Soviet plan for climate modification by flooding Siberia is on hold, too? |
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