eli5: why does it get so cold in the desert at night.

Question

Let’s take the Sahara for example, it’s a lot closer to the equator, yet at night temperatures fall to -4c (25f). Yet in the uk which is a lot further away from the equator, the night temperatures are around 15c (60f) during the summer. Why is this?

In: 97

Answer 1

Clouds act like a blanket for the earth, keeping it warm at night. Clouds are made out of water droplets. Since there is no water in the desert, it has no blanket at night and so it gets really cold.