Nigeria - Tourism

Geography

Nigeria is located in western Africa on the Gulf of Guinea and has a total area of 923,768 km2, making it the world's 32nd-largest country (after Tanzania)
Nigeria shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in the north. Its coast lies on the Gulf of Guinea in the south and it borders Lake Chad to the northeast.
The highest point in Nigeria is Chappal Waddi at 2,419 m. The main rivers are the Niger and the Benue River which converge and empty into the Niger Delta, one of the world's largest river deltas and the location of a large area of Central African Mangroves.
Noted geographical features in Nigeria include the Adamawa highlands, Mambilla Plateau, Jos Plateau, Obudu Plateau, the Niger River, River Benue and Niger Delta.

Nigeria has a varied landscape.
The far south is defined by its tropical rainforest climate, where annual rainfall is 60 to 80 inches (1,524 to 2,032 mm) a year.
In the southeast stands the Obudu Plateau. Coastal plains are found in both the southwest and the southeast.
This forest zone's most southerly portion is defined as salt water swamp, also known as a mangrove swamp because of the large amount of mangroves in the area.
North of this is fresh water swamp, containing different vegetation from the salt water swamp, and north of that is rain forest.

Nigeria's most expansive topographical region is that of the valleys of the Niger and Benue River valleys (which merge into each other and form a "y" shape). To the southwest of the Niger there is "rugged" highland, and to the southeast of the Benue are hills and mountains which forms the Mambilla Plateau,the highest Plateau in Nigeria.This plateau extends to the border with Cameroon, this montane land is part of the Bamenda Highlands in Cameroon. The area near the border with Cameroon close to the coast is rich rainforest and part of the Cross-Sanaga-Bioko coastal forests ecoregion, an important centre for biodiversity including the drill monkey which is only found in the wild in this area and across the border in Cameroon. It is widely believed that the areas surrounding Calabar, Cross River State, also in this forest, contain the world's largest diversity of butterflies. The area of southern Nigeria between the Niger and the Cross Rivers has seen its forest more or less disappear to be replaced by grassland (see Cross-Niger transition forests).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nigeria#Geography
The Niger Delta is located in the southern part of Nigeria. It is one of the world's largest arcuate fan-shaped river deltas. The riverine area of the Niger Delta is a coastal belt of swamps bordering the Atlantic ocean. The swamps are vegetated tidal flats formed by a reticulate pattern of interconnected meandering creeks and distributaries of the River Niger.
The vegetation of the Niger Delta consist mainly of forest swamps. The forest are of two types, nearest the sea is a belt of saline/brackish Mangrove swamp separated from the sea by sand beach ridges within the mangrove swamp. Numerous sandy islands occur with fresh water vegetation. Fresh water swamps gradually supersede the mangrove on the landward side. About 70% of Nigeria's crude oil and gas production is from the area.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geography_of_Nigeria

Nigeria's Delta region, home of the large oil industry, experiences serious oil spills and other environmental problems, which has caused conflict.
Waste management including sewage treatment, the linked processes of deforestation and soil degradation, and climate change or global warming are the major environmental problems in Nigeria. Waste management presents problems in a mega city like Lagos and other major Nigerian cities which are linked with economic development, population growth and the inability of municipal councils to manage the resulting rise in industrial and domestic waste.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nigeria#Geography

Climate

Nigeria is found in the Tropics, where the climate is seasonally damp and very humid. Nigeria is affected by four climate types; these climate types are distinguishable, as one moves from the southern part of Nigeria to the northern part of Nigeria through Nigeria's middle belt.
Nigeria, like the rest of West Africa and other tropical lands, has only two seasons. These are the Dry season and the Rainy season. The dry season is accompanied by a dust laden airmass from the Sahara Desert, locally known as Harmattan, or by its main name, The Tropical Continental (CT) airmass , while the rainy season is heavily influenced by an airmass originating from the south atlantic ocean, locally known as the south west wind, or by its main name, The Tropical Maritime (MT) airmass. These two major wind systems in Nigeria, are known as the trade winds.

