Top 10 Largest Desert In The World

A desert is an area where it receives the least amount of rain than other parts of the world. There can be either a hot or cold desert and most of them are considered a wasteland with not much to offer.

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One-third of the earth's surface is estimated to be half dry or dried completely and deserts can be classified into numerous factors:

1. Amount of rain received

2. Factors resulting in the formation of desert

3. Usual temperature

4. Geographic location

Animals and plants that exist in the desert have special adaptation which helps them sustain and survive in harsh environments. For years, there have been people living in these deserts and traditionally these people are called nomads moving from one place to another depending on their access to water.

10. Great Basin (190,000 Sq. Miles)

The Great Basin desert is the biggest desert in the United States. It covers an area of 190,000 sq. miles(490,000 sq. km) and borders the Rocky Mountains in the east, the Sierra Nevada in the west, Sonoran and Mojave Deserts in the south, and Colombia Plateau in the north.

The Great Basin is a very cold desert that receives only 7-12 inches of rain each year. This climate is classified as very hot summer and snow in the cold winter.

9. Syrian (193,051 Sq. Miles)

The Syrian desert is unique in that it is the merge of an actual desert with a green grass field. It is located in the north Arabian Peninsula in Syria.

The Syrian desert covers roughly 193,051 sq. miles(500,000 sq. km) of land and this desert is rather flat but full of rocks all around. The landscape was formed from the flow of lava that comes from volcanic activity in Jebel Druze, Syria.

The Syrian desert comprises many countries including Syria, Jordan, Iraq, and Saudi Arabia.

8. Patagonian (259,847 Sq. miles)

The Patagonian desert is the biggest desert in the south American region of Argentina covering an area of 259,847 sq. miles(673,000 sq. km). Most of the desert is in Argentina but some parts also cover Chile.

Patagonia borders the Atlantic Ocean in the east and the Andes Mountains in the west. It is considered a slightly cold desert with the temperature rarely exceeding 12 degrees Celcius(53.6 degrees Fahrenheit). It is quite windy in this desert due to the wind from the mountains that goes down.

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7. Kalahari (347,492 Sq. Miles)

The Kalahari desert is a vast subtropical savanna that is located in southern Africa. It comprises around 347,492 sq. miles(900,000 sq. km) plots of land and includes countries like Namibia, Botswana, and South Africa.

This desert has a huge area enclosed by red sands and it receives merely four to eight inches of rain each year. Some of the habitats that lived here include the hyena, kudu, and wildebeest.

6. Gobi (500,002 Sq. Miles)

The Gobi desert is situated in the northwest of China as well as south of Mongolia. It covers an area of 500,002 sq. miles(1.295 million sq. km) of land.

The Gobi desert has also been nicknamed the Sea of Death as the storm whips up in frequency and without warning. Daytime is boiling while nighttime is freezing cold. Most of the surface of the Gobi desert is without any sand but is exposed to empty rocks.

5. Arabian (899,618 Sq. Miles)

The Arabian desert can be found in Western Asia covering a huge part of the Arabian Peninsula. It is one of the biggest deserts in the world with an area of 899,618 sq. miles(2.33 million sq. km) comprising most of Yemen, the Persian Gulf, Oman, Jordan, and Iraq.

Its center, Rub al-Khali or Quarter Empty forms the biggest desert in the world. The climate here is very dry with temperature spikes during certain times of the day. The average annual rain here is 100mm while the driest part only receives 30-40mm of rain annually.

4. Great Australian

The deserts of Australia or the Australian desert are the biggest in the country covering about 1,042,476 sq. miles(2.7 million sq. km) or around 18% of the Australian land. 

However, the Great Australian desert received slightly more rain around 250mm on average. It is also diverse consisting of semi-desert grassy lands and open tree savanna. It is home to the largest population of feral camels in the world.

3. Sahara

The Sahara desert is the biggest non-polar desert in the world and also the biggest hot desert out there. It covers an estimated 3,552,140 sq. miles(9.2 million sq. km) of land and contributes a huge part of the land in north Africa.

The Atlas Mountains are located in the Sahara desert and most of the desert comprises the hamada landscape which is characterized by vast, hard rocky plateaus with little soft sand. The middle part of the Sahara is the area where no such vegetation exists and the Nile river becomes the main river that crosses this desert.

2. Artic

The Artic desert is the second biggest desert in the world covering an area of 5,336,820 sq. miles(9.2 million sq. km) of land. This desert is part of a region being ruled by Canada, Denmark, Norway, Russia, Sweden, and the US.

As a polar-type desert, the temperature here can reach an all-time low of -40 degrees Celcius(-40 degrees Fahrenheit) or even lower. The Arctic is highly exposed to climate change and in these previous years, an alarm has been raised about the low level of ice in this desert.

The reduction of the Artic desert is crucial as it can give a huge impact on global sea levels.

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1. Antarctic

The Antarctic is the biggest desert in the world and is situated at the South pole. What's interesting is that the Antarctic is the driest and coldest continent in the world. The whole Antarctic is a desert and it receives less than 200mm of rain each year.

The temperature is mostly cold reaching as low as -89 degrees Celcius(-128 degrees Fahrenheit) in the winter. Despite the freezing temperature, there are still residents living here mainly researchers.

There are also experts that believed that certain parts of the Antarctic have not received any rain for the past 14 million years.

Source:

• history-hub

• Wikipedia

Also read: Top 7 Tallest Statues In The World