Lut Desert

Lut Desert
Dasht-e Lut
Lut Desert
Location within Iran
Floor elevation108 m (354 ft)
Length480 km (300 mi)
Width320 km (200 mi)
Area51,800 km2 (20,000 mi2)
Geography
CountryIran
Coordinates30°36′18″N 59°04′04″E / 30.60500001°N 59.0677777878°E / 30.60500001; 59.0677777878
Official nameLut Desert
Criteriavii, viii
Reference1505
Inscription2016 (40th Session)
Websitewww.lutDesert.ir

Lut Desert (Persian: دشت لوت, romanizedDasht-e Lut, lit.'Plain of Emptiness') is a desert with both extensive salt flats and dunes located in the provinces of Kerman and Sistan-Baluchestan, Iran. It is the world's 33rd-largest desert, and was included in UNESCO's World Heritage List on July 17, 2016.

The name is derived from Lut which means 'bare, empty' in Persian and dasht which means 'plain' in Persian.

The surface of its sand has been measured at temperatures as high as 70.7 °C (159.3 °F), the highest-known land surface temperature.