Each desert has a unique climate. A climate is the usual weather for a place. Temperature, wind, and rain or snow make up climate. Climate aff ects how a desert looks and what lives there. Let’s take a tour of three very diff erent deserts. Bring some water along. You’re going to need it.
Antarctica is one of the driest deserts. It hasn’t rained or snowed on some parts of the continent in thousands of years. Most of Antarctica gets only a little bit of snow each year. Since the climate is so cold, the snow doesn’t melt. Over time, it piles up. It forms thick ice sheets. Some icy parts of Antarctica are over 4 kilometers (2.5 miles) thick. To explore this desert, you’re bundled up today. You’re wearing two coats. On your feet, you have heavy boots over four pairs of socks. You’re also wearing a hat, a fur-lined hood, and three pairs of mittens. You’re still cold. What’s worse—it’s snowing. Actually, it isn’t. It just looks like it is. Antarctica is the windiest continent on the planet.
Antarctica’s wicked winds whip snow that
has already fallen. It’s like a blizzard. T is is called a whiteout. You feel like you’re inside a giant ping-pong ball. Life in Antarctica can be diffi cult. Not many
animals live on the land. T e penguins spend much of their time in the water. One of the next largest animals you’ll fi nd living on land is called a springtail. T is insect-like creature is not much to look at, but it’s tough. Its body makes a chemical that protects it from the cold. T e springtail doesn’t freeze. It moves about, eating algae and fungi. Few plants grow here. In places where the
ice is patchy, you can see the soil. Yet it is thin and rocky. T e harsh winds rip apart all but the toughest plants. Most plants tend to be small. Mosses cling to tiny patches of soil. T ey don’t need much water. T ey can also stand up to the fi erce winds. Your feet are starting to get numb as you
explore. Maybe it’s time to go to a diff erent, warmer desert.
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