What is the climate of the Gobi Desert?

What is the climate of the Gobi Desert? It is a cold desert, classified BWk in the Köppen system. The Gobi is arid, but its high-latitude continental setting produces severe winters rather than the year-round heat associated with hot deserts.

The Gobi stretches across southern Mongolia and northern China, where distance from oceans and surrounding mountain ranges limit moisture. The Himalaya and other Central Asian ranges contribute to rain-shadow effects, while the immense interior of Asia allows winter air to become extremely cold. Summers can still be hot, especially in lower areas, but winters regularly bring freezing conditions.

A common mistake is to label every dry landscape a hot desert. Köppen’s BWk code identifies a cold desert, while BWh identifies a hot desert. The Gobi can also contain desert-steppe areas; some parts of the broader Gobi region are classified BSk, or cold semi-arid, rather than BWk. That regional variation does not change the standard classification of the Gobi as a cold desert.

Its name comes from a Mongolian word meaning “very large and dry,” reflecting the landscape’s broad, sparsely vegetated character.