Desert in Libya

Well, maybe it is not the most appropriate season of the year to be posting desert pictures, but it might feel nice too all of you out there who have snow and very cold temperatures...so maybe a glimpse at this card will take your thoughts away and once you realize how it would be to be trapped in a desert, all of a sudden the snow and freezing temps wont feel so bad :)

The Libyan Desert is part of the Sahara. It covers some 1,300,000 km2 in Libya, Egypt, and Sudan and consists mainly of gravelly plains, rock outcrops, and vast areas of shifting sand dunes. Elevations generally vary from 150 to 900 m. In the northeast, in Egypt, the Qattara Depression drops to 133 m below sea level - one of the lowest points in Africa.

The Libyan Desert is extremely dry; it often receives no rain for several years at a time. Nomadic herders traverse the region, but permanent habitation is possible only at scattered oases. The northern part of the desert was the scene of intense fighting during World War II.

The desert features a striking diversity of landscapes including mountains like Jebel Uweinat (1980 m), the Gilf Kebir plateau, and sand seas.

The stamps are from a set of 16 issued in 1996, representing Maghreb Handicrafts