Deserts are found in the arid and semi-arid parts o the Earth’s surface. They are mainly found on the sub-tropical high pressure belt region where the subsidence of air and the inversion of temperature take place.
Formation of Desert:
- Formed due to rain shadow effect.
- Formed when ocean air from the land is obstructing by mountain ranges from east and from the west.
- Cold currents play a decisive role because they reduce the humidity of the coastal winds that resultant less precipitation or no precipitation.
Types of Desert:
(a) Rocky Desert
(b) Stony Desert
(c) Sandy Desert
List of Deserts in India:
- The Cold Mountain Desert of the Trans-Himalayas
- The White Salt Desert of Kutch
- The Sandy Desert of Thar.
List of Deserts in World:
Africa:
| Name of the Desert | Location |
| Kalahari Desert | Namibia and South Africa |
| Karoo Desert | South Africa |
| Namib Desert | Namibia |
| Danakil Desert | Northeastern Ethiopia, southern Eritrea, southern Djibouti and northwesternmost Somalia |
| Eritrean Coastal Desert | Southern part of the coast of Eritrea and the coast of Djibouti |
| Guban Desert | Coast of northwestern Somalia |
| Grand Bara Desert | South Djibouti |
| Chalbi Desert | Northern Kenya along the border with Ethiopia |
| Nyiri Desert | Southern Kenya along the border with Tanzania |
| Lompoul Desert | Northwestern Senegal between Dakar and Saint-Louis |
| Sahara Desert | Africa |
| Tenere | Northeastern Niger and Western Chad |
| Tanezrouft | Northern Mali, Northwestern Niger as well as central and southern Algeria, at the west of the Hoggar Mountains |
| El Djouf | Northeastern Mauritania and parts of Northwestern Mali |
| Djurab Desert | Northern central Chad |
| Tin-Toumma Desert | Southeastern Niger, at the south of the Tenere |
| Libyan Desert | Eastern Libya, western Egypt and northwestern Sudan at the west of the Nile River |
| White Desert | Western Egypt and located in Farafra, Egypt |
| Eastern Desert | Eastern Egypt and northeastern Sudan between the Nile River and the Red Sea |
| Nubian Desert | Northeastern Sudan between the Nile River and the Red Sea |
| Bayuda Desert | Eastern Sudan |
| Sinai Desert | Sinai Peninsula in Egypt |
| Atlantic Coastal Desert | Western coast of the Sahara Desert |
Asia:
| Name of the Desert | Location |
| Arabian Desert | Arabian Peninsula |
| Al Khatim Desert | Abu Dhabi |
| Al-Dahna Desert | Arabian Desert and covering parts of Saudi Arabia |
| Empty Quarter (Rub’ al Khali) | Saudi Arabia, Oman, the United Arab Emirates and Yemen |
| Nefud Desert | Northern part of the Arabian Peninsula |
| Ramlat al-Sabatayn | North-central Yemen |
| Wahiba Sands | Oman |
| Judaean Desert | Eastern Israel and the West Bank |
| Negev | Southern Israel |
| Bromo Sand Sea | Bromo Tengger Semeru National Park, East Java, Indonesia |
| Dasht-e Kavir | Central Iran |
| Dasht-e Lut | Southeastern Iran |
| Polond Desert | Eastern Iran |
| Maranjab Desert | Central Iran |
| Katpana Desert | Pakistan |
| Indus Valley Desert | Pakistan |
| Kharan Desert | Pakistan |
| Syrian Desert | Syria, Jordan and Iraq |
| Thal Desert | Pakistan |
| Thar Desert | India and Pakistan |
| Dasht-e-Margo | Southwestern Afghanistan |
| Kyzyl Kum | Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan |
| Kara Kum | Central Asian desert |
| Lop Desert | China |
| Ordos | Northern China |
| Gobi | Mongolia and China |
| Taklamakan | China |
| Gurbantunggut Desert | Northwestern China |
| Kumtag Desert | Northwestern China |
| Karapinar Desert | Southern Central Anatolia |
Europe:
| Name of the Desert | Location |
| Accona Desert | Central Italy |
| Bardenas Reales | Navarre, Spain |
| Bledowska Desert | Lesser Poland Voivodeship, Poland |
| Deliblatska Pescara | Vojvodina, Serbia |
| Larzac | Massif Central in France |
| Melnik Desert Canyon | Southwestern tip of Bulgaria |
| Monegros Desert | Aragon, Spain |
| Oleshky Sands | Ukraine near Askania |
| Oltenian Sahara | Romanian historical province of Oltenia |
| Sand dunes of Lemnos | Lemnos Island in Greece |
| Sands of Durdevac | Durdevac, Croatia |
| The Stone Desert | Western Varna Province border of North East Bulgaria |
| Ryn Desert | Western Kazakhstan and southeastern Russia |
| Tabernas Desert | Almeria, Spain |
North America:
| Name of the Desert | Location |
| Chihuahua Desert | Mexico and the United States |
| Great Basin Desert | Black Rock Desert; Death Valley |
| Mojave Desert | United States |
| Red Desert | Wyoming |
| Sonoran Desert | United States and Mexico |
| Colorado Desert | United States |
| Thompson Plateau | Canada |
South America:
| Name of the Desert | Location |
| Atacama Desert | Chile and Peru |
| La Guajira Desert | Northern Colombia and Venezuela |
| Monte Desert | Argentina |
| Patagonian Desert | Argentina and Chile |
| Sechura Desert | South of the Piura Region of Peru |
| Jalapao | Tocantins, Brazil |
Australia:
| Name of the Desert | Location |
| Central Desert | Central Australian desert |
| Gibson Desert | Central Australian desert |
| Great Sandy Desert | Northwestern Australian desert |
| Great Victoria Desert | Australia |
| Little Sandy Desert | Western Australian desert |
| Simpson Desert | Central Australian desert |
| Strzelecki Desert | South-central Australian desert |
| Tanami Desert | Northern Australian desert |
Top 25 Rank Deserts in the World:
| Rank | Name of the Desert | Location |
| 1 | Antarctica | Antarctica |
| 2 | Arctic | Northern America (Alaska, Canada and Greenland)Northern Europe (Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden) Eastern Europe (European Russia) North Asia (Siberia) |
| 3 | Sahara | North Africa (Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Morocco, Sudan and Tunisia)West Africa (Mali, Mauritania and Niger) Middle Africa (Chad) East Africa (Eritrea) |
| 4 | Arabian Desert | Western Asia (Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates and Yemen) |
| 5 | Gobi Desert | Mongolia and China |
| 6 | Kalahari Desert | Angola, Botswana, Namibia and South Africa |
| 7 | Great Victoria Desert | Australia |
| 8 | Patagonian Desert | Argentina and Chile |
| 9 | Syrian Desert | Iraq, Jordan, and Syria |
| 10 | Great Basin Desert | United States |
| 11 | Chihuahuan Desert | Mexico and United States |
| 12 | Great Sandy Desert | Australia |
| 13 | Karakum Desert | Turkmenistan |
| 14 | Colorado Plateau | United States |
| 15 | Sonoran Desert | Mexico and United States |
| 16 | Kyzylkum Desert | Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan |
| 17 | Taklamakan Desert | China |
| 18 | Thar Desert | India, Pakistan |
| 19 | Gibson Desert | Australia |
| 20 | Dasht-e Margo | Afghanistan |
| 21 | Registan Desert | Afghanistan |
| 22 | Simpson Desert | Australia |
| 23 | Atacama Desert | Chile and Peru |
| 24 | Mojave Desert | United States |
| 25 | Namib Desert | Angola and Namibia |
