|
Most people think of the desert as dry, hot, sandy land with no rain-fall, but the desert is much more. It can have flowers, birds, animals, different shaped rocks, cacti, salty lakes and high mountains. All of the inhabitants have learned to adapt to the climate. Deserts are found on every continent and cover one-seventh of the land on earth. During the day the temperature can get as high as 131 degrees in the shade and at night it can drop to almost 32 degrees.
There are twelve desert groups in the world. The largest is the Sahara (3.5 million square miles) in Africa and the smallest is the Namib (13,000 square miles) in South Africa. There are two types of deserts, hot and cold. Hot deserts get their precipitation as rain and the cold as the opposite snow. They are also classified by their dryness (aridity) - semi-arid (wettest), arid (dry) and hyper-arid (driest). Deserts are located along subtropical belts. One belt is close to 30 degrees latitude north on the Tropic of Cancer and the other belt is around 30 degrees south on the Tropic of Capricorn. These areas are called the sub-tropics because they have the perfect climate for the desert.
MAJOR DESERTS OF THE WORLD
- 1. Sahara- located in Africa and gets its name from the Arab word Sahra’ meaning desert. The Sahara is only made up of thirty percent sand and the rest is gravel, and is a hot desert.
- 2. Arabian- located in Saudi Arabia and other smaller countries. It covers one million square miles and is called Rub al -Khali (Empty Quarter). The area contains gravel plains and rocky highlands.
- 3. Kalahari- located in South Africa and is 220,000 square miles. The area has large dunes.
- 4. Namib- is a cool coastal desert and is located in South Africa and contains gravel plains. It is 13,000 square miles and is a cold and hot desert.
- 5. Iranian- is 100,000 square miles and contains salt gravel and rocks. It is located in Iran.
- 6. Thar- is located in India and Pakistan. It is 175,000 square miles and has a lot of sand dunes.
- 7. Turkestan- is located in the Middle East and is considered a cold desert.
- 8. Taklamakan-Gobi- these two deserts are located in China and have a combined area of 605,000 square feet.
- 9. Australian- is known as the Outback and is divided into four different areas. The Gibson, Great Sandy, Great Victoria, and Simpson and Sturt-Stony. These deserts are know for their landscapes and contain gravel and grasses
- 10. Atacama- is considered the driest desert and is located in Chile in South America. It is 54,000 square miles and has salt basins and lava.
- 11. Patagonian- located in Argentina and is made up of grass plains and is 260,000 square miles.
- 12. North American Desert- this is divided into four different deserts: The Great Basin, Mojave, Sonora and Chihuahuana. Some of the areas extend into Mexico, and covers 493,000 square miles.
|
