Atacama Desert Population: Sparse Due to Extreme Aridity

The Atacama Desert (northern Chile, southern Peru) is the driest non-polar desert on Earth, with some weather stations never recording rain. This extreme aridity severely limits human settlement:

• Total Population: ~1 million, concentrated in coastal cities.
• Density: ~1 person/km² (vs. 50+ in Chile overall).
• Major Centers: Antofagasta (~350,000), Iquique (~190,000), Calama (~160,000)—all coastal or mining hubs.
• Interior: Nearly uninhabited; only scattered mining camps, observatories (ALMA, Paranal), and indigenous communities (Atacameños) near rare water sources.

Drivers of sparsity: negligible rainfall, no permanent rivers, saline soils, high UV, temperature extremes, and remoteness. Yet, the desert's mineral wealth (copper, lithium, nitrates) and astronomical clarity attract economic activity and science, creating pockets of population in an otherwise empty expanse.