Desert climate: Difference between revisions

 

At the time of high sun (summer), scorching, desiccating heat prevails. Hot-month average temperatures are normally between {{cvt|29|and|35|C}}, and midday readings of {{convert|43–46|C|F}} are common. The world absolute heat records, over {{convert|50|C|F}}, are generally in the hot deserts, where the heat potential can be the highest on the planet. This includes the record of {{convert|56.7|C|F}} in [[Death Valley]], which is currently considered the [[highest temperature recorded on Earth]].<ref>{{Cite web |last1=Valley |first1=Mailing Address: P. O. Box 579 Death |last2=Us |first2=CA 92328 Phone: 760 786-3200 Contact |title=Weather - Death Valley National Park (U.S. National Park Service) |url=https://www.nps.gov/deva/learn/nature/weather-and-climate.htm |access-date=2022-04-23 |website=www.nps.gov |language=en}}</ref> Some deserts in the [[tropics]] consistently experience very high temperatures all year long, even during wintertime. These locations feature some of the highest annual average temperatures recorded on Earth, exceeding {{convert|30|C|F}}, up to nearly {{convert|35|C|F}} in [[Dallol, Ethiopia]]. This last feature is seen in sections of Africa and [[Arabia]]. During colder periods of the year, night-time temperatures can drop to freezing or below due to the exceptional radiation loss under the clear skies. However, very rarely do temperatures drop far below freezing under the hot subtype.

Hot desert climates can be found in the deserts of [[North Africa]] such as the wide [[Sahara Desert]], the [[Libyan Desert]] or the [[Nubian Desert]]; deserts of the [[Horn of Africa]] such as the [[Danakil Desert]] or the [[Grand Bara|Grand Bara Desert]]; deserts of [[Southern Africa]] such as the [[Namib Desert]] or the [[Kalahari Desert]]; deserts of [[West Asia]] such as the [[Arabian Desert]], or the [[Syrian Desert]]; deserts of [[South Asia]] such as [[Dasht-e Lut]] and [[Dasht-e Kavir]] of Iran or the [[Thar Desert]] of India and Pakistan; deserts of the United States and Mexico such as the [[Mojave Desert]], the [[Sonoran Desert]] or the [[Chihuahuan Desert]]; deserts of Australia such as the [[Simpson Desert]] or the [[Great Victoria Desert]] and many other regions. In [[Europe]], the hot desert climate can only be found on southeastern coast of [[Spain]] as well as small inland parts of southeastern, especially parts of the [[Tabernas Desert]].<ref>{{cite web|title=ATLAS CLIMÁTICO IBÉRICO|url=http://www.aemet.es/documentos/es/conocermas/recursos_en_linea/publicaciones_y_estudios/publicaciones/Atlas-climatologico/Atlas.pdf|website=administracion.gob.es/|publisher=Instituto de Meteorologia de Portugal|access-date=May 8, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Evolucion de los climas de Koppen en España: 1951-2020 |url=https://www.aemet.es/documentos/es/conocermas/recursos_en_linea/publicaciones_y_estudios/publicaciones/NT_37_AEMET/NT_37_AEMET.pdf |access-date=2024-01-08 |website=[[Agencia Estatal de Meteorologia]]}}</ref>

 

|units = metric

|source = <ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.imd.gov.in/section/climate/extreme/leh2.htm |title=Leh |access-date=2017-08-16 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180225132218/http://www.imd.gov.in/section/climate/extreme/leh2.htm |archive-date=2018-02-25 |url-status=dead }}</ref>}}

Cold desert climates (''BWk'') usually feature hot (or warm in a few instances), dry summers, though summers are not typically as hot as hot desert climates. Unlike hot desert climates, cold desert climates tend to feature cold, dry winters. Snow tends to be rare in regions with this climate. The [[Gobi Desert]] in northern China and Mongolia is one example of cold desert. Though hot in the summer, it shares the very cold winters of the rest of [[Inner Asia]]. Summers in South America's [[Atacama Desert]] are mild with only slight temperature variations between seasons. Cold desert climates are typically found at higher altitudes than hot desert climates and are usually drier than hot desert climates.