Cold desert: Quick Facts

Written and fact-checked by

The Information Architects of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Facts

Also Known As	temperate desert

Photos

Bristlecone pine

A group of Bactrian camels grazes on green vegetation in the Gobi Desert, with large sand dunes rising in the background.

A group of about forty Adelie penguins, Pygoscelis adeliae, scattered across a vast, icy Antarctic landscape with snow and blue ice formations.

distribution of hot and temperate deserts

See All Images →

Topics

polar desert Why is the Gobi Desert called a cold desert?What is the coldest temperature ever recorded on Earth?Tundra Rain shadow Desert desertification The Sahara Was Once Green How Do Deserts Form?Why is Antarctica a desert?

Chutes d'Ekom - a waterfall on the Nkam river in the rainforest near Melong, in the western highlands of Cameroon in Africa.

Ecosystems

Chutes d'Ekom - a waterfall on the Nkam river in the rainforest near Melong, in the western highlands of Cameroon in Africa.

Ecosystems