Rio Grande do Norte is dominated by its coastline. The state is famed for
its beaches and sand dunes, and the air is, according to NASA, the cleanest
in South America. Two
climates predominate: humid tropical, in the oriental littoral, and semi-arid,
in the remaining (most part) of the State (including the setentrional coast).
It is worthy noticing that, unlike other States of the Brazilian northeast (namely:
Paraíba, Pernambuco, Alagoas, Sergipe and Bahia), there is not in Rio Grande
do Norte the transition zone called agreste; the main reason for this is
that those other States are cut across by a large mountain chain called
Serra da Borborema (which goes parallel to the coast and physically
separates the humid coast from the dry sertao), and this chain enters just a
few dozen miles into Rio Grande do Norte. |
The rainforest which once covered most of Brazil´s coast had its northern
end in the south of Rio Grande do Norte; the north of Natal, the capital, is
taken by dunes, a kind of formation associated with the semi-arid climate.
The semi-arid is characterized not only by low levels of pluviosity, but
also by its irregularity; not rarely, years go by with no or very little
rain; most of the interior of the State is included in the Polygon of
Droughts (an area which receives special attention from the federal
government).
There are also many mangroves in the state, and the interior is dominated by
rainforest. |
