巴丹吉林沙漠

A desert in Inner Mongolia

The Badain Jaran Desert (巴丹吉林沙漠) is the third largest desert in China. It covers a large area of the south-central part of the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, and also parts of the Gansu and Ningxia provinces. It has an area of 49,000 square kilometers. Although it is considered part of the Gobi Desert, it is usually referred to as an independent entity.

The desert has some of the tallest stationary dunes on Earth, with some reaching a height up to 500 meters, so called “megadunes”. The desert has around 140 lakes. Some are fresh water while others are extremely saline. Although their true sources are still debated it is believed that they are being maintained by underground water streams.

The Badain Jaran desert is still home to a few nomads. They have traditionally kept animals like goats and camels. However, the number of nomads and animals are in decline.

The Badain Jaran Desert has a small Tibetan-Buddhist temple, the Badain Jaran Desert Temple. The temple was built in 1868. It has survived untouched by the Cultural Revolution and other unrest that has destroyed many temples in China.

The Badain Jaran desert is on the UNESCO World Heritage List tentative list.

See also the image captions for some additional information.

Test test XXX Badain Jaran