There are some regions on our planet that do not receive rainfall for years. But what's the driest place on Earth? First of all, dry doesn’t necessarily mean hot. A desert is somewhere without much water and where there are almost no plants or animals. The McMurdo Dry Valleys of Antarctica fit this description perfectly. There’s been no rain here for several million years, and so it’s not covered in ice! And the last time it had life was 90 million years ago when this place was a swamp filled with countless insects and trees.

There’s no snow in the valleys because of the strong winds there that reach a speed of 200 mph. So McMurdo stays completely dry. There is some water in a few lakes, but it’s so salty that practically nothing lives there apart from microscopic organisms. The temperature in summer here is 5°F, and in winter it can reach -90°F. Even though there’s almost no life, the McMurdo Valleys are fascinating to scientists because their dry conditions are actually similar to the ones on Mars.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices