- Sarawat Mountains
The Sarawat Mountains or the Sarat ( _ar. جبال السروات) is a
mountain range running parallel to the western coast of theArabian Peninsula and is among the Peninsula's most prominent geographical features. The Sarawat start from the border ofJordan in the north to theGulf of Aden in the south, running throughSaudi Arabia andYemen . The range's northern half, known as "Sarat al-Hejaz" rarely rises about 2,100 meters, while the middle and southern portions ("Sarat'Asir " and "Sarat al-Yemen ", respectively) can reach heights of over 3,300 meters.Geologically, the Sarawat are part of the
Arabian Shield , and are made up mostly ofvolcanic rock . The western slopes end abruptly near theRed Sea coast, while the eastern side of the mountain range slopes downward more gently and is intersected bywadis that supportagriculture , especially in the southern reaches of the Sarawat, where the mountains face themonsoons .Among the cities located within the Sarawat are the
Muslim holy city ofMecca , which is located in a valley in approximately the middle of the Sarawat mountain range, and the Yemeni capital,San'a , located near some of the Sarawat's highest peaks.References
* [http://lcweb2.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?frd/cstdy:@field(DOCID+sa0028) Library of Congress Country Study: Saudi Arabia]
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