Dasht-e Kavir

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Dasht-e Kavir desert: astronaut photo from ISS, 2014. Width of the image is about 105 kilometers (65 miles).
Dasht-e Kavir desert: satellite photograph centered on 34°44'15.20"N, 54°49'37.56"E. This is a false-color composite image made using infrared, green, and red wavelengths. The image has also been sharpened using the sensor’s panchromatic band.
Map of biotopes of Iran, showing location of Dasht-e Kavir (beige oval at right center).
  Forest steppe
  Forests and woodlands
  Desert lowlands
  Salted alluvial marshes




Central in the desert lies the Kavir Buzurg (Great Kavir), which is about 320 km long and 160 km (99 mi) wide. In the west lies the Darya-ye Namak ("lake of salt"), of 1,800 km2 (690 sq mi). It contains some large salt plates in a mosaic-like shape. It is part of a 4,000 km2 (1,500 sq mi) protected ecological zone, the Kavir National Park. One of the most desolate places of Dasht-e Kavir is the Rig-e Jenn (dunes).

Climate and structure[edit]

The Dasht-e Kavir's climate is arid and receives little rain and snow each year. However, the surrounding mountains on all side, provide plenty of runoff to create vast seasonal lakes, marshlands and playas. Temperatures can reach 50 °C (122 °F) in summer, and the average temperature in January is 22 °C (72 °F). Day and night temperatures during a year can differ up to 70 °C (158 °F). Rain usually falls in winter.


Post-Glacial lake system[edit]

The Kavir was a series of vast lakes in the immediate post-glacial time, stretching to about 3,000 years ago. The Asian monsoon rain reached deep into central Iran at the time, bringing heavy rain that formed numerous lakes in the closed basins of central Iranian Plateau that form the Kavir and other deserts in the area. There are inscriptions at teppeh Sialk noting a visit by the local queen to the ruler of town, identified as Tell-i Bakun, southeast of Yazd, by "sailing the sea"! Copious shorelines at various elevations still extant in the Kavir are telltales of these post-galacial, monsoonal lakes in central Iran where the deserts now dominate




Persian gazelles live in parts of steppe and desert areas of the central plateau. Wild sheep (Ovis orientalis), camels, goats (Capra aegagrus)[3] and leopards are common in mountainous areas. Night life brings on wild cats, wolves, foxes, and other carnivores. In some parts of the desert, the Persian onager (gur in Persian) and sometimes even the Asiatic Cheetah can be seen. Lizards and snakes live in different places in the central plateau.


The extreme heat and many storms in Dasht-e Kavir cause extensive erosion, which makes it almost impossible to cultivate the lands. The desert is almost uninhabited and knows little exploitation. Camel and sheep breeding and agriculture are the sources of living to the few people living on its soil. Human settling is restricted to some oases, where wind-blocking housing constructions are raised to deal with the harsh weather conditions. For irrigation, Iranians developed a sophisticated system of water-wells known as qanats. These are still in use, and modern globally used water-revenue systems are based on their techniques.

See also[edit]


  2. ^ John K. Warren (2006). Evaporites:Sediments, Resources and Hydrocarbons: Sediments, Resources, and Hydrocarbons. Springer. p. 219. ISBN 978-3-540-32344-0. 
  3. ^ Mohammadian,H. Mammals of Iran. Shabpareh Publishing Institute. Tehran, Iran.2005.ISBN:964-94487-9-9.

Coordinates: 34°44′15.2″N 54°49′37.56″E﻿ / ﻿34.737556°N 54.8271000°E﻿ / 34.737556; 54.8271000