Reggane رقان | |
|---|---|
Commune and town | |
.jpg) | |
_location_map.svg) Location of Reggane Commune withinAdrar Province | |
  Reggane Location of Reggane within Algeria | |
| Coordinates:26°43′13″N0°10′22″E / 26.72028°N 0.17278°E /26.72028; 0.17278 | |
| Country |  Algeria |
| Province | Adrar Province |
| District | Reggane District |
| Elevation | 217 m (712 ft) |
| Population (2008) | |
• Total | 20,402 |
| Time zone | UTC+1 (CET) |
Reggane (fromBerber "Argan";Arabic:رقان) is a town andcommune, and the capital ofReggane District, inAdrar Province, centralAlgeria. Reggane lies in theSahara Desert near anoasis. According to the 2008 census it has a population of 20,402,[1] up from 14,179 in 1998,[2] with an annual growth rate of 3.8%.[1]Berber tribes and people live in and around Reggane.
Reggane has long functioned as an important crossroads point and oasis for trans-Saharan trade routes.[3] Ancient Arabs and/or Berbers also knew of diamonds in the area, calling the areaBilād al-mās (ﺱﺎﻣﻟﺍ, “country of the diamond”).[4]
TheÉvian Accords, which outlined the terms of Algerian independence in 1962, granted France the rights to continue military testing on Algerian soil. To the east of Reggane there was, until 1965, arocket launching site where numerous civilian and military ballistic rockets were launched. France began itsnuclear testing program in the vicinity of Reggane, conducting four such tests during theAlgerian War in 1960 and 1961, beforeindependence, and several after.[5] The French government claimed the tests were taking place in an uninhabited area, yet thousands of people lived in the radiation zone and were not warned properly about the tests. The French also did not properly dispose of the irradiated objects from the tests, which were soon uncovered by the desert winds. Since then, the local populations have dealt with significantly higher rates of liver, skin, and stomach cancers, as well as blindness and babies being born with atrophied limbs.[6]
The town of Reggane and its neighbouring villages lie next to the southernmostoasis of theTuat region, which stretches northward toAdrar. The Tidikelt region, a plain with isolated oases, lies to the east, including towns such asIn Salah,In Ghar,Aoulef andTit. To the west is the sandyErg Chech desert, while to the south lies the vast barren plain of theTanezrouft.
Reggane has ahot desert climate (Köppen climate classificationBWh), with long, extremely hot summers and short, very warm winters. The climate is torrid and almost rainless. Daytime temperatures consistently approach 50 °C (122 °F) in summer and nighttime temperatures routinely remain above 30 °C (86 °F). Average annual rainfall is extremely low, with only 10 mm (0.39 in). The sky is always clear and sunny throughout the year. The area in the heart of theAlgerian Desert bounded by Adrar - Reggane - In Salah is nicknamed the "triangle of fire" by local inhabitants due to the extreme heat that bakes the region from May to September.[7]
| Climate data for Reggane Airport | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 22.6 (72.7) | 25.2 (77.4) | 31.9 (89.4) | 36.4 (97.5) | 40.2 (104.4) | 44.1 (111.4) | 46.9 (116.4) | 45.5 (113.9) | 42.3 (108.1) | 35.8 (96.4) | 28.7 (83.7) | 24.9 (76.8) | 35.59 (96.06) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 16.0 (60.8) | 18.2 (64.8) | 23.1 (73.6) | 27.9 (82.2) | 32.2 (90.0) | 36.4 (97.5) | 39.8 (103.6) | 38.4 (101.1) | 35.5 (95.9) | 29.2 (84.6) | 22.0 (71.6) | 17.8 (64.0) | 28.34 (83.01) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 9.4 (48.9) | 11.3 (52.3) | 15.9 (60.6) | 20.6 (69.1) | 24.8 (76.6) | 29.0 (84.2) | 32.8 (91.0) | 31.6 (88.9) | 28.7 (83.7) | 22.5 (72.5) | 15.3 (59.5) | 11.2 (52.2) | 21.1 (70.0) |
| Averageprecipitation mm (inches) | 1.4 (0.06) | 1.1 (0.04) | 1.2 (0.05) | 1.6 (0.06) | 0.5 (0.02) | 0.1 (0.00) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.5 (0.02) | 0.2 (0.01) | 1.2 (0.05) | 0.5 (0.02) | 1.8 (0.07) | 10.1 (0.4) |
| Source: Global climatology for Reggane, Algeria (2000 - 2015)[8] | |||||||||||||
Reggane is the last town on theTanezrouft track heading south across theSahara Desert toMali. Customs and police inspection here are mandatory before crossing theSahara Desert. The Tanezrouft track is the southern part of Algeria's N6 national highway, which connects toAdrar to the north andBordj Badji Mokhtar to the south. Another highway, the N52, leads through theTidikelt region toAoulef and eventuallyIn Salah.
The town is served byReggane Airport,[9] located about 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) east of the town.
6.0% of the population has a tertiary education, and another 15.6% has completed secondary education.[10] The overall literacy rate is 75.9%, and is 85.0% among males and 66.3% among females.[11]
As of 1984, the commune was composed of 11 localities:[12]
Places adjacent to Reggane | |
|---|---|
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Other | |
.svg)
