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Palm Desert

(Encyclopedia)Palm Desert, city (1990 pop. 23,252), Riverside co., S Calif., on the Whitewater River. A suburb of Palm Springs, Palm Desert is a rapidly growing resort and retirement community. Local industries inc...

Atacama Desert

(Encyclopedia)Atacama Desert ätäkäˈmä [key], arid region, c.600 mi (970 km) long, N Chile, extending south from the border of Peru. The desert itself, c.2,000 ft (610 m) above sea level, is a series of dry sal...

desert lily

(Encyclopedia)desert lily, common name for the species Hesperocallis undulata, a member of the family Liliaceae (lily family), found in the SW United States. ...

Great Sandy Desert

(Encyclopedia)Great Sandy Desert, Australia's second-largest desert, c.110,000 sq mi (284,900 sq km), Western Australia and Northern Territory. Lying between the Tanami Desert (NE) and the Gibson Desert (S), it is ...

Painted Desert

(Encyclopedia)Painted Desert, badlands on the northeastern bank of the Little Colorado River, NE Ariz., stretching c.200 mi (320 km) SE from the Grand Canyon; includes Petrified Forest National Park. Striking bands...

Great Victoria Desert

(Encyclopedia)Great Victoria Desert, Australia's largest desert, c. 163,900 sq mi (424,400 sq km), South Australia and Western Australia states. Forming the southern belt of the Western Australia desert, it lies S ...

Black Rock Desert

(Encyclopedia)Black Rock Desert, arid region of lava beds and alkali flats, NW Nev., in Toiyabe National Forest, stretching c.70 mi (110 km) NE from Gerlach. The Jackson Mts. rise to the east; the Black Rock Range ...

Mount Desert Island

(Encyclopedia)Mount Desert Island dĭzûrtˈ [key], c.100 sq mi (260 sq km), largest island off the coast of Maine; separated from the mainland by Frenchman Bay, Mt. Desert Narrows, and Western Bay. The island's ru...

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