Gobi Desert Facts: Location And Size

Gobi Desert Facts

The Gobi Desert is situated in Mongolia and China (two east Asian states). The Gobi Desert is a largest desert in Asia which is surrounded by mountains from north to south and from east to west. It covers parts of northern and northwestern China, and of southern Mongolia. The area of Gobi Desert is 1,295,000 km². According to its size, it is the fifth largest desert in the world. There is Da Hinggan Range to the east, Tien Shan to the west, Altai and Hangayn Mountains to the north and Qilian and Bei to the South.

The Uniqueness of Gobi Desert:

The uniqueness of Gobi desert lies in the continental climate, bare rocks, underground drainage and vast barren area. The weather remains warm in summer and too cold in winter and because of this change in weather snow fall also occurs in this desert. It is observed by the scientists that contrary to the large sand dunes of Sahara Desert, this desert is mostly covered with bare rocks and travelling on a car is easier on this rocky surface.

Flora And Fauna:

The plants are sparsely populated because of the hard climatic conditions but in the middle of the desert there is more plantation and some of the perennial plant species like timuriya are also present. Nomadic cattle raising is the widely adopted profession of most of the local population. The most common livestock in the Gobi is the cashmere goat which is raised for wool and meat purposes.

Unidentified Structures Spotted by Google:

Some mapping services like Google Earth have spotted huge and unidentified structures in Gobi desert. These are assumed as security and research centers by China for military purposes. These structures are not clearly identified but many experts, who regard it to be the optical test ranges for nuclear technology.

Currently the Gobi desert is not only a plain desert but also a natural reservoir for various rare animal species including various types of gazelles, cats, camels and birds which are maintained by various natural park authorities of Mongolia and china.

Gobi Desert China