Os dois maiores desertos do mundo não estão onde você imagina. Estão nos polos.
Como Jogar: Guess if the desert on the right has a MAIOR ou MENOR area than the one on the left.
Name A
Name B
Top 10 Maiores Desertos
A ‘desert’ is defined by precipitation, not heat. Any region receiving less than 250 mm of annual rainfall qualifies — including the polar ice sheets, where moisture is locked in ice and snowfall is minimal.
By that definition, the Antarctic Desert is the world’s largest at 14.2 million km², roughly the size of Russia.
| # | Nome | Área (km²) | Unidade |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Deserto Antártico | 14,200,000 | km² |
| 2 | Deserto Ártico | 13,900,000 | km² |
| 3 | Deserto do Saara | 9,200,000 | km² |
| 4 | Australian Desert | 2,700,000 | km² |
| 5 | Arabian Desert | 2,330,000 | km² |
| 6 | Gobi Desert | 1,295,000 | km² |
| 7 | Kalahari Desert | 900,000 | km² |
| 8 | Patagonian Desert | 620,000 | km² |
| 9 | Syrian Desert | 520,000 | km² |
| 10 | Great Basin Desert | 492,000 | km² |
Como os Desertos São Classificados
The standard definition of a desert is a region receiving less than 250 mm (10 inches) of precipitation per year. This includes hot deserts (Sahara, Arabian), cold deserts (Gobi, Patagonian), and polar deserts (Antarctic, Arctic). The Antarctic Desert receives less than 50 mm of precipitation annually at its interior — drier than the Sahara.
The Sahara is the world’s largest hot desert at 9.2 million km². It has expanded by about 10% since 1900, partly due to natural cycles and partly due to climate change. The Sahel region on its southern edge is one of the world’s most climate-vulnerable areas.
The Atacama Desert in Chile is the driest place on Earth outside the polar regions. Some weather stations have never recorded rainfall in their entire operational history. The dryness comes from a triple effect: the rain shadow of the Andes, the cold Humboldt Current offshore, and the Pacific subtropical high atmospheric pressure.
Several deserts are biologically rich despite the precipitation deficit. The Sonoran Desert in North America has more than 2,000 plant species, including the iconic saguaro cactus. The Namib Desert produces unique fog-collecting beetle species. Cold deserts like the Gobi support snow leopards, Bactrian camels, and migratory antelope.
Perguntas Frequentes
Qual é o maior deserto do mundo?
The Antarctic Desert at 14.2 million km². It qualifies as a desert because annual precipitation in the interior is less than 50 mm — drier than most hot deserts.
O Saara está crescendo?
Yes, slowly. The Sahara has expanded approximately 10% since 1900, mostly southward into the Sahel. Some of this is natural cycle; some is climate-driven.
Qual é o deserto mais seco?
The Atacama Desert in Chile, which has parts that have not recorded rainfall in over 400 years. After polar deserts, it is the driest place on Earth.
As regiões polares são realmente desertos?
Yes. The standard definition is annual precipitation under 250 mm; the Antarctic interior receives 50 mm or less. Polar deserts are ‘cold deserts’ — different from sand deserts but still deserts by definition.
Nota: Desert areas are widely cited reference figures. Boundaries between adjacent deserts are sometimes ambiguous and reported sizes vary by ±10%.