Hot Deserts

What is Hot Deserts?

Within Geography, which covers maps, landforms, weather, climate, population and settlements: understand how our planet and people connect, this topic explains Hot Deserts. Geography explains how places, people and natural processes connect, so each topic here combines a clear definition with a visual model.

Check that you can explain Hot Deserts in your own words and give one example from everyday life. If you can do that, you have understood the core idea.

Understanding Hot Deserts helps you explain patterns on maps and in the news, and make reasoned decisions about places and environments.

Hot Deserts in detail

Hot deserts, such as the Sahara and Sonoran, have less than 250 mm of rain a year, very high daytime temperatures, over 40 °C, and cold nights because clear skies allow heat to escape. They lie near 30° N and S, where dry air sinks.

Plants, such as cacti, have adaptations: thick waxy skins, spines, shallow wide roots or very deep roots, and water storage. Animals are often nocturnal and conserve water, like camels and fennec foxes. Challenges for people include water shortage and heat, and opportunities include solar energy, minerals and oil. Desertification and overuse of water are major concerns.

How the interactive helps you understand Hot Deserts

Watch the population model in the interactive. Use any sliders or buttons it offers to change the values and see how the population model responds.

Before you change anything, predict the result. Then change one value at a time and check whether your prediction was right. This is a quick way to build a correct mental model of Hot Deserts.

Real-life uses and examples

• Support an answer about Hot Deserts with a named case study and specific evidence.
• Interpret a graph or map that shows Hot Deserts and say what it suggests.
• Describe a real place where Hot Deserts can be seen, using a map or photograph.

Common mistakes to avoid

• Writing general statements without a named place or example.
• Mixing up cause, effect and consequence when you explain Hot Deserts.
• Learning the definition without testing it. Use the quiz and the interactive to check that you can apply the idea.