What is the geography of Taklamakan?
The Golmud-Korla Railway crosses the Taklamakan as well. Named areas in the desert include Ha-la-ma, A-lang-ha and Mai-k'o-tsa-k'o. [17] The Mazartag mountains are located in the western part of the desert. Because it lies in the rain shadow of the Himalayas, Taklamakan has a cold desert climate.
Why did the Chinese conquer the Taklamakan Desert?
Later, the Taklamakan was inhabited by Turkic peoples. Starting with the Han Dynasty, the Chinese sporadically extended their control to the oasis cities of the Taklamakan Desert in order to control the important silk route trade across Central Asia. Periods of Chinese rule were interspersed with rule by Turkic,...
Where is the Takla Makan desert?
Takla Makan Desert. Written By: Takla Makan Desert, Chinese (Pinyin) Taklimakan Shamo or (Wade-Giles romanization) T’a-k’o-la-ma-kan Sha-mo, great desert of Central Asia and one of the largest sandy deserts in the world. The Takla Makan occupies the central part of the Tarim Basin in the Uygur Autonomous Region of Xinjiang, western China.
What is the average annual rainfall in the Taklamakan Desert?
Lack of Rainfall Wang Yue and Dong Guangrun of the Desert Research Institute in Lanzhou, China, say that in the Taklamakan Desert the average annual rainfall is less than 40 mm (1.57 inches).
How did the Taklamakan Desert impact China?
Ancient China was bordered by two of the world's largest deserts: the Gobi Desert to the north and northwest and the Takla Makan Desert to the west. These two deserts helped to protect China from outside invaders, but they also limited Chinese expansion.
Why is the Taklimakan Desert important?
As the world's second largest sand sea and one of the most important dust sources to the global aerosol system, the formation of the Taklimakan Desert marks a major environmental event in central Asia during the Cenozoic.
Is the Taklamakan Desert related to Chinese geography?
Takla Makan Desert, Chinese (Pinyin) Taklimakan Shamo or (Wade-Giles romanization) T'a-k'o-la-ma-kan Sha-mo, great desert of Central Asia and one of the largest sandy deserts in the world. The Takla Makan occupies the central part of the Tarim Basin in the Uygur Autonomous Region of Xinjiang, western China.
Why was Taklamakan Desert formed?
The final retreat of the Paratethys Sea from Central Asia as well as uplift of the Tibetan Plateau changed the regional land-sea thermal balance and contributed to the aridification that resulted in formation of the Taklamakan desert (Zhang et al., 2007, Zheng et al., 2015).
What is China's largest desert?
Taklamakan DesertTaklamakan DesertArea337,000 km2 (130,000 sq mi)GeographyCountryChinaState/ProvinceXinjiang13 more rows
Why is the Taklamakan desert called the Sea of Death?
China, 2009. The 'Sea of Death' is the not so affectionate name that has been given by the Chinese people to the Taklamakan desert, a desert of such epic proportions and intimidating size, that its name in the local Uygur language translates as 'You can go in, but you will never come out'.
What effect might the Taklamakan Desert have had on trade between China and the west?
What effect might the Takalmaka feature have had on trade between China and the west? This could stop invaders and other countries trying to get in. It could also stop things like strong winds and tsunamis.
What was ancient China surrounded by?
The large land was isolated from much of the rest of the world by dry deserts to the north and west, the Pacific Ocean to the east, and impassable mountains to the south.
What are the two largest deserts in China?
In the middle of the Tarim Basin is the Taklamakan Desert, the largest shifting sand desert in China. Bounded by Tianshan on the south, the Junggar Basin, China's second largest inland basin, covers an area of 130,000 square kilometers, with China's second largest desert, the Gurbantunggut Desert, in the center.
What is the Taklamakan desert known as?
Nicknamed, 'The Sea of Death', the Taklamakan is the second largest non-polar sand-shifting desert in the world. It is thought that the name 'Taklamakan' was derived from the Uighur language, in which it means 'you can get in, but you can't get out'.
How old is the Taklamakan desert?
3.5 million years agoIt covers an area of 337,000 km2, and as much as 85% of it consists of shifting sand dunes. There are many different opinions about the age of the Taklimakan Desert, ranging from 3.5 million years ago (Ma) (1) to the middle Pleistocene (2).
What is the Taklamakan Desert nickname?
The Sea of Death.The constantly shifting sands and extreme weather conditions of the region has earned the desert the foreboding nickname of "The Sea of Death." While the nickname for the desert reflects the harsh conditions of life on the sand, more accurate etymological traces of the name translate Takla Makan as something closer to ...
What is the Taklamakan desert known as?
Nicknamed, 'The Sea of Death', the Taklamakan is the second largest non-polar sand-shifting desert in the world. It is thought that the name 'Taklamakan' was derived from the Uighur language, in which it means 'you can get in, but you can't get out'.
