According to Geology.com, a desert is a landscape or region that receives very little precipitation - less than 250 mm per year. Deserts account at least 1/3 of the planet’s total land surface varying from polar to non-polar classifications. Antartic is the largest polar desert in the world while Sahara is the largest non-polar desert.
1. Antarctic - Polar; 5.5 million mi²; Antarctica
2. Arctic - Polar; 5.4 million mi²; Alaska, Canada, Greenland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, Finland, Russia
3. Sahara - Subtropical; 3.5 million mi²; Northern Africa
4. Arabian - Subtropical; 1 million mi²; Arabian Peninsula
5. Gobi - Cold Winter; 500,000 mi²; China and Mongolia
6. Patagonian - Cold Winter; 260,000 mi²; Argentina
7. Great Victoria - Subtropical; 250,000 mi²; Australia
8. Kalahari - Subtropical; 220,000 mi²; South Africa, Botswana, Namibia
9. Great Basin - Cold Winter; 190,000 mi²; United States
10. Thar - Subtropical; 175,000 mi²; India, Pakistan
11. Chihuahuan - Subtropical; 175,000 mi²; Mexico
12. Great Sandy - Subtropical; 150,000 mi²; Australia
13. Kara-Kum - Cold Winter; 135,000 mi²; Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan
14. Colorado Plateau - Cold Winter; 130,000 mi²; United States
15. Gibson - Subtropical; 120,000 mi²; Australia
16. Sonoran - Subtropical; 120,000 mi²; United States, Mexico
17. Kyzyl-Kum - Cold Winter; 115,000 mi²; Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan
18. Taklamakan - Cold Winter; 105,000 mi²; China
19. Iranian - Cold Winter; 100,000 mi²; Iran
20. Simpson - Subtropical; 56,000 mi²; Australia
21. Mojave - Subtropical; 54,000 mi²; United States
22. Atacama - Cool Coastal; 54,000 mi²; Chile
23. Namib - Cool Coastal; 13,000 mi²; Angola, Namibia, South Africa
Recent Comments