One potential reason is that the difference in pressure between the ocean and deserts wasn’t as strong as the computers projected, Kittell said.

The air dries out and compresses and heats up as it flows downslope from the high deserts — from the northeast — over California’s mountains and through canyons, drying out vegetation as the wind gusts through.

More than two-thirds of people in “maternity care deserts” — all of which are in rural counties — must drive more than a half-hour to get obstetric care, according to a 2024 March of Dimes report.

I would have told her to do a show helping bring fresh food to food deserts in low income neighborhoods.

Her audience travels with her to places they never knew they would long for – Xinjiang's snow-capped mountains, Yunnan's ancient river towns, sparkling blue lakes, vast grasslands, endless deserts.