Ténéré

The Ténéré is a vast sandy desert east of the Aïr Mountains. Its northern reaches form an immense sheet of sand toward the low hills of the Tassili du Hoggar, while farther south the dunes of the Bilma Erg provide passages for salt caravans. Water is exceptionally scarce and rainfall may fail for years. The name comes from the Tuareg word for desert, a fitting title for this great expanse of the Sahara.