Previous Year Question
Consider the following deserts and arrange them in increasing order of their size (from smallest to largest):
I. Great Sandy desert
II. Arabian desert
III. Sahara desert
IV. Gobi desert
Select the correct answer using the code given below:
I, IV, II, III
II, I, III, IV
II, I, IV, III
I, II, IV, III
Correct Answer: A
Detailed Solution
The Great Sandy Desert is situated in north-western Australia and covers approximately 267,250 sq km. It is the second-largest mainland desert of Australia.
The Gobi Desert extends across southern Mongolia and northern China. Its area is approximately 1.3 million sq km. The Gobi is not purely a sandy desert; large parts of it consist of rocky and gravel plains.
The Arabian Desert extends over a large part of the Arabian Peninsula and covers approximately 2.33 million sq km. It includes major desert regions such as the Rub' al Khali, An-Nafud and Ad-Dahna.
The Sahara Desert is the largest among the four. It covers approximately 9.1–9.4 million sq km and is the largest hot desert in the world.
Exact desert-area figures may vary slightly according to different geographical definitions, but their relative size order remains unchanged—
Great Sandy < Gobi < Arabian < Sahara