Geographical Influence

Jerusalem has an interesting climate and geography.  The city is located at 350 degrees, 13 minutes E longitude and 310 degrees, 52 minutes N latitude. It is built over two hills on the Judean Mountains and is between 2300 and 2500 feet above sea level. Because it is built on hills, the city is very rocky with shallow soil.  This prevents farming (Website 5).

The Judean Mountains

The city is close to two large bodies of water. The Mediterranean Sea is 35 miles to the west of Jerusalem and the Dead Sea is 16 miles to the east (Website 3).

The Mediterranean Sea

The Dead Sea

South of the Dead sea, the landscape of Israel changes from steppe to the Negav desert which has many craters. In this area, the only large animals that can survive the climate are gazelles, ibexes, hyraxes, vultures, and eagles. Israel also has some areas of mountains, hills, and cliffs. The highest mountains are the mountains on the Sinai peninsula and Mount Hermon (Ardito, 33).

The Negev Desert