A desert is a vast area of dry or barren land with extremely low precipitation. Deserts covers over 20% of the total land area on Earth and forms one of the major types of ecosystems. There are different types of deserts around the world like hot, cold, subtropical, etc. At least of one type of desert is present in each continent. In this article, we have prepared a list of all major deserts of the world.
Sahara is the world’s largest Non-Polar desert. It is located in northern Africa and covers 3.5 million sq. miles.
| Name | Type of Desert | Important Facts | Location | Area (mi²) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Antarctica | Cold | Polar desert in the southern hemisphere with little precipitation. Also the largest desert in the world. | Antarctica | 5,500,000 mi² |
| Arctic | Cold | Polar desert in the northern hemisphere | Alaska, Canada, Greenland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, Finland, Russia | 5,400,000 mi² |
| Sahara | Hot | Largest hot desert covered by mountains, rocky areas, gravel plains, salt flats, huge areas of dunes. | Northern Africa | 3,500,000 mi² |
| Arabian Desert | Hot | Occupies most of the Arabian peninsula and holds very little biodiversity. | Arabian Peninsula | 900,000 mi² |
| Deserts of Australia | Hot | Covers 18% of the Australian mainland. It includes- the Great Victoria Desert, Great Sandy Desert, Tanami Desert, Simpson Desert, Gibson Desert, Little Sandy Desert, Strzelecki Desert, Sturt Stony Desert, Tirari Desert, and Pedirka Desert. | Australia | 5,900,900 mi² |
| Gobi Desert | Cold | Rain-shadow desert formed by Tibetian Plateau which blocks the Indian Ocean triggered precipitation. Historical Silk Road passes through the desert. | China and Mongolia | 500,000 mi² |
| Patagonian Desert | Cold | Came into existence when the Andes rose to the west. Also known as Patagonian Steppe. | Argentina | 260,000 mi² |
| Kalahari Desert | Hot | It is a semi-arid sandy savannah. The term “Kalahari” is derived from Tswana words “Kgala or Kgalagadi” meaning “the great thirst/a waterless place”. | South Africa, Botswana, Namibia | 220,000 mi² |
| Syrian Desert | Hot summer & cold winter | Also known as Badia, the Syrian steppe, or the Jordanian steppe. It includes the region of desert, semi-desert, and steppe of the Middle East. It merges with the Arabian Desert to its south. | Syria, Iraq, Jordan, Saudi Arabia | 190,000 mi² |
| Great Basin | Hot summer & cold winter | Lies between the Sierra Nevada and the Wasatch Range. It is a temperate desert. | United States | 190,000 mi² |
| Chihuahuan Desert | Hot | The largest desert in North America. Designated as an ecoregion. | Mexico & United States. | 175,000 mi² |
| Karakum Desert | Cold | This Central Asian desert is also called ” Kara-Kum and Gara-Gum” meaning “black sand” in Turkic language. It occupies 70% of Turkmenistan. | Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan | 135,000 mi² |
| Colorado Plateau | Cold | Mostly high desert areas with scattered forest areas forming part of the Intermontane Plateaus of the Western United States. | United States | 130,000 mi² |
| Sonoran Desert | Hot | It is an arid-desert region that is home to endemic plants and animals like saguaro and organ pipe cactus. It is the hottest desert in Mexico. | United States, Mexico | 120,000 mi² |
| Kyzylkum Desert | Hot summer & cold winter | The term “Kyzylkum” stands for “red sand” in Turkic language. This Central Asian desert is located in the doab between the rivers Amu Darya and Syr Darya. | Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan | 115,000 mi² |
| Taklamakan Desert | Cold | It is located in Southwest Xinjiang (Northwest China). It is bounded by the Pamir Mountains and Tian Shan to the west and north, the Gobi Desert to the east, and the Kunlun Mountains to the south. | China | 105,000 mi² |
| Thar Desert | Hot | Also known as the Great Indian Desert, this desert is a natural boundary between India and Pakistan. | India, Pakistan | 75,000 mi² |
| Dasht-e Margo | Subtropical | Adjacent to the Dasht-e Khash and Registan Desert, Dasht-e Margo is located in the southern provinces of Helmand and Nimruz in Afghanistan. | Afghanistan | 58000 mi² |
| Registan Desert | Hot summer & cold winter | Sandy-arid plateau region located between the Helmand and Kandahar provinces of Afghanistan. | Afghanistan | 56400 mi² |
| Atacama Desert | Cold | Driest nonpolar desert on Earth located in Northern Chile. | Chile | 54,000 mi² |
| Mojave Desert | Hot | It is the driest-arid rain-shadow desert in North America. | United States | 54,000 mi² |
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"Major Deserts of the World: List and the Map." Dashamlav.com. Web. 25 April 2024. <https://dashamlav.com/major-deserts-world-list-map/>
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"Major Deserts of the World: List and the Map." (n.d.). Dashamlav.com. Retrieved 25 April 2024 from https://dashamlav.com/major-deserts-world-list-map/