DESERTS

Some deserts are very hot, with daytime temperatures as high as 54°C (130°F),
other deserts have cold winters or are cold year-round.

One thing all deserts have in common is that they are arid, or dry. Most experts agree that
a desert is an area of land that receives no more than 25 centimeters (10 inches)
of precipitation a year. The amount of evaporation in a desert often
greatly exceeds the annual rainfall. In all deserts, there is little water available for plants and
other organisms. Deserts are found on every continent and cover about one-fifth of Earth’s land
area. They are home to around 1 billion people—one-sixth of the Earth’s population.

Subtropical Deserts
Subtropical deserts are caused by the circulation patterns of air masses. They are found along
the Tropic of Cancer, between 15 and 30 degrees north of the Equator, or along the Tropic of
Capricorn, between 15 and 30 degrees south of the Equator. The world’s largest hot desert, the
Sahara, is a subtropical desert in northern Africa. The Sahara Desert is almost the size of the
entire continental United States. Other subtropical deserts include the Kalahari Desert in
southern Africa and the Tanami Desert in northern Australia.

Coastal Deserts
Cold ocean currents contribute to the formation of coastal deserts. Air blowing toward shore,
chilled by contact with cold water, produces a layer of fog. This heavy fog drifts onto land.
Although humidity is high, the atmospheric changes that normally cause rainfall are not present.
A coastal desert may be almost totally rainless, yet damp with fog.

The Atacama Desert, on the Pacific shores of Chile, is a coastal desert. Some areas of the
Atacama are often covered by fog. But the region can go decades without rainfall. In fact,
the Atacama Desert is the driest place on Earth. Some weather stations in the Atacama have
never recorded a drop of rain.

Rain Shadow Deserts

Rain shadow deserts exist near the leeward slopes of some mountain ranges. Leeward slopes
face away from prevailing winds.

When moisture-laden air hits a mountain range, it is forced to rise. The air then cools and
forms clouds that drop moisture on the windward (wind-facing) slopes. When the air moves over
the mountaintop and begins to descend the leeward slopes, there is little moisture left. The
descending air warms up, making it difficult for clouds to form.

Death Valley, in the U.S. states of California and Nevada, is a rain shadow desert. Death Valley,
the lowest and driest place in North America, is in the rain shadow of the Sierra Nevada
mountains.
Polar Deserts
Parts of the Arctic and the Antarctic are classified as deserts. These polar deserts contain great
quantities of water, but most of it is locked in glaciers and ice sheets year-round. So, despite the
presence of millions of liters of water, there is little available for plants and animals.

The largest desert in the world is also the coldest. Almost the entire continent of Antarctica is
a polar desert, experiencing little precipitation. Few organisms can withstand the freezing,
dry climate of Antarctica.

Characteristic
Humidity—water vapor in the air—is near zero in most deserts. Light rains often evaporate in
the dry air, never reaching the ground. Rainstorms sometimes come as violent cloudbursts.
A cloudburst may bring as much as 25 centimeters (10 inches) of rain in a single hour—the only
rain the desert gets all year.

Desert humidity is usually so low that not enough water vapor exists to form clouds. The sun’s
rays beat down through cloudless skies and bake the land. The ground heats the air so much
that air rises in waves you can see. These shimmering waves confuse the eye, causing
travellers to see distorted images called mirages.

Temperature extremes are a characteristic of most deserts. In some deserts, temperatures rise
so high that people are at risk of dehydration and even death. At night, these areas cool quickly
because they lack the insulation provided by humidity and clouds. Temperatures can drop to
4°C (40°F) or lower.

In the Chihuahuan Desert, in the United States and Mexico, temperatures can vary by dozens of
degrees in one day. Daytime temperatures in the Chihuahua can climb beyond 37°C (100°F),
while night-time temperatures can dip below freezing (0°C or 32°F).

Winds at speeds of about 100 kilometres per hour (60 miles per hour) sweep through
some deserts. With little vegetation to block it, the wind can carry sand and dust across
entire continents and even oceans. Windstorms in the Sahara hurl so much material into the air
that African dust sometimes crosses the Atlantic Ocean. Sunsets on the Atlantic coast of the
U.S. state of Florida, for example, can be tinted yellow.

