Mauritania’s Richat Structure (Eye of the Sahara) spans about 40–50 km (25–30 miles), roughly 500 km (310 miles) from the Atlantic. It is a deeply eroded dome of sedimentary rock, about 80 m (260 ft) above adjacent terrain; its average elevation is around 1,300 ft (400 m). It was once interpreted as a salt dome, but that is not the modern geological explanation. Some researchers and writers have proposed Richat as the legendary Atlantis, but no archaeological evidence establishes that identification. The classical Atlantes were associated with the Atlas Mountains, not a proven settlement at Richat. Roman forces defeated the Garamantes and captured Garama in 19 BCE; the claim that they destroyed the Garamantians specifically to seize direct control of the salt trade is overstated.
Richat Structure: proposed as Atlantis, but the link is unproven
MauritaniaGeneral
Site mentioned
Key facts
- The Richat Structure spans roughly 40–50 km (25–30 miles) across.
- Its average elevation is around 1,300 ft (400 m) above sea level, while it rises about 80 m (260 ft) above adjacent terrain.
- It lies approximately 500 km (310 miles) from the Atlantic coast.
- It is a deeply eroded dome of sedimentary rock. It was once interpreted as a salt dome, but that is not the modern geological explanation; the description of it as an igneous dome is also unsupported.
- Some researchers and writers have proposed Richat as the legendary Atlantis, but no archaeological evidence establishes that identification.
- The classical Atlantes were associated with the Atlas Mountains; this does not establish an Atlantean settlement at Richat.
- Roman forces defeated the Garamantes and captured Garama in 19 BCE. Saying they destroyed the Garamantians specifically to take direct control of the salt trade overstates the outcome and presents an uncertain motive as fact.
Sources
Richat Structureen.wikipedia.org
The Richat Structure, or Guelb er Richât often called the Eye of Africa is a prominent circular geological feature at the northwestern edge of the Taoudeni ...
The “eye of Africa” (Richat dome, Mauritania): An isolated ...sciencedirect.com
by G Matton · 2014 · Cited by 27 — The Richat dome is a spectacular circular structure located in the Mauritanian part of the Sahara Desert. The current erosion level of this igneous complex ...
What Exactly Is the Eye of the Sahara, aka the Richat ...science.howstuffworks.com
the Eye of the Sahara, or Richat Structure, resembles a giant bullseye, with the sedimentary rock formation's concentric rings and circular ...
Eyeing the Richat Structurescience.nasa.gov
But the region's most eye-catching feature when seen from above is the Richat Structure—a large geologic formation made of concentric ridges on ...
ESA - The Richat structure, Mauritaniaesa.int
The 50-km-diameter circular Richat structure is one of those geological features that are more clearly observed from space than from down on ...
Richat Structure, Mauritaniascience.nasa.gov
Some shading of the elevation model was included to further highlight the topographic features. View Size: 68 kilometers (42 miles) wide by ...
Richat Structure topographic map, elevation, terrainen-us.topographic-map.com
Average elevation: 1319 ft • Richat Structure, Adrar, Mauritania • Visualization and sharing of free topographic maps.
Richat Structure | Photos, Size, Artifacts, & Elevationbritannica.com
Richat Structure, large geographic feature with a diameter of about 50 km (30 miles), The central rings of the structure are about 80 meters ( ...
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