What continent receives about the same amount of rainfall as the Sahara Desert?
Antarctica. It, like the Sahara, receives less than 2 inches of precipitation a year. While much of the Sahara is covered with sand, however, Antarctica is covered with ice. Book of Records. In fact, Antarctica is the coldest, windiest, highest and driest continent. How Much Ice? If Antarctica were to melt, the sea level would rise over 200 feet. An ice sheet covers all but 2.4% of Antarctica’s 5.4 million square miles. At its thickest point, the ice sheet is nearly 3 miles deep, though it averages 1.34 miles thick. Antarctica’s ice makes up 90 % of all the world’s ice, and it is 70% of all the world’s fresh water.
