Deserts always give off a very mysterious vibe. The never ending sand landscapes and the gentle breeze will submerge you in a beautiful and unique feeling. So, many people love taking themselves to the deserts very often. Here, we will look at some of the biggest desert in the world which can fascinate desert lovers from all across the globe.
Some people enjoy reading about the different deserts of the world. Others love visiting these places for gathering a lot of beautiful experiences. No matter which category you belong to, these details about the different deserts will surely blow your mind. So, without wasting further time, let us know more about the biggest deserts of our world.
The biggest desert in the world List
When it comes to the biggest desert of the globe, we definitely have a particular name in our mind. This is the Antarctic Desert. However, there are many other deserts out there that have a very decent total surface area. So, it is unfair to talk about only the Antarctic Desert. Instead, we will look at some of the important deserts of the world that are considered to have a very large size. So, the list of some of the largest deserts of our world is given below:
1. Antarctic Desert
2. Arctic Desert
3. Sahara Desert
4. Australian Desert
5. The Arabian Desert
Now, we will learn about each of these big deserts one after the other.
Antarctic Desert, the coldest & biggest desert in the world
Let us start our discussion with the Antarctic Desert that is regarded to be the biggest desert in the whole world. The total surface area of this renowned desert is around 14,000,000 square km and it is situated in the Antarctica region. In fact, this desert is so enormous that it covers almost all portions of Antarctica land.
An eminent feature of this Antarctica desert is that it is located in the South Pole region of our Earth. As a result, the climatic conditions of this desert are very harsh for all life forms. It is not only the largest desert area in the whole world. It is also the windiest, driest, and coldest desert on the planet. This place also possesses the highest average elevation when compared to the other regions of our continent.
When speaking of annual precipitation, this area receives a precipitation of around 20 mm only. This precipitation takes place only along the coastal regions of Antarctica. An interesting fact about this place is that it ‘s extremely cold for rainfall to happen. Instead, the rain drops get converted into little snowflakes and cover the total area. They can be seen lying over the large ice sheets of Antarctica.
Arctic Desert
The second position on our list of largest desert in the world is held by the popular Arctic Desert with a total surface area of 13,985,000 square km. You will get to see the second largest desert of our planet in the Arctic Ocean islands, towards the northern portion of Russia and Norway.
This desert is located towards the Earth’s North Pole and it runs across an area of the Arctic Ocean 2,000 kms from east to west direction. It also stretches across an area of 1,000 km from north direction to the south. This desert covers different island groups present in the northern coast of Norway and Russia.
When it comes to the climatic conditions and environmental aspects, you will be able to find a lot of common elements between the Antarctic Desert and the Arctic Desert. But, the Arctic Desert possesses a somewhat higher precipitation rate when compared with the Antarctica Desert. The Arctic Desert has the capacity to receive around 50cm precipitation on an yearly basis.
Sahara Desert
The third one on our list is the very famous Sahara Desert. The total surface area of this desert is calculated to be around 9,200,000 square km and you will see this desert in the area of North Africa. This desert has a unique fame throughout the whole world and is often referred to as the Greatest Desert of the globe.
Though it is the third one on the list of the biggest desert in the world, it is considered to be the largest hot desert on our globe. This desert is located in the northern portion of Africa and it covers areas of Egypt, Mali, Mauritania, Chad, Libya, Morocco, Algeria, Niger, Tunisia, Western Sahara, and Sudan. This large desert is said to cover around 25% area of the African landmass.
Australian Desert
This desert located in the Australia region has a total surface area of around 2,700,000 square km. This desert essentially covers different popular deserts of Australia and includes the Great Victoria Desert too. Almost 18% area of the Australian mainland is occupied by the famous Australian Desert.
Australia is often categorized as a very dry place that receives extremely low rainfall levels. In fact, about 35% area of this continent is very close to being classed as a desert because of the little rain that it gets.
The Arabian Desert
We often hear a lot about the famous Arabian Desert in different folktales. It is actually the 5th one on our list of the biggest desert in the world. When speaking about the deserts of Eurasia, this one is inevitably the largest and is located in the Arabian Peninsula. The region, Saudi Arabia is placed in the center portion of the Arabian Desert and is very well known all over the globe.
Conclusion
So, we have learned all about the biggest desert in the world. After the Arabian Desert, we have the Gobi Desert with a total surface area of 1,295,000 sq km. Then, comes the Kalahari Desert and it’s total surface area is around 900,000 sq km. Apart from size variations, environmental features, and climatic conditions, there are many other differences between these deserts. Each one presents plenty of variations in the flora and fauna. Along with that, some deserts have a distinct culture that conveys a very unique tale to the explorers.
