What is Desert? How Do Deserts Form?

Deserts are the areas that receive less than 10 inches of precipitation per year. Most deserts are found on the Western side of the continents. Gobi, Arabian and Sahara deserts are very famous. It is very common to think about sand and dunes when you think about a desert but deserts can actually ocur in cold areas. Atama Desert is a good example pf Frigid (cold) deserts in the World.

What are the Major Deserts?

Major deserts are as the following:

Antarctic Desert,
Arctic Desert,
Sahara Desert,
Arabian Desert,
Gobi Desert,
Patagonian Desert,
Great Victoria Desert,
Kalahari Desert.

Desert in general take up about one third of the Earth’s surface. Antarctica is the world’s largest desert. Deserts are dry. Because under conditions it is rare for clouds and rain to form.

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Flora of Deserts

Many desert plants have reduced the size of their leaves. Cacti are well known plant. The leaves have been dispensed. When rain falls the water is rapidly absorbed by the roots. Cacti are both present in North and South America. They have post Gondwana origin. Other xerophytic plants also deleveloped similar strategies. This strategies called convergent evolution.