These kinds of areas can cover about 33% of the land on Earth. That includes much of Antarctica, where large areas get no snow at all. The largest hot desert is the Sahara desert, in northern Africa, covering 9 million square kilometers.
Deserts land surfaces are various examples are stones, sand dunes and snow. They have a wide variety of animals and plants. Deserts sometimes expand (desertification), and sometimes contract.
Deserts are mostly found in the western part of the Americas, Western Asia, Central Australia, and South and North Africa. Many, such as the Sahara (the largest), are very hot during the day and have cold nights, but there are also cold deserts such as the Atacama in South America which remain frozen day and night.
There are hot deserts and cold deserts. Cold deserts may be covered with snow or ice but some are so dry that the ice sublimates away. Some cold deserts have a short season of above-freezing temperatures. These deserts are called tundra. An ice cap can be a cold desert that remains below freezing all year-round.
Cold deserts can be found close to the poles. That is why they are also called polar deserts. Other regions of the world have cold deserts too, for instance high altitude areas like the Himalayas. These are called montane deserts. Antarctica is the world's largest cold desert.
Hot deserts are mostly in the subtropics. They can be covered by sand, rock, salt lakes, stony hills and even mountains. Most non-polar deserts are hot in the day and chilly at night. The temperature in the daytime can reach or higher in the summer, and dip to or lower at night time in the winter.
The largest hot desert in the world is the Sahara in North Africa. It is almost as large as Europe or the United States. The Sahara desert is also the hottest desert in the world.
The driest desert in the world is the Atacama Desert in South America. The Atacama Desert had no rain for 401 years, between 1570 and 1971. This desert is caused by a cold ocean current.
It does rain in the desert, but not often. One place in the Atacama Desert had no rain for 401 years. In other deserts it may rain every year or once every few years. Rains in a desert may bring a great amount of water to the ground in a short time. Some rain passes straight into the dry soil, but the rest may form a temporary river. Wadis, stream channels that are normally dry, can quickly fill after heavy rain, causing a flash flood.
People sometimes bring water from wet places to hot deserts so plants can grow. This is called irrigation.
A sandstorm or dust storm arises when wind blows loose sand and dust from a dry surface. Clouds of sand or dust are often so dense that they obscure the sun. A sandstorm can move whole sand dunes. Sandstorms are common in large, dusty deserts.
There are not many animals in the desert, but some animals are able to survive. They have different ways to survive the intense conditions of the desert. Examples of animals that live in hot deserts are lizards, small rodents, snakes, and camels. Plants and animals in hot deserts must live with very little water.
Xerophytic plants which live in the desert have special adaptations. They may survive by growing roots that are very near the surface to absorb the rain that may fall before it evaporates. Plants such as the cactus have thick, fleshy stems that help them store water.
Small animals such as lizards and small rodents often escape the hot rays by digging underground burrows where they live. They only come out at night to search for food. Like the plants, desert animals must live on as little water as possible. Most of the water used by these animals comes from seeds and stems that absorb and hold water. Camels survive in hot deserts by storing water in body fat in their humps. Like other desert animals, the camel loses little water in its wastes (urine and feces).
Dessert
A dessert is a type of food that is eaten after lunch or dinner, and sometimes after a light meal or snack. It is usually a sweet food, like ice cream, cookies, and cakes. In some countries, cheeses such as Brie cheese and fruit are served as dessert. Some desserts are made from natural resources like fruit juice used in sherbet. Others are simple, like pudding and birthday cake. Many desserts are baked (cooked in an oven). Some desserts are served with whipped cream as a topping.
The term "dessert" can apply to many confections, such as biscuits, cakes, cookies, custards, gelatin's, ice creams, pastries, pies, puddings, sweet soups, and tarts. Fruit is also commonly found in dessert courses because of its naturally occurring sweetness. Some cultures sweeten foods that are more commonly savoury to create desserts.
Baked desserts are made by putting the ingredients in a hot oven. Baked desserts include cakes and muffins (a mixture of flour, eggs, sugar, oil, baking powder, and flavorings); sweet breads such as banana bread and raisin bread (a mixture of flour, sugar, oil, baking powder, and flavorings); cookies such as chocolate chip cookies (a mixture of flour, eggs, sugar, oil, and flavorings). Puddings and custards (a mixture of milk, eggs, sugar, and flavorings) can be made in the oven.
Fried desserts are made using a cooking process called deep frying. To deep-fry food, a large pot filled with oil is heated, and then the food is placed into the pot. Deep-fried desserts include doughnuts.
Frozen desserts are made by blending the ingredients in a freezer. Frozen desserts include ice cream (a mixture of cream, milk, sugar, and flavorings), milk shakes (a mixture of ice cream, milk, and flavorings), and sherbet (also spelled "sorbet") (a mixture of water, sugar, and flavorings).
Some desserts are made without using the oven or the freezer. Trifle is an English dessert made by soaking ladyfinger biscuits in sherry, covering them with whipped cream, and then letting it chill in the refrigerator. Some types of instant pudding and instant mousse desserts can be made without cooking; a person simply mixes the instant pudding powder with milk and chills it in the refrigerator.
William Henry Harrison
William Henry Harrison (February 9, 1773 – April 4, 1841) was the 9th President of the United States. His nickname was "Old Tippecanoe " and he was a well-respected war veteran. Harrison served the shortest term of any United States President. His term lasted for exactly one month.
He was elected president in 1840, and took the oath of office on March 4, 1841. His inauguration speech lasted an hour and forty minutes. William Henry Harrison caught a serious case of pneumonia, and on April 4 that same year he died. He was the first President to die in office. Harrison was the oldest president to take office at , until 1981 when Ronald Reagan surpassed him who in turn was outdone in 2021 by Joe Biden who assumed the presidency at the age of 78. He was the last president to be born before the United States Declaration of Independence.
His grandson was the 23rd President of the United States, Benjamin Harrison.
Harrison was born on February 9, 1773. He is the youngest of Benjamin Harrison V and Elizabeth Bassett's seven children. They lived in Berkeley Plantation at Charles City County, Virginia. He was the last president to be born as a British citizen before the American Independence. His father was a planter and a delegate to the Continental Congress (1774–1777) who signed the Declaration of Independence. He was Governor of Virginia between 1781 and 1784. His older brother Carter Bassett Harrison was elected a representative of Virginia in the United States House of Representatives.
In 1787, he attended the Presbyterian Hampden-Sydney College. He attended the school until 1790. Harrison was fluent in Latin and French.
In 1795, he met Anna Symmes. They had 10 children.
He took the oath of office in March 4, 1841 which was a cold and wet day. His inaugural address was the longest in American history.