Gold was discovered in Colorado in
1858. People looking for gold settled the
site of Denver. It became the capital of
the Colorado Territory in 1867. Colorado
became a U.S. state in 1876. Denver
was then made the state capital.
The people of Denver built their own
railroad line in 1870. It connected Denver
to a major rail line that crossed the
United States. The city grew as a result.
In the late 1800s more people moved to
Denver. They came to work in the area’s
silver mines. The city continued to grow
greatly during the 1900s.
..More to explore
Colorado • Gold Rush
Desert
When people think of a desert, they
usually think of a sandy, hot, and dry
place. But there are other types of
deserts as well. A desert is any large
region that gets very little rain each year.
Very few plants or animals live in desert
areas.
Features
Deserts cover about 20 percent of
Earth’s land surface. All the continents
The Civic Center is a government building
in downtown Denver, Colorado. The Rocky
Mountains lie to the west of the city.
BRITANNICA STUDENT ENCYCLOPEDIA Desert 39
have them. Deserts differ greatly in their
land features. They may include dunes
of shifting sand, mountains, bare rock,
and plains of gravel and boulders. Sand
dunes are not as common in deserts as
many people think. For example, they
make up only about 10 percent of the
Sahara of northern Africa. Some deserts
are not sandy at all.
Types of Deserts
Deserts may be hot or cold. In hot
deserts daytime temperatures are often
above 100° F (38° C) in summer. The
temperature drops sharply at night. The
Sahara is the world’s largest hot desert.
Other hot deserts include the Kalahari
in southern Africa and those in the
southwestern United States. Most hot
deserts are in the region known as the
tropics. This is a band of Earth on either
side of the equator.
Cold deserts are farther from the equator
than hot deserts. Though they are
very dry, the main reason they have few
plants is that it is so cold there. A cold
desert covers much of Antarctica. The
Gobi in Mongolia is another cold desert.
Life in a Desert
Desert plants and animals have features
that help them survive in the dry climate.
Some plants have special roots
that help them absorb the small amount
of water that is available. Cacti and yuccas
are common desert plants. Desert
animals include camels, gazelles, snakes,
lizards, and small rodents.
Few people live in deserts. Groups who
do include the Tuareg of the Sahara, the
San of the Kalahari, the Bedouins of the
Middle East and North Africa, and the
Aborigines of Australia. Many desert
dwellers live in oases. An oasis is a place
in the desert with a supply of freshwater.
..More to explore
Cactus • Gobi • Kalahari • Sahara
Des Moines
Population
(2000 census)
198,682;
(2007 estimate)
196,998
Des Moines is the capital of the U.S.
state of Iowa. The city lies along the Des
Moines and Raccoon rivers.
Des Moines is a center for manufacturing.
Factories in the city make tires, farm
machinery, and tools. Publishing, insurance,
and health care are other impor-
Most deserts get less than 10 inches (25
centimeters) of rain in a year.
40 Des Moines BRITANNICA STUDENT ENCYCLOPEDIA
tant industries. Many people in Des
Moines work for the state government.
Before Des Moines was founded, Sauk
and Fox Indians lived in the area. In
1843 the U.S. government built Fort
Des Moines at the site. A town soon
grew around the fort.
In 1857 the Iowa state capital was
moved from Iowa City to Des Moines.
The city grew rapidly in the early 1900s.
In 1993 the Des Moines and Raccoon
rivers overflowed their banks. Much of
the city was flooded.
De Soto,
Hernando
Hernando de Soto was a Spanish soldier
and explorer. He grew rich as a trader
and conqueror in Central America and
Peru. He died, however, while looking
for more treasure in North America.
Hernando de Soto was born in Spain in
about 1496. In 1514 he traveled to the
West Indies and Central America. He
grew wealthy as a trader of Indian slaves.
In 1532 he went to South America.
There he helped conquer the wealthy
Inca Empire of Peru. De Soto returned
to Spain in 1536, rich with Inca treasure.
In 1537 the king of Spain sent De Soto
to North America. The king wanted De
Soto to conquer the land that is now
Florida. He arrived in May 1539 and
traveled through what is now the southeastern
United States. He treated the
Native Americans cruelly, trying to force
them to lead him to gold. In response,
the Native Americans frequently
attacked the Spaniards.
In 1541 De Soto and his men crossed
the Mississippi River. They were the first
Europeans to see it. De Soto died of
disease on May 21, 1542, in what is
now Louisiana. His men returned to
Spain without gold.
#More to explore
Inca • Mississippi River
Iowa’s Capitol stands on a hill in Des Moines.
Hernando de Soto
BRITANNICA STUDENT ENCYCLOPEDIA De Soto, Hernando 41
Dew
At dawn, tiny drops of water often
cling to grass and other plants. This
moisture is called dew. Dew forms in
the night air through a process called
condensation.
Air contains water in the form of a gas
called water vapor. In the evenings,
