I grew up in a desert globe! I’m from Tucson, AZ, surrounded by the Sonoran Desert. Growing up, I learned a lot about the warm, dry desert I call home. I learned a lot of these facts from the Arizona-Sonoran Desert Museum and years of touring the mysterious land. The Sonoran Desert inhabits an ample mass of the southwestern North American continent. The continental physiography of the desert occupies the southwestern U.S. and northwestern Mexico including half of Arizona, southeastern Cali, and most states of Sonora and Baja California, Mexico.
In grouping, the bimodal rainfall rule and the mid-continental location, this tremendous distinction in topography moderately balance and produces the astounding diversity of the Sonoran Desert. One of the greatest facts I know about the Sonoran Desert is that it has the largest species diversity of any desert in North America. This includes animals such as Bobcats, Javelina, Coyote, Bark Scorpion, Jackrabbit, and much more. Many people assume that in deserts, there is not a lot of plant life. However, there are plants that can survive the 120-degree heat! Many have evolved to have specialized adaptations to the desert climate. Brittlebush, Prickly Pear (great with lemonade), Palo Verde, Desert Marigold, and the Saguaro Cactus are the primary plants that inhabit the dry desert.
The desert is in my backyard! (Taken from my iPhone)
In grouping, the bimodal rainfall rule and the mid-continental location, this tremendous distinction in topography moderately balance and produces the astounding diversity of the Sonoran Desert. One of the greatest facts I know about the Sonoran Desert is that it has the largest species diversity of any desert in North America. This includes animals such as Bobcats, Javelina, Coyote, Bark Scorpion, Jackrabbit, and much more. Many people assume that in deserts, there is not a lot of plant life. However, there are plants that can survive the 120-degree heat! Many have evolved to have specialized adaptations to the desert climate. Brittlebush, Prickly Pear (great with lemonade), Palo Verde, Desert Marigold, and the Saguaro Cactus are the primary plants that inhabit the dry desert.
These plants add some color to the bland desert! (Taken on my iPhone)
Around 20 and 40 million years ago, many volcanoes were vigorous in the Sonoran Desert, resulting in large basins. The tectonic activity created a lot of pressure on the primary coatings of the Sonoran Desert causing the shape or characteristic of Basin & Range topography. The Sonoran Desert receives the persistent calm winters as well as the violent summers. If there was one word to describe the Sonoran Desert climate, it would be dry. My family would always tell visitors that “it’s a dry heat” which is better than a humid heat.
The purple Catalina Mountains keep the rain away for much of the year, creating a dehydrated atmosphere. However, it doesn’t rain much in the Sonoran Desert because of the moist air moving east from the Pacific Ocean that is forced to rise over the Cascades and Sierra Nevada. Since cool air cannot hold as much water vapor as warmer air can, the additional water precipitates. Moisture blowing in from the ocean is successfully drained, and the air that travels down the ranges' eastern slopes is usually so dry it cannot produce any more rain. This marvel, or the rain shadow effect, describes such dryness on the inland side of coastal mountains.
A "mild" Summer in AZ! (Taken on my Snapchat)
The purple Catalina Mountains keep the rain away for much of the year, creating a dehydrated atmosphere. However, it doesn’t rain much in the Sonoran Desert because of the moist air moving east from the Pacific Ocean that is forced to rise over the Cascades and Sierra Nevada. Since cool air cannot hold as much water vapor as warmer air can, the additional water precipitates. Moisture blowing in from the ocean is successfully drained, and the air that travels down the ranges' eastern slopes is usually so dry it cannot produce any more rain. This marvel, or the rain shadow effect, describes such dryness on the inland side of coastal mountains.
The reliability of our hot, dry, and cloudless days is principally the result of the North Pacific high-pressure zone. The North Pacific High is a semi-permanent, subtropical high located in the northeastern portion of the Pacific Ocean. Though this all sounds like the fires from hell, the Sonoran Desert does hold its beauty. My favorite parts of the Sonoran Desert are the sunsets and wildlife. I feel connected to the desert because it’s my backyard! I’ve handled rattlesnakes, ran away from javelina, and have experienced several scare attacks from baby scorpions. This might intimate you, but fear not, the desert isn’t a hot and chaotic land. The Sonoran Desert is home to hundreds of diverse species and thriving plant life. The beauty of the desert is like no other. When the sunset surrounds the cacti, it brings out the best of this eerie, hot land.
I encourage you all to visit! (but during the winter!)
(Taken on my iPhone)
Reference: Information from the Sonoran Desert Tour
Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum, Tucson, AZ - Zoo, Botanical Garden, and Art Gallery. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.desertmuseum.org/
I have never been to Tucson, I have only been to Phoenix, but I think Arizona is such a beautiful place. I cannot imagine having that beauty being my backyard...you are lucky! Thanks for sharing your thoughts and photos!
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