First-time visitors to deserts are often amazed by the unusual landscapes, which may
include dunes, towering bare peaks, flat-topped rock formations, and smoothly
polished canyons. These features differ from those of wetter regions, which are often gently
rounded by regular rainfall and softened by lush vegetation.

Water helps carve desert lands. During a sudden storm, water scours the dry, hard-baked land,
gathering sand, rocks, and other loose material as it flows. As the muddy water roars downhill, it
cuts deep channels, called arroyos or wadis. A thunderstorm can send a fast-moving torrent of
water—a flash flood—down a dry arroyo. A flash flood like this can sweep away anything and
anyone in its path. Many desert regions discourage visitors from hiking or camping in arroyos for
this reason.
Even urban areas in deserts can be vulnerable to flash floods. The city of Jeddah, Saudi Arabia,
sits in the Arabian Desert. In 2011, Jeddah was struck by a sudden thunderstorm and flash
flood. Roads and buildings were washed away, and more than 100 people died.

Even in a desert, water and wind eventually wear away softer rock. Sometimes, rock is carved
into tablelike formations such as mesas and buttes. At the foot of these formations, water drops
its burden of gravel, sand, and other sediment, forming deposits called alluvial fans.

Many deserts have no drainage to a river, lake, or ocean. Rainwater, including water from flash
floods, collects in large depressions called basins. The shallow lakes that form
in basins eventually evaporate, leaving playas, or salt-surfaced lake beds. Playas, also called
sinks, pans, or salt flats, can be hundreds of kilometers wide.

The Black Rock Desert in the U.S. state of Nevada, for instance, is all that remains of the
prehistoric Lake Lahontan. The hard, flat surface of desert salt flats are often ideal for car
racing. In 1997, British pilot Andy Green set the land speed record in Black Rock Desert—1,228
kilometers per hour (763 miles per hour). Green’s vehicle, the ThrustSSC, was the first car to
break the sound barrier.

Wind is the primary sculptor of a desert’s hills of sand, called dunes. Wind builds dunes that rise
as high as 180 meters (590 feet). Dunes migrate constantly with the wind. They usually shift a
few meters a year, but a particularly violent sandstorm can move a dune 20 meters (65 feet) in a
single day.

Sandstorms may bury everything in their path—rocks, fields, and even towns. One legend holds
that the Persian Emperor Cambyses II sent an army of 50,000 men to the Siwa Oasis in
western Egypt around 530 BCE. Halfway there, an enormous sandstorm swallowed the entire
group. Archaeologists in the Sahara have been unsuccessfully looking for the “Lost Army of
Cambyses” ever since.

Rain is usually the main source of water in a desert, but it falls very rarely. Many desert dwellers
rely on groundwater, stored in aquifers below the surface. Groundwater comes from rain or
other precipitation, like snow or hail. It seeps into the ground, where it can remain for
thousands of years.

Underground water sometimes rises to the surface, forming springs or seeps. A fertile green
area called an oasis, or cienega, may exist near such a water source. About 90 major, inhabited
oases dot the Sahara. These oases are supported by some of the world’s largest supplies of
underground water. People, animals, and plants all surround these oases, which provide stable
access to water, food, and shelter.

When groundwater doesn’t seep to the surface, people often drill into the ground to get to it.
Many desert cities, from the American Southwest to the Middle East, rely heavily on
such aquifers to fill their water needs. Rural Israeli communities called kibbutzim rely
on aquifers to furnish water for crops and even fish farming in the dry Negev Desert.

Drilling into aquifers provides water for drinking, agriculture, industry, and hygiene. However, it
comes at a cost to the environment. Aquifers take a long time to refill. If desert communities
use groundwater faster than it is replenished, water shortages can occur. The Mojave Desert, in
southern California and Nevada, for instance, is sinking due to aquifer depletion. The
booming desert communities of Las Vegas, Nevada, and California’s “Inland Empire” are using
water faster than the aquifer is being refilled. The water level in the aquifer has sunk as much as
30 meters (100 feet) since the 1950s, while the land above the aquifer has sunk as much as 10
centimeters (4 inches).

