<p>These trees lie on the south-facing downward slope of an escarpment separating the Hampton Tableland (the southern part of the Nullarbor Plain) to the north from the Roe Plains to the south.</p>
<p>As the name &quot;Nullarbor Plain&quot; suggests, the area is very dry, but this little amount of slope allows for a slightly wetter microclimate, just enough to grow some scrub and a few trees on the slope.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2023-03-15T02:43:31.157Z
Thanks; out of curiosity, can you explain why the south-facing slope has a wetter microclimate?
aman
CC BY-SA 4.0
2023-03-15T11:37:02.983Z
@aman: The approximate difference in elevation between the two plains is 80 m. The predominant wind direction is from the south. The escarpment captures winds from Antarctica. As the air goes over the escarpment it will have a tendency to drop moisture making the escarpment & its base wetter. Also, that part of the world is well south of the Tropic of Capricorn, so the Sun is always in the northern part of the sky, so parts of the escarpment will sometimes be in a shadow, hence slightly cooler than the two plains; hence the micro-climate.
Fred
CC BY-SA 4.0
2023-03-14T17:56:59.603Z
2023-03-14T17:56:59.603Z
Spencer
<p>North of the Eyre Highway in the South-East part of West Australia, there is a line of trees with desert on all sides. There is no visible river.</p>
<p>Why is this the case?</p>
<p><a href="https://i.sstatic.net/G11JK.jpg" rel="nofollow noreferrer"><img src="https://i.sstatic.net/G11JK.jpg" alt="enter image description here" /></a></p>
<p><a href="https://earth.google.com/web/search/eyre+highway/@-31.9095029,127.16217085,32.48878858a,38404.35206843d,35y,-1.4009995h,2.93888429t,0r/data=CigiJgokCQ9xVdR63z_AEUtgEcjG6z_AGZ5dlVQ9y19AIUO2A7f8w19A" rel="nofollow noreferrer">-31.8985239 S, 127.135608 E</a></p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2023-03-14T16:42:43.553Z
Looks more like an [elevation change](https://i.sstatic.net/A1F1j.png) than excessive trees.  On Street View, looks like nearer the coast there's modest coverage of trees/bushes in most spots, nothing excessively distinct about that line, except the elevation change?
JeopardyTempest
CC BY-SA 4.0
2023-03-14T16:59:13.360Z
Thanks;
Any particular reason why the elevated area may have more trees? (I'm assuming more rainfall due to orographic uplift?)
aman
<identification-request>
What is this line of trees visible on Google Earth?
aman
# What is this line of trees visible on Google Earth?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2023-03-14)

North of the Eyre Highway in the South-East part of West Australia, there is a line of trees with desert on all sides. There is no visible river.

Why is this the case?

[![enter image description here](https://i.sstatic.net/G11JK.jpg)](https://i.sstatic.net/G11JK.jpg)

[-31.8985239 S, 127.135608 E](https://earth.google.com/web/search/eyre+highway/@-31.9095029,127.16217085,32.48878858a,38404.35206843d,35y,-1.4009995h,2.93888429t,0r/data=CigiJgokCQ9xVdR63z_AEUtgEcjG6z_AGZ5dlVQ9y19AIUO2A7f8w19A)

**Tags:** identification-request

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: Looks more like an [elevation change](https://i.sstatic.net/A1F1j.png) than excessive trees.  On Street View, looks like nearer the coast there's modest coverage of trees/bushes in most spots, nothing excessively distinct about that line, except the elevation change?  
> **username_0**: Thanks; Any particular reason why the elevated area may have more trees? (I'm assuming more rainfall due to orographic uplift?)  

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## 1 answers

### Answer by username_2 on 2023-03-14. Score: 3 | Accepted answer

These trees lie on the south-facing downward slope of an escarpment separating the Hampton Tableland (the southern part of the Nullarbor Plain) to the north from the Roe Plains to the south.

As the name "Nullarbor Plain" suggests, the area is very dry, but this little amount of slope allows for a slightly wetter microclimate, just enough to grow some scrub and a few trees on the slope.

> **Comments:**
> **username_0**: Thanks; out of curiosity, can you explain why the south-facing slope has a wetter microclimate?  
> **username_3**: @username_0: The approximate difference in elevation between the two plains is 80 m. The predominant wind direction is from the south. The escarpment captures winds from Antarctica. As the air goes over the escarpment it will have a tendency to drop moisture making the escarpment & its base wetter. Also, that part of the world is well south of the Tropic of Capricorn, so the Sun is always in the northern part of the sky, so parts of the escarpment will sometimes be in a shadow, hence slightly cooler than the two plains; hence the micro-climate.  

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