What are the natural features of Gobi?

1. There is little or no rain all the year round, and the average annual precipitation is usually not less than 250 mm. The precipitation is intermittent, and the more it goes to the center of the desert, the less it is.

2. The daily range of air temperature and ground temperature is larger than that of annual range, and it is usually sunny for a long time.

3. Sandstorms are frequent, the surface is dry and bare, and gravel is easily blown up, which often forms sandstorms, especially in winter. Oasis will appear in desert areas with abundant water resources, which has a unique ecological environment and is conducive to life and production.

Speaking of the topography of the Gobi, it is composed of Gashun Gobi, Junggar Gobi and Outer Altai Gobi in the west, East Gobi in the middle and east (namely Mongolian Gobi) and Alashan Desert in the south.

Gazhun Gobi starts from Tianshan branch in the west and reaches Beishan in the south, with an altitude of1.524m (5,000ft). It is gentle and undulating, with a complex labyrinth of wide depressions, separated by flat-topped hills and sometimes rock ridges more than 90 meters above the plain. Although the salt marsh is in a closed depression, the desert is stony and waterless. The soil is grayish brown and contains gypsum.

Outside the Altai Gobi, the northern and eastern parts are branches of Altai Mountain in Mongolia and Altai Mountain in Gobi respectively, and the southern part is Beishan Mountain. The plain is steep and rugged. Extending to the vast mountainous area on the plain 10 km (6 miles), next to the plain and low dome. These mountains are barren and separated by dry valleys. The western section of the Gobi in the outer Altai is basically a plain, but there are small uplift areas scattered on it, cut by the dry river bed and large salt marshes. In the middle, the degree of fragmentation is increasing, terraces (hills with flat top and steep sides) appear together with dry ditches, and flat depressions at both ends are covered with clay layers. Outside the Altai Gobi, the average annual precipitation is less than 100 mm (4 inches), but there is always water underground. But there are actually no wells and springs here, and the vegetation is scarce, which is almost useless to livestock.

Junggar Gobi is located in the north of Gashun Gobi, between the Shandong branch of Mongolian Altai and the easternmost tip of Tianshan Mountain. It is very similar to the Altai Gobi, and its edge is divided by ravines, hills and low ridges.

Alashan Desert is located on the border between China and Mongolia in the north, the Yellow River and Helan Mountain in the east, Qilian Mountain in the south and the northern section of Heihe River in the west. It consists of a vast and almost barren plain, and the terrain is also uplifted from northwest to southeast. In this vast desert, large areas are covered with sand.

The characteristics of the East Gobi are similar to those of the western region, with an altitude of 70 1 1 524 meters (23,005,000 feet), but its precipitation is slightly higher-reaching 203 mm (8 inches) per year-but there are no rivers. Groundwater is abundant and only partially mineralized. Groundwater is also close to the surface, providing water for small lakes and springs. However, the vegetation is sparse, mainly composed of wormwood in rough taupe soil. Salt marshes and grass marshes are common in wet depressions. In the northern and eastern peripheral areas, there is a lot of precipitation, and the desert landscape gradually becomes less harsh, sometimes even like a prairie.