Life in the Desert

Plants and animals adapt to desert habitats in many ways. Desert plants grow far apart,
allowing them to obtain as much water around them as possible. This spacing gives
some desert regions a desolate appearance.

In some deserts, plants have unique leaves to capture sunlight for photosynthesis, the process
plants use to make food. Small pores in the leaves, called stomata, take in carbon dioxide.
When they open, they also release water vapor. In the desert, all these stomata would quickly
dry out a plant. So desert plants typically have tiny, waxy leaves. Cactuses have no leaves at
all. They produce food in their green stems.

Some desert plants, such as cactuses, have shallow, wide-spreading root systems. The plants
soak up water quickly and store it in their cells. Saguaro cactuses, which live in the
Sonoran Desert of Arizona and northern Mexico, expand like accordions to store water in
the cells of their trunks and branches. A large saguaro is a living storage tower that can hold
hundreds of liters of water.

Other desert plants have very deep roots. The roots of a mesquite tree, for example, can reach
water more than 30 meters (100 feet) underground.

Mesquites, saguaros, and many other desert plants also have thorns to protect them
from grazing animals.

Many desert plants are annuals, which means they only live for one season. Their seeds may
lie dormant for years during long dry spells. When rain finally comes, the seeds sprout rapidly.
Plants grow, bloom, produce new seeds, and die, often in a short span of time. A soaking rain
can change a desert into a wonderland of flowers almost overnight.

Animals that have adapted to a desert environment are called xerocoles. Xerocoles include
species of insects, reptiles, birds, and mammals. Some xerocoles avoid the sun by resting
in scarce shade. Many escape the heat in cool burrows they dig in the ground. The fennec fox,
for example, is native to the Sahara Desert. Fennec fox communities work together to dig
large burrows, some as large as 93 square meters (1,000 square feet). Dew can collect in
these burrows, providing the foxes with fresh water. However, fennec foxes have adapted so
they do not have to drink water at all: Their kidneys retain enough water from the food they eat.

Most xerocoles are nocturnal. They sleep through the hot days and do their hunting and
foraging at night. Deserts that seem desolate during the day are very active in the cool nighttime
air. Foxes, coyotes, rats, and rabbits are all nocturnal desert mammals. Snakes and lizards are
familiar desert reptiles. Insects such as moths and flies are abundant in the desert.
Most desert birds are restricted to areas near water, such as river banks. However, some birds,
such as the roadrunner, have adapted to life in the desert. The roadrunner, native to
the deserts of North America, obtains water from its food.

Some xerocoles have bodies that help them handle the heat. A desert tortoise’s thick shell
insulates the animal and reduces water loss. Sand lizards, native to the deserts of Europe and
Asia, are nicknamed “dancing lizards” because of the way they quickly lift one leg at a time off
the hot desert sand. A jackrabbit’s long ears contain blood vessels that release heat.
Some desert vultures urinate on their own legs, cooling them by evaporation.

Many desert animals have developed ingenious ways of getting the water they need. The thorny
devil, a lizard that lives in the Australian Outback, has a system of tiny grooves and channels on
its body that lead to its mouth. The lizard catches rain and dew in these grooves and sucks
them into its mouth by gulping.

Camels are very efficient water users. The animals do not store water in their humps, as people
once believed. The humps store fat. Hydrogen molecules in the fat combine with
inhaled oxygen to form water. During a shortage of food or water, camels draw upon this fat
for nutrition and moisture. Dromedary camels, native to the Arabian and Sahara deserts, can
lose up to 30 percent of their body weight without harm. Camels, nicknamed “ships of
the desert,” are widely used for transportation, meat, and milk in the Maghreb (a region in
Northwest Africa), the Middle East, and the Indian Subcontinent.

