Hot deserts

Hot desert facts

• 1/3 the earth's surface is covered by desert

• 13% of the world's population live in deserts

• 136.4° f was recorded in the shade at Azizia in Libya

• the Atacama desert was without rain for 40 years

• temperatures can fall below freezing at night

• sand dunes can reach heights of up to 300m

• sand covers less than 20 % of the world's desert areas

• dust from the Sahara is sometimes blown into the UK

• the Sahara Desert covers 8% of the world's land area

• there are approximately 1,200 species of plant in the Sahara

• deserts occur in five of the world's seven continents

What are deserts?

Areas with an average rainfall of less than 100mm a year can be classed as deserts.

Rainfall in deserts tends to be very irregular, making them some of the most inhospitable environments on our planet.

Deserts often experience high winds which leads to the formation of sand dunes.

Desert plant life

How have plants in the hot deserts adapted to live in intense heat and with little water?

Desert wildlife

How have the animals adapted to living in the desert?

By the end of the lesson you will know:

• Where hot deserts are found • Why there are very hot during the

day and cold at night• Why they are dry

Your tasks:

• On your world map, shade the areas that have a hot desert climate.

• Use the diagrams to help explain why deserts are hot and dry.

• Use the data below to draw a climate graph for Cairo:

Month J F M A M J J A S O N D

Temp (°C) 13

15 18 21

26 28 28 28 26 24 20 15

Rainfall (mm)

5 5 5 3 3 3 0 0 3 3 2 5