oasis
Sign in to savethumb|The desert oasis city of Jubbah,_Saudi_Arabia|Jubbah in [[Saudi Arabia as photographed from space.]]
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An oasis is a fertile area in a desert where water is available, allowing vegetation and settlements to exist in otherwise barren landscape. Oases matter because they have historically served as crucial stopping points for trade routes and human habitation in desert regions, supporting communities where survival would otherwise be impossible.
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Article
14 sectionsContents
- Description
- Geography
- History
- Palm Oasis
- Agroforestry
- Distressed systems
- List of places called oasis
- New World dryland systems with oasis-like attributes
- Gallery of oases
- Practical matters
- See also
- References
- Bibliography
- External links
thumb|The desert oasis city of Jubbah,_Saudi_Arabia|Jubbah in [[Saudi Arabia as photographed from space.]]
In ecology, an oasis (; : oases ) is a fertile area of a desert or semi-desert environment that sustains plant life and provides habitat for animals. Surface water may be present, or water may only be accessible from wells or underground channels created by humans. In geography, an oasis may be a current or past rest stop on a transportation route, or less-than-verdant location that nonetheless provides access to underground water through deep wells created and maintained by humans. Although they depend on a natural condition, such as the presence of water that may be stored in reservoirs and used for irrigation, most oases, as we know them, are artificial.