Karakum Desert Map
The Karakum Desert is a desert in Turkmenistan, covering about 400,000 km² (154,000 sq mi). This map shows its extent on shaded relief, with the surrounding mountains, rivers, borders and cities.
How to read this map
The Karakum Desert is about 400,000 km² (154,000 sq mi) in area.
The dashed outline marks the Karakum Desert as mapped by Natural Earth. Towns and cities on the map include Mashhad, Tashkent, Dushanbe, Ashgabat, Samarkand, Shahrisabz, Herat and Shymkent. Labeled countries: Afghanistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan.
Greens show lower elevations; tan and brown show higher land, with pale tones toward the highest terrain. Shadows emphasize the slopes, and vertical relief is exaggerated so landforms are easier to read. Dashed lines show country borders.
The relief uses Terrain Tiles (SRTM, GMTED2010 and ETOPO1 elevation data). Rivers, lakes, borders and the outline of the Karakum Desert come from Natural Earth, and the figures on this page from Wikidata. Natural Earth draws features at a small scale, so the outline is a guide to where the Karakum Desert is, not a surveyed boundary.
Blank physical map
The blank version keeps the mapped features and removes the place labels. Download it for a geography worksheet or practice identifying the features.
Karakum Desert facts
| Fact | Value |
|---|---|
| Area | 400,000 km² (154,000 sq mi) |
| Countries | Turkmenistan |
Data sources and license
- Natural Earth (public-domain geography): Public domain.
- Terrain Tiles / Mapzen (SRTM, GMTED2010, ETOPO1): Open elevation data; source attribution retained.
- Wikidata (lengths, areas, countries and other facts): CC0 1.0.
Map design and rendered images: Atlas of Maps, CC BY 4.0. Source databases retain their own licenses; the map license does not replace them.
Maps of the countries: Turkmenistan. Compare with the world mountain ranges map.
Frequently asked questions
How big is the Karakum Desert?
About 400,000 km² (154,000 sq mi).
Where is the Karakum Desert?
The Karakum Desert is in Turkmenistan.
Can I download a blank map of the Karakum Desert?
Yes. The blank version keeps the relief, rivers and borders and the highlighted desert but removes the place names. Both versions are free to download as PNG and as an A4 PDF.
Use this map
You can download, print and share this map for free, in class, in school projects, in presentations and on websites, as long as you credit the source: Karakum Desert Map · Atlas of Maps (atlasofmaps.com), license CC BY 4.0.
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