| Libya is located at the northern part of Africa, immediately south of the Mediterranean Sea, and covers an area of about 1,800,000 square kilometers. Most of it is geographically classified as part of the great Sahara Desert that trends from the Atlantic Ocean to the west to the Arabian Peninsula to the east. Only the northern part of Libya is characterized by enjoyable weather during most of the seasons, moderate rainfall during the winter, and consequently, represents the most cultivated part of the country, with the highest concentration of population.; A large part of Libya is characterized by dry hot weather and is covered by moving sand dunes which are more commonly localized in the centers of the basins. The remainder of the country is capped by rock formations represented by metamorphic, sedimentary, and igneous rocks that range in age from the Precambrian to Recent.; The major structures of Libya are represented by four basins: namely, Murzok, Gadamis, Kufra, and Sirte. The first three of which are Paleozoic in age; the last one is Tertiary in age. These basins are separated by a group of arches including the Gargaf arch which separates Murzok Basin from Gadamis Basin in west Libya. The Tibesti-Tripoli arch in central Libya and the Tibesti arch between the Kufra Basin and Sirte Basin. Two uplifts striking in an east-west direction mark the northernmost part of Libya, the Jabel Akhdar in east Libya and the Jabel Nefusa in west Libya.; The economic resources of the country are represented principally by oil and gas production. The bulk of this production comes from the Sirte Basin where it was trapped in sandstone, organic reefs, and carbonate facies that accumulated on topographic highs enhanced by uplifting of basement blocks. Other significant natural resources, though not in production, are represented by large quantities of iron ore in the Wadi Ashati area, south of the Gargaf Mountains.; The analysis of LANDSAT space photographs revealed about 2,000 linears, unequally distributed in the different parts of the country, and are characterized by considerable variations in their length, strike, and density. Some of them coincide with known structural features including fault scarps, topographic features, dikes, alignments of igneous bodies, and straight drainage systems. The origin of many others is yet to be revealed by geophysical exploration, field work, or borehole drilling. |
