World Plains & Deserts: Distribution and Major Regions

World Plains & Desert is an important topic in World Geography, focusing on the distribution, formation, and characteristics of major plains and desert regions across the globe. Plains support agriculture, dense population, and economic activities, while deserts are shaped by extreme climatic conditions and sparse vegetation. Understanding these landforms helps in analyzing physical geography patterns and human-environment interaction.

World Plains

North America

Plains	Location	Features
Great Plains	Canada (Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba)central USA (Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas)	Vast flat grassland region Major wheat-growing area (Granary of North America) Formed by river deposition and erosion Semi-arid to sub-humid climate
Coastal Plains	Eastern and southeastern USA, bordering the Atlantic Ocean and Gulf of Mexico	Low-lying fertile plains Important for agriculture and settlements Many rivers form deltas and estuaries Humid climate and dense population

South America

Plains	Location	Features
Llanos Plains	Venezuela and Colombia	Tropical grassland plains between the Andes and the Guiana Highlands Drained by the Orinoco River
Coastal Plains	Eastern Brazil	Cities like Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo, and Recife Sugarcane and coffee cultivation
Entre Ríos Plains	Argentina and Uruguay	Between the Paraná and Uruguay Rivers
Pampas Plains	Central Argentina, parts of Uruguay, and southern Brazil	One of the most fertile plains in the world;

Europe

Plains	Location	Features
Central Plain	Ireland	River Shannon
Central Plain	Great Britain
Plains of France	Northern and western France	Paris Basin and Loire Valley
Plains of Lombardy	Northern Italy	Po River
Hungary Plains	Central Europe (Hungary and parts of Serbia, Romania, Croatia)	Also known as the Pannonian Plain Drained by the Danube and Tisza riversKnown as the “Granary of Central Europe”.
Thracian / Wallachian Plains	Bulgaria (Thracian) and southern Romania (Wallachian)	Along the Danube and Maritsa rivers
North European Plain	Parts of France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany, Denmark, Poland, and Belarus.

Africa

Plains	Location	Features
Serengeti Plains	Northern Tanzania and Southwestern Kenya	Serengeti National Park (Tanzania) Maasai Mara Reserve (Kenya)
Bushveld Plains	Northern South Africa and Southeastern Botswana, Southern Zimbabwe	Lies between the Highveld Grasslands and the Kalahari edge

Asia

Plains	Location	Features
West Siberian Plain	Russia	Between Ural Mountains (west) and Yenisei River (east)
Yana– Indigirka Lowlands	North Eastern Siberia (Russia)	Between the Yana River and Indigirka River, North of the Verkhoyansk Mountains, extending toward the Arctic Ocean. Tundra vegetation
Manchurian Plain	North Eastern China	Between Greater Khingan Range and Changbai Mountain
Great Plain of China	Eastern China	Along lower courses of Huang He (Yellow River) Cradle of Chinese civilization
Turan Plain	Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan	Between Caspian Sea and Aral Sea Formed by Amu Darya and Syr Darya
Mesopotamian Plain	Iraq, parts of Syria, Kuwait	Between Tigris and Euphrates rivers Known as the “Cradle of Civilization” Ancient Sumerian, Babylonian, and Assyrian centers
Indo-Gangetic Plain	From Punjab (Pakistan) to Assam (India) along Ganga and Indus systems

Australia

Plains	Location	Features
Nullarbor Plain	Southern coast of Australia	World’s largest limestone plain; name derived from Latin “nullus arbor” meaning “no trees.”
Murray– Darling Basin	Southeastern Australia	Formed by Murray and Darling Rivers
Great Artesian Basin	Queensland, New South Wales, South Australia, and Northern Territory	One of the world’s largest artesian groundwater basins

World Deserts

North America

Desert	Location	Features
Great Basin Desert	Western United States, mainly in Nevada, parts of Utah, Oregon, and Idaho	Largest desert in the United States. A cold desert — experiences snowfall in winter. Lies in the rain shadow of the Sierra Nevada Mountains.
Mojave Desert	Southeastern California, southern Nevada, and parts of Arizona and Utah	Known as the “Desert of Death Valley” the hottest and lowest region in North America. Lies between the Sierra Nevada and Colorado Plateau. Joshua trees and sparse xerophytic vegetation.
Sonoran Desert	Southwestern United States (Arizona, California) and northwestern Mexico (Sonora, Baja California)	Hot desert Saguaro cactus
Chihuahuan Desert	Northern Mexico (states of Chihuahua, Coahuila) and south western USA (Texas, New Mexico)	Largest desert in North America by area Between the Sierra Madre Oriental and Occidental ranges. Semi-arid hot desert with grasses and shrubs.