Climate types in Nigeria

The Tropical rainforest climate or the Equatorial monsoon, designated by the Köppen climate classification as "Af", is found in the southern part of the country. This climate is influenced by the monsoons originating from the South Atlantic ocean, which is brought into the country by the (maritime tropical) MT airmass, a warm moist sea to land seasonal wind. Its warmth and high humidity gives it a strong tendency to ascend and produce copious rainfall, which is a result of the condensation of water vapour in the rapidly rising air.

The Tropical rainforest climate has a very small temperature range. Then temperature ranges are almost constant throughout the year, for example, Warri town in the southern part of Nigeria, records a maximum of 28 °C for its hottest month while its lowest temperature is 26 °C in its coldest month. The temperature difference of Warri town is not more than 2 °C.

The southern part of Nigeria experiences heavy and abundant rainfall. These storms are usually convectional in nature due to the regions proximity, to the equatorial belt. The annual rainfall received in this region is very high, usually above the 2,000 mm (78.7 in) rainfall totals giving for tropical rainforest climates worldwide. Over 4,000 mm of rainfall is received in the coastal region of Nigeria around the Niger delta area. Bonny town found in the coastal region of the Niger delta area in southern Nigeria receives well over 4,000 mm of rainfall annually. The rest of the southeast receives between 2,000 and 3,000 mm of rain per year.

The southern region of Nigeria experiences a double rainfall maxima characterised by two high rainfall peaks, with a short dry season and a longer dry season falling between and after each peaks. The first rainy season begins around March and last to the end of July with a peak in June,this rainy season is followed by a short dry break in August known as the August break which is a short dry season lasting for two to three weeks in August. This break is broken by the Short rainy season starting around early September and lasting to Mid October with a peak period at the end of September. The ending of the short rainy season in October is followed by Long Dry Season. This period starts from late October and lasts till early March with peak dry conditions between early December and late February.

The Tropical savanna climate or Tropical wet and dry climate, is extensive in area and covers most of Western Nigeria to central Nigeria beginning from the Tropical rainforest climate boundary in southern Nigeria to the central part of Nigeria, where it exerts enormous influence on the region.

This climate, the tropical savanna climate exhibits a well marked rainy season and a dry season with a single peak known as the summer maximum due to its distance from the equator. Temperatures are above 18 °C throughout the year. Abuja, Nigeria's capital city found in central Nigeria, has a temperature range of 18.45 °C to 36.05 °C, and an annual rainfall of about 1,500 mm with a single rainfall maxima in September.

The single Dry season experienced in this climate, the tropical savanna climate in central Nigeria beginning from December to march, is hot and dry with the Harmattan wind, a continental tropical(CT) airmass laden with dust from the Sahara Desert prevailing throughout this period.

With the Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ) swinging northward over West Africa from the Southern Hemisphere in April, heavy showers coming from pre-monsoonal convective clouds mainly in the form of squall lines also known as the north easterlies formed mainly as a result of the interactions of the two dominant airmasses in Nigeria known as the Maritime tropical(south westerlies) and the Continental tropical(north easterlies), begins in central Nigeria while the Monsoons from the south atlantic ocean arrives in central Nigeria in July bringing with it high humidity, heavy cloud cover and heavy rainfall which can be daily occurrence lasting till September when the monsoons gradually begin retreating southward to the southern part of Nigeria.Rainfall totals in central Nigeria varies from 1,100 mm in the lowlands of the river Niger Benue trough to over 2,000 mm along the south western escarpment of the Jos Plateau.

The Sahel Climate or Tropical dry climate, is the predominant climate type in the northern part of Nigeria. Annual rainfall totals are lower compared to the southern and central part of Nigeria. Rainy season in the northern part of Nigeria last for only three to four months (June–September). The rest of the year is hot and dry with temperatures climbing as high as 40 °C.

Alpine climate or highland climate or mountain climate, are found on highlands regions in Nigeria. Highlands with the alpine climate in Nigeria, are well over 1,520 metres above sea level. Due to their location in the tropics, this elevation is high enough to reach the temperate climate line in the tropics thereby giving the highlands, mountains and the plateau regions standing above this height, a cool mountain climate.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Climate_of_Nigeria#Climate