Tamanrasset River

The Tamanrasset River is an enormous palaeoriver believed to have flowed through West Africa as recently as 5000 years ago during the African humid period.

[7][3] The presence of the river is thought to have had wide-ranging implications for human migration from Central Africa to the Middle East, Europe, and Asia.

Previously, the inhospitable Sahara desert was believed to have made a western route for migrating to Europe unviable.

[8][9][10][11] Researchers believe that the ancient river became active during the African Humid Period, climate oscillations caused by the precession of the Earth’s rotation.

[4] The palaeoriver was discovered using a Japanese orbital satellite system called Phased Array type L-band Synthetic Aperture Radar (PALSAR).