Dwelling in desert
Desert dwellers have also adapted their shelters for the unique climate.
The ancient Anasazi peoples of the southwestern United States and northern Mexico
constructed huge apartment complexes in the rocky cliffs of the Sonoran Desert.
These cliff dwellings, sometimes dozens of meters off the ground, were constructed with thick,
earthen walls that provided insulation. Although temperatures outside varied greatly from day to
night, temperatures inside did not. Tiny, high windows let in only a little light and helped keep
out dust and sand.

The need to find food and water has led many desert civilizations to
become nomadic. Nomadic cultures are those that do not have permanent settlements. In
the deserts of the Middle East and Asia, nomadic tent communities continue to flourish. Tent
walls are made of thick, sturdy cloth that can keep out sand and dust, but also allow cool
breezes to blow through. Tents can be rolled up and transported on pack animals (usually
horses, donkeys, or camels). Nomads move frequently so their flocks of sheep and goats will
have water and grazing land.

Hot and Cold Deserts

The largest hot desert in the world is the Sahara, which is 9 million square kilometers
(3.5 million square miles). It isn't the hottest place on Earth, though. That distinction
belongs to Death Valley, in California's Mojave Desert. The highest temperature on
Earth was recorded there: 56.7 C (134.1 F).

The largest polar desert is Antarctica, at 13 million square kilometers (5 million square
miles). Antarctica boasts the lowest official temperature recorded on Earth: -89.2 C (-
128.6 F), recorded on July 21, 1983.

DESERT DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME (DDP)

The basic object of the programme is to minimise the adverse effect of drought and
control desertification through rejuvenation of natural resource base of the identified
desert areas. The programme strives to achieve ecological balance in the long run. The
programme also aims at promoting overall economic development and improving the
socio-economic conditions of the resource poor and disadvantaged sections inhabiting
the programme areas.

The following are desert areas in India:

 Hot Desert areas of Rajasthan, Gujarat, and Haryana
 Cold desert areas of Ladakh and Himachal Pradesh.

2.1 Energy efficiency

Energy Efficiency can be achieved by using materials and systems that meet the
following criteria:
• Materials, components, and systems that help reduce energy consumption in
buildings and
facilities.
• Planning and designing of a building system utilizing maximum daylight.
• Orientation and placement of building/house, keeping in view the sun cycle to
maximize natural
heating and cooling efficiency.
• Conservation of energy through proper insulation.
• Increased insulation for exterior walls and roofs

Locally available insulation materials and shades for reducing heat so as to minimize
energy
required for air conditioning. The examples of locally available insulation materials are:
– Clay Tiles placed with lime mortar on concrete roofs as roof insulation (this reduces
the
amount of energy consumption for air conditioning) (Figure 2).
– A layer of mud-straw on top of which a thin layer of cement mortar or cement
concrete tiles
as roof insulation. (This helps in reducing heat which in turn minimize energy
requirement
for air conditioning) Figure-3 (The Author had utilized both these techniques).
Desert areas
India is a party to the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) and MoEF
is the National Coordinating Agency for the implementation of the UNCCD in the
country, under the ‘National Action Programme to Combat Desertification’ with
objectives:
􀂃 Community based approach to development,
􀂃 Activities to improve the quality of life of the local communities,
􀂃 Awareness raising,
􀂃 Drought management preparedness and mitigation,
􀂃 R&D initiatives and interventions which are locally suited,
􀂃 Strengthening self‐governance leading to empowerment of local communities.
Desert ecosystem sensitive planning is crucial at Regional planning stage including
mapping of land degradation, drought monitoring and indicating components for the
State and District Disaster Management Plan for drought preparedness and warning
system groups.
At Development Plan and local area planning level the key actions suggested in NEP,
2006 as given below to be considered:
􀂃 Intensive water and moisture conservation through practices based on traditional and
science‐based knowledge, and relying on traditional infrastructure.
􀂃 Enhancing and expanding green cover based on local species.
􀂃 Reviewing the agronomic practices in these areas, and promoting agricultural practices
and varieties, which are well adapted to the desert eco‐system.