Hobbies And Interests
Deserts in the Americas
North America features four deserts of note. These include the Mojave desert, which spreads across much of California as well as parts of other states, including Arizona and Utah. Another desert found in the United States is the Sonoran desert, a very hot area around the border between California and Mexico. An extremely dry place, Chile's Atacama desert features areas that, according to the Extreme Science website, have not seen rainfall for more than 400 years.
African Deserts
The biggest nonpolar desert on Earth, the Sahara Desert stretches out across 3.5 million square miles of northern Africa. Areas in the Sahara Desert include the Algerian Desert, which accounts for 80 percent of Algeria's land mass, and consists of both sandy and rocky landscapes. The Algerian Desert contains the Hogger Mountains as well as a city, Tamanrasset, home to 60,000 people.
Polar Deserts
Not all deserts are places full of sand. Both the Antarctic and Arctic regions feature polar deserts, home to few forms of life beyond lichens and mosses. These polar deserts are simultaneously cold -- thanks to the little annual precipitation they receive -- and humid, due to the low percentage of moisture that evaporates in these areas.
Asian Deserts
Asia is home to many deserts. The Taklamakan Desert, found in the Xinjiang Uyghur region of China, is the 15th largest nonpolar desert on Earth. Archaeologists dig in the ruins found in this desert for treasures, while travelers here must use the nearby oasis towns for water. Found in Balochistan, the Kharan Desert features moving sand dunes as well as areas of barren wasteland and dry lakes.
Rainforests in the Americas
The Amazon rainforest dominates the South American continent. Spreading across countries such as Peru and Brazil, this rainforest supplies a fifth of Earth's fresh water. The Amazon basin is home to an abundance of plant and animal life, including 2.5 million insect species, for instance.
African Rainforests
One of Africa's largest rainforests is the Congo basin, mostly based inside the Democratic Republic of Congo but also found across countries such as Cameroon and Gabon. The rainforest is a source of shelter and food for millions of people, as well as a home to animals such as gorillas and elephants. Rainforests can also be found on the island of Madagascar, where it supports many animal species not found elsewhere.
Asian Rainforests
Rainforests can be found in Asian countries such as Burma and Bangladesh; the latter country has the biggest mangrove tree grove in the world, for example. The rainforests of Borneo are now much reduced in size when compared to their area in the 1970s, as noted by the Mongabay website, thanks to the efforts of humans, who have leveled the forest for wood and to build palm oil plantations.