What is the population of Atacama Desert?

The Atacama Desert is a desert plateau in South America, covering a 1,052,000 km2 (406,000 sq mi) area. It is the driest desert in the world, with some areas receiving less than 1 mm of precipitation per year. As such, the population of the Atacama Desert is very low, with only a few thousand people living in the region. Most of the population is concentrated in small settlements near the coast, where there is some water available. The largest settlement in the Atacama Desert is the city of Calama, with a population of around 150,000 people.