Apart from Antarctica, Australia is the driest continent in the world. About 35% of the continent receives so little rain, it is effectively desert. In total, 70% of the mainland receives less than 500mm of rain annually, which classes it as arid, or semi-arid.
Australia's deserts, listed below, are distributed throughout the western plateau and interior lowlands. The total desert area equates to 18% of the total mainland area of Australia.
