What is the world's largest desert?

That would be the Sahara. This desert covers one-third of the continent of Africa. The eastern part of the Sahara is sometimes called the Great Sand Sea. It may not rain there for years and the sand dunes can be 100 meters high.

The size of the Sahara Desert and many of the world’s deserts is changing. Today, the desert seems to be growing larger, but in the past it was much smaller. Parts of what is desert today were once lush grasslands and woodlands with flowing rivers!

The world’s winds might just deliver a speck of Sahara sand to you one day. Desert sandstorms whip up the sand and hurricanes and high winds send millions of tons toward the east coast of North America.