| Desert | Location | Size | Topography |
|---|---|---|---|
| SUBTROPICAL DESERTS | |||
| Sahara | Morocco, Western Sahara, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, Egypt, Mauritania, Mali, Niger, Chad, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Somalia | 3.5 million sq. mi. | 70% gravel plains, sand, and dunes. Contrary to popular belief, the desert is only 30% sand. The world's largest nonpolar desert gets its name from the Arabic word Sahra', meaning desert |
| Arabian | Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, United Arab Emirates, Oman, Yemen | 1 million sq. mi. | Gravel plains, rocky highlands; one-fourth is the Rub al-Khali (“Empty Quarter”), the world's largest expanse of unbroken sand |
| Kalahari | Botswana, South Africa, Namibia | 220,000 sq. mi. | Sand sheets, longitudinal dunes |
| Australian Desert | |||
| Gibson | Australia (southern portion of the Western Desert) | 120,000 sq. mi. | Sandhills, gravel, grass. These three regions of desert are collectively referred to as the Great Western Desert—otherwise known as “the Outback.” Contains Ayers Rock, or Uluru, one of the world's largest monoliths |
| Great Sandy | Australia (northern portion of the Western Desert) | 150,000 sq. mi. | |
| Great Victoria | Australia (southernmost portion of the Western Desert) | 250,000 sq. mi. | |
| Simpson and Sturt Stony | Australia (eastern half of the continent) | 56,000 sq. mi. | Simpson's straight, parallel sand dunes are the longest in the world—up to 125 mi. Encompasses the Stewart Stony Desert, named for the Australian explorer |
| Mojave | U.S.: Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, Utah, California | 54,000 sq. mi. | Mountain chains, dry alkaline lake beds, calcium carbonate dunes |
| Sonoran | U.S.: Arizona, California; Mexico | 120,000 sq. mi. | Basins and plains bordered by mountain ridges; home to the Saguaro cactus |
| Chihuahuan | Mexico; southwestern U.S. | 175,000 sq. mi. | Shrub desert; largest in North America |
| Thar | India, Pakistan | 175,000 sq. mi. | Rocky sand and sand dunes |
| COOL COASTAL DESERTS | |||
| Namib | Angola, Namibia, South Africa | 13,000 sq. mi. | Gravel plains |
| Atacama | Chile | 54,000 sq. mi. | Salt basins, sand, lava; world's driest desert |
| COLD WINTER DESERTS | |||
| Great Basin | U.S.: Nevada, Oregon, Utah | 190,000 sq. mi. | Mountain ridges, valleys, 1% sand dunes |
| Colorado Plateau | U.S.: Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, Utah, Wyoming | 130,000 sq. mi. | Sedimentary rock, mesas, and plateaus—includes the Grand Canyon and is also called the “Painted Desert” because of the spectacular colors in its rocks and canyons |
| Patagonian | Argentina | 260,000 sq. mi. | Gravel plains, plateaus, basalt sheets |
| Kara-Kum | Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan | 135,000 sq. mi. | 90% gray layered sand—name means “black sand” |
| Kyzyl-Kum | Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan | 115,000 sq. mi. | Sands, rock—name means “red sand” |
| Iranian | Iran | 100,000 sq. mi. | Salt, gravel, rock |
| Taklamakan | China | 105,000 sq. mi. | Sand, dunes, gravel |
| Gobi | China, Mongolia | 500,000 sq. mi. | Stony, sandy soil, steppes (dry grasslands) |
| POLAR | |||
| Arctic | U.S., Canada, Greenland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, Finland, Russia | 5.4 million sq. mi. | Snow, glaciers, tundra |
| Antarctic | Antarctica | 5.5 million sq. mi. | Ice, snow, bedrock |
ශිල්ප 64