Africa is the second-largest continent on Earth, covering an astounding 30.4 million square kilometers. Its vast landscape stretches approximately 8,000 km from north to south and 7,400 km from east to west, making it larger than the USA, China, and India combined!
But just how big is Africa? To truly understand its scale, we’ll break down its area and distances into various measurement units—from miles and kilometers to feet and millimeters. We’ll also compare its size to other landmasses, estimate travel times across the continent, and explore fun analogies that put Africa’s enormity into perspective.
Let’s dive into the numbers and discover just how massive Africa really is!
| Measurement | Mile (mi) | Yard (yd) | Foot (ft) | Inch (in) | Kilometer (km) | Meter (m) | Centimeter (cm) | Millimeter (mm) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total Area | 1.17 × 10⁷ mi² | 1.2 × 10⁸ yd² | 1.08 × 10⁹ ft² | 1.17 × 10¹⁰ in² | 30.4 × 10⁶ km² | 3.04 × 10⁷ m² | 3.04 × 10¹² cm² | 30.4 × 10¹² mm² |
| North-South Distance | 5,000 mi | 8.74 × 10⁶ yd | 2.62 × 10⁷ ft | 3.15 × 10⁸ in | 8,000 km | 8 × 10⁶ m | 8 × 10⁸ cm | 8 × 10⁹ mm |
| East-West Distance | 4,600 mi | 8.1 × 10⁶ yd | 2.43 × 10⁷ ft | 2.91 × 10⁸ in | 7,400 km | 7.4 × 10⁶ m | 7.4 × 10⁸ cm | 7.4 × 10⁹ mm |
Further Breakdowns
Area
For a better sense of scale in imperial units, Africa’s area (30.4 million km²) translates to:
- Square Feet:327.2 trillion ft²
- Acres:7.51 billion acres
Estimated Travel Time Across Africa
How long would it take to traverse Africa? Here’s a breakdown based on different travel speeds:
- Walking: Assuming an average speed of 5 km/h, how many days would it take to walk from north to south?
- Driving: Estimating a steady speed of 100 km/h, how long would a continuous drive across the continent take?
- Flying: At a cruising speed of 900 km/h, how quickly could a commercial airplane cover the same distance?
The table below provides the estimated travel times across Africa using these methods:
| Mode of Travel | North-South | East-West |
|---|---|---|
| Walking (5 km/h) | 1,600 hours (67 days) | 1,480 hours (61.6 days) |
| Driving (100 km/h) | 80 hours (3.3 days) | 74 hours (3 days) |
| Flying (900 km/h) | 8.9 hours | 8.2 hours |
Comparisons to Other Landmasses
How does Africa’s vast size compare to other major landmasses? By measuring its north-south and east-west distances against countries and continents, we can get a better sense of its scale. The table below shows how many times other well-known regions, like the USA, Russia, and Australia, would fit within Africa’s dimensions.
| Comparison | North-South Fit | East-West Fit |
|---|---|---|
| USA Width (~4,500 km) | 1.78 times | 1.64 times |
| Russia Width (~9,000 km) | 0.89 times | 0.82 times |
| Australia Width (~4,000 km) | 2 times | 1.85 times |
Other Fun Analogies
To truly grasp Africa’s immense size, let’s put it into perspective with some fun comparisons. Imagine stacking countries, stretching landmarks, or even thinking in terms of footsteps! How many Eiffel Towers would fit across Africa? How long would it take a cheetah—the fastest land animal—to sprint from one end to the other? These playful analogies make Africa’s scale more relatable.
Football Fields (100m each):
- North-South: 80,000 fields
- East-West: 74,000 fields
Empire State Buildings (381m tall):
- North-South: ~21,000 stacked
- East-West: ~19,400 stacked
Amazon Rivers (6,992 km long):
- North-South: 1.14 Amazon Rivers
- East-West: 1.06 Amazon Rivers
Eiffel Towers (330m tall):
- North-South: ~24,200 stacked
- East-West: ~22,400 stacked
Steps Taken (Average human stride ~0.75m):
- North-South: ~10.7 billion steps
- East-West: ~9.9 billion steps
Cheetah Sprinting at 120 km/h (Max speed, no breaks):
- North-South: ~66 hours (almost 3 days at full speed!)
- East-West: ~62 hours
Light Travel Time (Speed of light = 300,000 km/s):
- North-South: 0.027 seconds
- East-West: 0.025 seconds