South America

Desert	Location	Features
Atacama Desert	Northern Chile	Between the Andes Mountains (east) and the Coastal Range (west) Driest desert in the world
Patagonian Desert (Monte Desert)	Southern Argentina	East of the Andes Mountains (in the rain shadow of the Andes), between the Colorado River and Strait of Magellan Cold desert
Sechura Desert	North western coast of Peru	Coastal desert influenced by the Humboldt (Peru) current.
La Guajira Desert	Northeastern Colombia and northwestern Venezuela	Hot and arid desert Inhabited by Wayuu Indigenous people

Africa

Desert	Location	Main Features
Sahara Desert	Northern Africa (from the Atlantic Ocean to the Red Sea; covering Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, Egypt, Mauritania, Mali, Niger, Chad, Sudan)	World’s largest hot desert Sand dunes (ergs), rocky plateaus (hamadas), Extreme temperature range, very low rainfall
Libyan Desert	Eastern part of the Sahara (Libya and Western Egypt)	Sand dunes Oases like Siwa, Kufra, Jalo etc. Extremely arid, among the driest regions on Earth
Nubian Desert	Eastern Sahara (northeastern Sudan)	Harsh, arid rocky and sandy region Located between Nile river and Red sea
Eastern Desert	Located to the east of Nile river	Part of Sahara Desert
Tenere Desert	South-central Sahara (Niger & Chad)	Sandy desert Part of Sahara Shifting sand dunes Severe aridity
Tanezrouft Desert	Western-central Sahara (Algeria, Mali)	Known as the “Land of Terror” Waterless Gravel plains
Danakil Desert	Ethiopia, Eritrea, Djibouti (Afar region)	Below sea level in places One of the hottest regions on Earth Salt flats Volcanic activity
Ogaden Desert	Eastern Ethiopia (Somaliland–Somalia border)	Semi-arid desert Sparse rainfall Pastoral economy
Chalbi Desert	Northern Kenya
Nyiri Desert	Southern Kenya
Lompoul Desert	Northwestern Senegal (near Atlantic coast)	Small coastal desert, sand dunes
Namib Desert	Southwestern Africa (Namibia & Angolan coast)	The Oldest Desert in the world Coastal fog
Kalahari Desert	Botswana, Namibia, South Africa	Semi-desert Grasslands Seasonal rivers
Karoo Desert	Southern South Africa	Temperate desert Sparse vegetation Important sheep-rearing region

Asia

Desert	Location	Features
Rub’ al Khali	Southern Arabian Peninsula	World’s largest continuous sand desert
An Nafud	Northern Saudi Arabia	Crescent-shaped sand dunes Merges with Rub’ al Khali
Badayat Ash Shamal	Northern Saudi Arabia and Iraq	Syrian Desert Extension
Negev	Southern Israel	Semi-arid desert Formed of limestone and sandstone
Dasht-e-Lut	Southeast Iran	Hottest place on Earth Rocky and sandy surface Wind-eroded landforms (yardangs)
Dasht-e-Kavir	Central Iran	North of Zagros Mountains Saline desert basin
Karakum	Turkmenistan	“Black Sand Desert” Between Caspian Sea and Amu Darya River
Kyzylkum	Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan	Between Amu Darya and Syr Darya rivers“ Red Sand Desert” Large sand dunes Continental climate
Dasht-e-Margo	Southwestern Afghanistan	“Desert of Death” Extremely arid, stony desert
Registan	Southern Afghanistan	Natural barrier between Helmand Basin and Dasht-e-Margo Desert
Khash	Southwestern Afghanistan	Between Registan Desert (east) and Dasht-e-Margo (southwest)
Cholistan/Rohi	Southeastern Pakistan	Extension of the Thar Desert (India) Sand dunes and dry river beds (Hakra River – ancient Saraswati)
Thar	India and Pakistan
Taklamakan	Xinjiang region of China (Tarim Basin)	“Sea of Death” Encircled by Tien Shan, Pamir, and Kunlun mountains Extreme aridity and temperature variation.
Gobi	Mongolia and Northern China	Cold desert Stony surface Experiences frost and occasional snowfall Rich in fossil remains (dinosaurs).
Ordos / Mu Us	Northern Shaanxi Province of China	South of the Gobi Desert Enclosed by a great bend of the Yellow River (Huang He) Cold desert
Tengger	Inner Mongolia
Badan Jaran	Western Inner Mongolia

Australia

Desert	Location	Features
Great Victoria Desert	Extends across Western Australia and South Australia	The largest desert in Australia
Great Sandy Desert	Northern Western Australia	Between the Kimberley Plateau and the Gibson Desert Rudall River National Park
Little Sandy Desert	Central Western Australia (South of Great Sandy Desert)	The transitional desert zone between the Great Sandy Desert and Gibson desert.
Gibson Desert	Central Western Australia	Between Great Sandy Desert and Great Victoria Desert Named after explorer Alfred Gibson.
Tanami Desert	Across Northern Territory and Northern Western Australia
Simpson Desert	Northern Territory, South Australia, and Queensland	Famous for long parallel sand dunes (up to 200 km long) Part of Lake Eyre Basin
Tirari Desert	Central South Australia	Merges with Sturt Stony desert and Strzelecki Desert.
Sturt Stony Desert	Northeast South Australia and southwest Queensland
Strzelecki Desert	Northeast South Australia, bordering Queensland and New South Wales

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