Taklamakan Desert, China
In these images, we can admire views of Taklamakan, which in the local language means “you can enter but never leave”. Also known as the “Sea of Death”, it is one of the most inhospitable places on Earth.
Some years ago, the Chinese government implemented an ongoing programme to combat desertification at its borders. Its goals are to slow the advance of the sand dunes through tree-planting and agricultural development. With the help of experts, the local people plant poplars, willows, pomegranate and mulberry trees, and cultivate grain.
It is nothing less than a real battle against the desert. The Taklamakan is the route for extremely strong winds that continually shape the dunes on its surface. In normal conditions, these dunes are over 100 metres high and move by 160-200 metres a year, but in specific conditions, they may reach hundreds of metres in height and shift at a rate of 1-2 km a year.
The movement of such large volumes of sand risks submerging oases and entire villages. Sand storms form in the interior of the desert that often sweep across the borders and hit towns.
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image: Landsat image of the Taklamakan, China. It can be seen from these satellite
images that this desert is the route of extremely strong winds that continually shape its surface.
images that this desert is the route of extremely strong winds that continually shape its surface.
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image: This GeoEye-1 image shows an oasis in the arid Taklamakan Desert, China.
The ongoing movement of dunes and sand storms continuously threaten the existence of these oases.
The ongoing movement of dunes and sand storms continuously threaten the existence of these oases.
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