Have you ever wondered what the climate is like in the desert? These places experience some of the highest and lowest temperatures on Earth. The temperatures are so extreme that very few living things can survive there. Furthermore, rainfall in the desert is extremely scarce ; it can take years for a single drop to fall. No human could survive for long in these environments without proper protection. Let's learn more about these fascinating places.
Types of desert
When we talk about "desert" we immediately think of the Sahara Desert or the Sonoran Desert, but in reality there are several types.
Hot desert
Within the group of hot desert types we find:
- Middle latitudes: These are located between the parallels 30° N and 50° N, and between 30° S and 30° S. They are found in subtropical high-pressure zones, far from the oceans. Temperatures vary considerably throughout the year. Examples of this type would be Sonora in North America, or Tengger in China, where desert climate conditions are quite evident.
- Coastal: They are located near the edges of the continents between the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn. They are characterized by being very unstable, as they are highly influenced by ocean currents. An example is the Atacama Desert in Chile, which is the driest place on Earth, with a minimum rainfall of 1 mm every 5 years due to the Humboldt Current.
- Monsoon: Monsoons develop due to temperature variations between the seas and the land surface. The southern trade winds of the Indian Ocean bring rain to India, but as they cross from southeast to northwest, they lose moisture, and by the time they reach the easternmost side of the Aravalii mountain range, they have none left. Examples of this type of desert are Rajasthan and Cholistan in India.
- Due to barriers to humid air: large mountainous barriers prevent the arrival of rain clouds, so that when the air rises, the rain falls and the air loses moisture, forming a warm desert in windward areas (that is, places where the wind blows). As examples we have the Cuyo desert in Argentina, or the Judea desert in Israel.
- Tropical: Tropical deserts are those located near the equator. They have formed thanks to the warming of the air in these regions. Trade winds cause any rain clouds that might arrive quickly to retreat, causing the ground temperature to rise rapidly. A clear example is the Sahara Desert, whose temperature can reach up to 57°C. If you want to learn more about the climate of the Sahara, you can read this article. article on arid climate.
Cold deserts
If we know that a desert is a place where there are practically no living beings, then inevitably we also have to mention the coldest parts of the planet. Thus we have:
- Cold desert area: as are the desert of Tibet, the Puna, or the Gobi.
- Polar zone: The poles cover almost 90 million km² of the globe. There are no sand dunes here, but snow dunes, which form at points where precipitation is most abundant. Between 2 and 100 mm of precipitation can be recorded annually. Temperatures always remain below 200°C. You can also learn more about the climate in the polar deserts in this article. link about the world's climates.
Who lives in deserts?
Very few dare to establish permanent residence in these places . However, we might find some if we ever decide to visit these landscapes.
Fauna and flora of cold deserts
The cold deserts are home to polar bears , penguins , musk oxen , wolves , snowy owls , whales , seals , walruses , dolphins , and even the occasional great white shark.
As for the flora, it's practically nonexistent. There are no trees, only very low-growing plants like grasses , lichens , algae , and mosses . If you'd like to learn more about how plants survive in the desert, I recommend this article on plants in arid climates.
Fauna and flora of hot deserts
Hot deserts have a greater variety of fauna, and especially flora. Animals that live here include: snakes , lizards , beetles , ants , mice , foxes , camels , dromedaries , vultures , birds …
Despite the high temperatures recorded, there is an interesting variety of plants: all kinds of cacti (among which the Carnegiea gigantea , better known as Saguaro, stands out) and some succulents (Lithops, Fenestraria, Argyroderma), resistant trees such as the Acacia tortilis or the Balanites aegyptiaca , palm trees such as the Phoenix dactylifera (date palm) or the Nannorhops ritchiana.
What is desertification?
Since we're talking about deserts, what better topic than desertification? This is a very serious current problem , because due to global warming and poor land management, many areas will sooner or later resemble deserts.
Desertification is a process by which soil gradually transforms from productive and fertile to barren. Little by little, it loses the plants that once helped prevent erosion from the wind with their roots. If you'd like to learn more about how global warming affects deserts, you can consult this article on threatened deserts.
While many factors contribute to desertification, human activity is a major one , due to the mismanagement of available resources. The desert is a magnificent place, as long as those resources are natural and not man-made, don't you think?
