Earth
Is Antarctica a desert?
The short answer
Yes. A desert is defined by how little precipitation falls, not by heat or sand, and the usual threshold is under 250 millimetres a year. Antarctica's high interior gets less than 50 millimetres, drier than much of the Sahara, which makes it the largest desert on the planet.
Deserts are about dryness. By the standard definition, anywhere that receives less than about 250 millimetres of rain or snow a year qualifies, which is why the category includes freezing places alongside hot ones. Antarctica is the coldest, windiest and driest continent there is.
The Australian Antarctic Division estimates that the snow falling across the whole continent is equivalent to about 150 millimetres of water a year, and over the high central plateau it drops below 50 millimetres. The air up there is so cold it can barely hold any moisture, so there is almost nothing to fall.
The twist is that this driest of places holds most of the world's fresh water. Snow that falls almost never melts, so even a few centimetres a year, piled up over hundreds of thousands of years, becomes an ice sheet kilometres thick. A desert that is also a reservoir. It is a very confusing continent.
Source
- Weather in AntarcticaAustralian Antarctic Division