Which desert is known as the Sea of Death?
Taklimakan DesertBrief Introduction: Taklimakan Desert, located in the Talimu Basin, Xinjiang, is the second largest desert in the world, and is called as “the Sea of Death”.
What is the Taklamakan Desert nickname?
The Sea of Death.The constantly shifting sands and extreme weather conditions of the region has earned the desert the foreboding nickname of "The Sea of Death." While the nickname for the desert reflects the harsh conditions of life on the sand, more accurate etymological traces of the name translate Takla Makan as something closer to ...
Why are the Kunlun Mountains important to China?
According to Chinese mythology and legend, Kunlun Mountain is the residence for Xiwangmu, the living-forever goddess in charge of marriage, fertility and who protects women.
How big is the Taklamakan Desert?
The Taklamakan Desert is an inhospitable approximately 1000x500 km (193,051 sq. mi.) oval. It is far from any ocean, and so hot, dry, and cold, by turns, with shifting sand dunes covering 85% of the surface, propelled by northerly winds, and sandstorms.
What does Taklamakan mean?
In the Uigur language, Taklamakan may mean 'you can get into it but can never get out, ' according to Travel Guide China. We can't verify whether or not the translation is accurate, but the label fits such a large, dry, dangerous place for humans and most animals.
Where is the largest desert in the world?
One of the world's largest deserts, the Taklamakan, is located in the northwest region of modern China, in Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region. There are oases located on two routes around the desert that served as important trading spots on the Silk Road. Along the north, the route went by the Tien Shan Mountains and along the south, the Kunlun Mountains of the Tibetan Plateau. Economist André Gunder Frank, who traveled along the northern route with UNESCO, says the southern route was most used in ancient times. It joined up with the northern route at Kashgar to head into India/Pakistan, Samarkand, and Bactria.
What countries are around the Tian Shan?
While it is in China, and bordered by various mountain ranges (Kunlun, Pamir, and Tian Shan), there are other countries around it: Tibet, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Pakistan, and India.
Which route was most used in ancient times?
Economist André Gunder Frank, who traveled along the northern route with UNESCO, says the southern route was most used in ancient times. It joined up with the northern route at Kashgar to head into India/Pakistan, Samarkand, and Bactria.
What are the mountains in the Takla Makan Desert?
The Takla Makan Desert is flanked by high mountain ranges: the Tien Shan to the north, the Kunlun Mountains to the south, and the Pamirs to the west.
Where is the Takla Makan Desert?
The Takla Makan occupies the central part of the Tarim Basin in the Uygur Autonomous Region of Xinjiang, western China.
What are the physical features of Takla Makan?
Physical features. The Takla Makan is flanked by high mountain ranges: the Tien Shan to the north, the Kunlun Mountains to the south, and the Pamirs to the west. There is a gradual transition to the Lop Nur basin in the east; in the south and west, between the sandy desert and the mountains, lies a band of sloping desert lowland composed ...
How are the Takla Makan dunes formed?
The relief consists of a variety of eolian (wind-formed) topographic features and variously shaped sand dunes. These eolian sand dunes were formed through the weathering of the alluvial and colluvial deposits of the Tarim Basin and of the foothill plains of the Kunluns and eastern Tien Shan. The size of the larger sand-dune chains is considerable: they range from 100 to 500 feet (30 to 150 metres) in height and 800 to 1,650 feet (240 to 500 metres) in width, with a distance between the chains of 0.5 to 3 miles (1 to 5 km). The highest eolian topographic forms are the pyramidal dunes, rising 650 to 1,000 feet (200 to 300 metres). In the eastern and central parts of the desert, networks of hollow dunes and large, complex sand-dune chains predominate. They also are common in the western portion of the desert (east of the Hotan River valley), where transverse and longitudinal (with respect to the wind) topographic forms coexist. On the edge of the desert, semipermanent, clustered sand dunes with tamarisk and nitre bushes—as well as clayey regions with disconnected sand dunes—predominate. Such a diversity in eolian features is a result of the complex wind conditions of the basin.
What is the Takla Makan?
The Takla Makan is flanked by high mountain ranges: the Tien Shan to the north, the Kunlun Mountains to the south, and the Pamirs to the west. There is a gradual transition to the Lop Nur basin in the east; in the south and west, between the sandy desert and the mountains, lies a band of sloping desert lowland composed of pebble-detritus deposits.
How high are the Mazartag Mountains?
