Final answer:
Deserts receive little rain despite being hot due to factors like rain shadow effects and high-pressure dry air descending at certain latitudes. These factors contribute to low precipitation and high rates of evaporation in subtropical deserts. Plants in deserts have adapted to extreme dryness through various strategies.
Step-by-step explanation:
Deserts receive very little rain despite being super hot because of several factors.
One factor is the presence of mountains, which create a rain shadow effect. When prevailing winds drop their water content on the mountains, the air becomes dry by the time it reaches the leeward side of the mountain range, resulting in little precipitation in deserts located in these regions.
Another factor is the high-pressure, dry air descending at certain latitudes, such as the Sahara Desert in northern Africa or the Namib Desert in southwestern Africa. This dry air inhibits the formation of rain clouds and contributes to the aridity of these deserts.
Subtropical deserts, which are characterized by low annual precipitation of fewer than 30 cm (12 in), are very dry due to high rates of evaporation that typically exceed the amount of precipitation.
Additionally, the lack of water vapor in the air in these deserts allows for efficient radiative cooling of the land surface, resulting in dramatic temperature drops at night. Adaptations to these extreme dry conditions include the development of drought-resistant seeds and other specialized features in plants known as xerophytes.