Dust transports over Central Asia and northern China
Interaction of global wind systems at two interconnected deserts in Eastern China – Badain Jaran and Tengger Shamo deserts, are major source of sand and sediments dust transport over Central Asia and northern China.
Tengger Desert covers about 36,700 km2 and is mostly in the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region in China. The Badain Jaran Desert spans the provinces of Gansu, Ningxia and Inner Mongolia. It covers an area of 49,000 sq. kilometers (19,000 sq. miles). This desert is home to the tallest stationary dunes on Earth. Some of the dunes reach a height of 500 meters (1,600 ft.). The dunes are kept in place in the arid, windy region by an underground water source. Analyses of the ground water indicates that it is snowmelt that flows through fractured rock from mountains hundreds of kilometers away.
Satellite image shows region of Tengger and Badain Jaran deserts in China on April 25, 2013 (Credit: MODIS/EarthSnapshot)
Source: EarthSnapshot
Featured image credit: EarthSnapshot
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