In the Atacama Desert, there have been no rains for 400 years, in the Dry Valley they have not been for  2 million years. These figures shows much ...

Dry Valleys  is the territory of  three valleys (Victoria, Wright, Taylor) of Victoria Land near the Strait of McMurdo. This is the largest (8 thousand km) ice-free territory in Antarctica. The reason for such dryness is the Catabatic wind blowing at a speed of up to 320 km / h (this is the maximum speed of winds on the Earth). These winds evaporate all the moisture, thanks to which the valleys are free of ice and snow for about 8 million years.

This climate is ideal for geological and other research. Dry valleys are classified as particularly valuable protected areas. The dry valleys are so close to the natural conditions of Mars that NASA is conducting tests there of the descending spacecraft "Viking".