Mondo Knows Facts
The Atacama Desert is the driest non-polar desert on Earth
Some weather stations in the Atacama Desert in northern Chile have never recorded a single drop of rainfall.
Situated between the Chilean Coast Range and the Andes, the Atacama Desert experiences a rain shadow effect that blocks moisture from both the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans. Its soil has been compared to that of Mars, making it a frequent testing ground for space exploration rovers. The dry atmosphere and high altitude create ideal conditions for astronomical observatories.
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Tags: atacama, chile, deserts, rainfall
The Atacama Desert is the driest non-polar desert on Earth: the short answers
- Where does this come from, and can I check it?
- Some weather stations in the Atacama Desert in northern Chile have never recorded a single drop of rainfall. The figure is taken from Smithsonian Magazine, which is linked in full on this page. Every fact on Mondo Knows names its source rather than repeating an unsourced claim.
- Is this really a world geography fact?
- Yes. It sits on the World Geography shelf, one of 1,090 sourced facts grouped into space, animals, the human body, history, science and more. Category pages collect every fact in the same field.
- What else can I read about it?
- The links under the fact point to a quiz, game, puzzle or calculator on the same subject, and the shelf below shows related facts. The wording here is original, and quoted phrases are marked as quotations.