Some 90 miles (145 km) long and 2 to 3 miles (3 to 5 km) wide, and with a maximum height of 5,363 feet (1,635 metres), they rise an average of only 1,000 to 1,150 feet (300 to 350 metres) above the surface of the sandy plain. Nearby is another insular range, surrounded on all sides by massifs of moving sands; Rosstagh Mountain, also known as Tokhtakaz Mountain, reaches an elevation of 5,117 feet (1,560 metres), and the range rises from 600 to 800 feet (180 to 240 metres) above the plain. Both ranges are covered by a shallow mantle of eluvium and rock debris and have sparse, desert-type vegetation. In the north the sands of the Takla Makan form a clear boundary with the vegetated Tarim River valley.
How far does the Hotan River drain into the desert?
The rivers draining the Kunlun Mountains penetrate about 60 to 120 miles (100 to 200 km) into the desert, gradually drying up in the sands. Only the Hotan River crosses the centre of the desert and, in summer, occasionally carries its waters to the Tarim River. Load Next Page.
Why did the Chinese rule the Taklamakan Desert?
Starting with the Han Dynasty, the Chinese sporadically extended their control to the oasis cities of the Taklamakan Desert in order to control the important silk route trade across Central Asia. Periods of Chinese rule were interspersed with rule by Turkic, Mongol and Tibetan peoples.
How big is the Taklamakan Desert?
The Taklamakan Desert has an area of 337,000 km 2 (130,000 sq mi), making it slightly smaller than Germany and is part of the Tarim Basin, which is 1,000 kilometres (620 mi) long and 400 kilometres (250 mi) wide. It is crossed at its northern and at its southern edge by two branches of the Silk Road as travellers sought to avoid the arid wasteland.
What is the name of the railway that crosses the Taklamakan?
The Golmud-Korla Railway crosses the Taklamakan as well. Named areas in the desert include Ha-la-ma, A-lang-ha and Mai-k'o-tsa-k'o. The Mazartag mountains are located in the western part of the desert.
What does the name Taklamakan mean?
In folk etymology, it is said to mean "Place of No Return", more commonly interpreted as "once you get in, you'll never get out" or similar.
How high are dunes in China?
Dunes range in altitude from 60 feet (18 m) up to as much as 300 feet (91 m). The few breaks in this sea of sand are small patches of alluvial clay. Generally, the steeper sides of the dunes face away from the prevailing winds. The People's Republic of China has constructed two cross-desert highways.
Why is the desert expanding?
In recent years, the desert has expanded in some areas, its sands enveloping farms and villages as a result of desertification .
Why is the Silk Road crossed?
It is crossed at its northern and at its southern edge by two branches of the Silk Road as travellers sought to avoid the arid wasteland. It is the world's second largest shifting sand desert with about 85% made up of shifting sand dunes ranking 16th in size in a ranking of the world's largest deserts.
Where Is The Taklamakan Desert?
Map of Asia showing the Taklamakan Desert. Image credit: TheDrive/Wikimedia Commons
Which desert is bigger, the Taklamakan or the Finland?
One of the largest deserts in the world, the Taklamakan Desert covers an area that’s almost the size of Finland and is only slightly smaller than Germany.
What is the Kumtag Desert?
Kumtag Desert, a section of the wider Taklamakan Desert, and part of the Tarim Basin. Image credit: Sirio Carnevalino/Shutterstock.com
What was the clothing of the Taklamakan Desert made of?
Analysis of their clothes shows that the fabric of their clothing was made from a kind of wool that’s typical of European sheep. The dry and salty conditions of the Taklamakan desert preserved the bodies and their clothing as well as the artifacts they were buried with.
How tall are the dunes in the desert?
Most of the dunes here have an average height of 100-200m while others can go as tall as 200m. According to UNESCO, the continuously shifting nature of the sand in the desert has extended Taklamakan to about 100 km southward during the last thousand years.
How tall are the dunes in Taklamakan?
Most of the dunes here have an average height of 100-200m while others can go as tall as 200m.
Where is Tuyuk in the desert?
People Of Taklamakan. Tuyoq or Tuyugou or Tuyuk is an ancient oasis-village in the Taklamakan desert. Image credit: Lao Ma/Shutterstock.com. The small village of Yatongusi is located 10 kilometers off the desert road and was built around a tiny oasis.
Lack of Rainfall
Bordering Countries
- While it is in China, and bordered by various mountain ranges (Kunlun, Pamir, and Tian Shan), there are other countries around it: Tibet, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Pakistan, and India.
Ancient Inhabitants
- People would have lived there comfortably 4000 years ago. Mummies were found in the region, perfectly preserved by the arid conditions, are presumed to be Indo-European-speaking Caucasians. Science, in a 2009 article, reports:
Silk Road Trade Routes
- One of the world's largest deserts, the Taklamakan, is located in the northwest region of modern China, in Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region. There are oases located on two routes around the desert that served as important trading spots on the Silk Road. Along the north, the route went by the Tien Shan Mountains and along the south, the Kunlun Moun...