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List of deserts by area

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This is a list of deserts in the world by area. It includes all deserts with an area greater than 50,000 square kilometres (19,300 sq mi).

Some of the Earth's biggest deserts
Rank Name Type Image Area
(km²)
Area
(sq mi)
Location
1 Antarctica Cold Winter 14,000,000 14,000,000 05,400,000 5,400,000 Antarctica
2 Sahara Subtropical 09,100,000 9,400,000+ 03,320,000 3,320,000+ North Africa (Algeria, Chad, Egypt, Eritrea, Libya, Mali, Mauritania, Morocco, Niger, Sudan, Tunisia and Western Sahara)
3 Arabian Desert Subtropical 02,331,000 2,330,000[1] 00,900,000 900,000 Western Asia (Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates and Yemen)
4 Gobi Desert Cold Winter 01,300,000 1,300,000 00,500,000 500,000 East Asia (China and Mongolia)
5 Kalahari Desert Subtropical 00,900,000 900,000[2] 00,360,000 360,000 Southern Africa (Angola, Botswana, Namibia and South Africa)
6 Patagonian Desert Cold Winter 00,673,000 670,000 00,260,000 260,000 South America (Argentina and Chile)
7 Great Victoria Desert Subtropical 00,647,000 647,000[3] 00,250,000 250,000 Australia
8 Syrian Desert Subtropical 00,520,000 520,000[3] 00,200,000 200,000 Western Asia (Iraq, Jordan and Syria)
9 Great Basin Desert Cold Winter 00,492,000 492,000[3] 00,190,000 190,000 United States
10 Chihuahuan Desert Subtropical 00,450,000 450,000[3] 00,175,000 175,000 North America (Mexico and United States)
11 Great Sandy Desert Subtropical 00,400,000 400,000[3] 00,150,000 150,000 Australia
12 Karakum Desert Cold Winter 00,350,000 350,000[3] 00,135,000 135,000 Turkmenistan
13 Colorado Plateau Cold Winter 00,337,000 337,000[3] 00,130,000 130,000 United States
14 Sonoran Desert Subtropical 00,310,000 310,000[3] 00,120,000 120,000 North America (Mexico and United States)
15 Kyzyl Kum Cold Winter 00,300,000 300,000[3] 00,115,000 115,000 Central Asia (Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan)
16 Taklamakan Desert Cold Winter 00,270,000 270,000 00,105,000 105,000 China
17 Thar Desert Subtropical 00,200,000 200,000[4] 00,077,000 77,000 South Asia (India and Pakistan)
18 Gibson Desert Subtropical 00,155,000 156,000[5] 00,060,000 60,000 Australia
19 Simpson Desert Subtropical 00,145,000 145,000[3] 00,056,000 56,000 Australia
20 Atacama Desert Cool Coastal 00,140,000 140,000[3] 00,054,000 54,000 South America (Chile and Peru)
21 Mojave Desert Subtropical 00,124,000 124,000[6][7] 00,048,000 48,000 United States
22 Namib Desert Cool Coastal 00,081,000 81,000[3] 00,031,000 31,000 Southern Africa (Angola and Namibia)
23 Dasht-e Kavir Subtropical 00,077,000 77,000[8] 00,030,000 30,000 Iran
24 Dasht-e Lut Subtropical 00,052,000 52,000[8] 00,020,000 20,000 Iran

See also

References

  1. ^ "Arabian Desert". Retrieved 2007-12-28.
  2. ^ Bass, Karen (2009-02-01). "Nature's Great Events:The Okavango Delta, Kalahari Desert" (PDF). press.uchicago.edu. University of Chicago Press. Retrieved 2012-04-26.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l "Largest Desert in the World". Retrieved 2011-12-27.
  4. ^ Thar Desert - Britannica Online Encyclopedia
  5. ^ "Interesting facts about Western Australia". landgate.wa.gov.au. Western Australian Land Information Authority. Retrieved 2012-04-26.
  6. ^ "Mapping Perennial Vegetation Cover in the Mojave Desert" (PDF). pubs.usgs.gov. USGS Western Geographic Science Center. 2011-06-01. Retrieved 2012-04-08.
  7. ^ "Recoverability and Vulnerability of Desert Ecosystems". http://mojave.usgs.gov/. USGS. 2006-03-03. Retrieved 2012-04-14. {{cite web}}: External link in |work= (help)
  8. ^ a b Wright, John W. (ed.) (2006). The New York Times Almanac (2007 ed.). New York, New York: Penguin Books. p. 456. ISBN 0-14-303820-6. {{cite book}}: |first= has generic name (help); Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help) Cite error: The named reference "nyt" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).