Translated from the Mongolian “Gobi” Earth without water or wasteland. This desert is the largest in Asia, with a total area of about 1.3 million square kilometers. Gobi and, as it was called the Shamo desert in ancient times, spread its borders from the mountain massifs of Tien Shan and Altai to the ridges of the North Chinese plateau, in the north, smoothly turning into the endless Mongol steppes, resting in the south into the valley r. Huanghe.
Gobi for many centuries was the border of the inhabited world with a very harsh climate. But nevertheless, she continued to attract the seekers of adventures and romantics. Beauty, fashioned by nature from rocks, salt marshes and sand, makes this desert one of the most amazing in the world.
Climate
The Gobi desert is a very harsh climate that has not changed for tens of millions of years. Gobi is at an altitude of about nine hundred to one and a half thousand meters above the sea. The summer temperature here rises above fortyfive degrees, and in winter it can fall to minus forty. In addition to such temperatures in the desert, strong cold winds, sandy and dust storms are not rare in the desert. Legs between day and night temperature can reach 35 degrees.
Surprisingly, a lot of up to 200 millimeters falls in this desert. Most of the precipitation falls in the form of shortterm rains in the period from May to September. In winter, a lot of snow is brought from the mountains of Southern Siberia, which is melting, moisturizes the soil. In the southern regions of the climate desert, more humid thanks to the Musson brought from the Pacific Ocean.
Plants
Gobi in its own way is diverse by Flora. Most often in the desert there are such plants as:
Saxaul shrub or a small tree with many crooked branches. It is considered one of the best types of fuel in the world.
Karagana shrub up to 5 meters high. From the bark of this shrub used to get paint. Now they are used as a decorative plant or to strengthen slopes.
Rowman, another name Tamarisk is an evergreen shrub or a small tree. It grows mainly along the rivers, but it can also be found on the sandbags of Gobi.
Moving deep into the desert to the south, the vegetation becomes less. Lichens, small shrubs and other lowgrowing plants begin to prevail. Bright representatives of the southern territories are rhubarb, Astrag, Selitryanka, thermopsis and others.
Rhubarb
Astragalus
Selitryanka
Thermopsis
The age of some plants reaches six hundred years.
Animals
The most striking representative of the animal world of the Gobi desert is Bactrian (twohumped camel).
Bactrian twohumped camel
Thick wool is distinguished by this camel, which is very much appreciated around the world.
The second most popular representative of the fauna is the horse of Przhevalsky.
It also has a fairly thick pile, which allows you to survive in harsh desert conditions.
And, of course, the most amazing representative of the animal world of the Gobi desert Mazalai or the Gobi Brown Bear.
The south of the Great Goby Reserve is the habitat of Mazalai. This bear is listed in the Red Book and be under the protection of the state, since there are about 30 individuals in the world in total.
Also in the deserts in a wide variety, lizards, rodents (in particular hamsters), snakes, spidershaped live (the most famous representative camel spider), foxes, hares and hedgehog live.
A camel spider
Birds
Feathered world, also diverse brefs, steppe cranes, eagles, vultures, sarychi.
Bustard
Steppe crane
Eagle
Vulture
Sarych
Location
Gobi desert is located at about the same latitudes as central Europe, as well as the northern part of the United States. The desert affects the two countries-the southern part of Mongolia and the north of the northwest of China. It stretched almost 800 kilometers wide and 1.5 thousand kilometers in length.
Desert map
Relief
The relief of the desert is diverse. These are sandbags, dry mountain slopes, and stone steppes, saxaul forests, rocky hills and riverbeds, which have been dry for many years. Dunes occupy only five percent of the entire desert, the main part is occupied by cliffs.
Scientists distinguish five regions:
Interesting Facts
- The Chinese call this Han Khal or the dry sea desert, which is from a part, though. After all, once the territory of the Gobi desert was the bottom of the ancient Ocean Tesis.
- Gobi area is approximately equal to the total area of Spain, France and Germany.
- It is also worth noting that interesting fact that ¼ of all the found remains of dinosaurs on the planet were discovered precisely in Gobi.
- Like any desert, Gobi over time increases its areas and, in order to avoid the loss of pastures, Chinese authorities planted a green Chinese wall of trees.
- The Great Silk Road, passing from China to Europe passed through the territory of the Gobi desert and it was the most impassable site.
