On July 25th, the Lop Nur scientific expedition team composed of experts from the comprehensive hydrology team, the plant team and the geological environment team set off from Beijing, Shijiazhuang, Qinghai and other places to meet in Korla, Xinjiang. Organized by the China Biodiversity Conservation and Green Development Foundation(CBCGDF) in 2022, the scientific expedition(Phase 3) to Lop Nur and surrounding areas was launched.

In 2020 and 2021, CBCGDF organized experts in the fields of ecology, hydrology, biology, soil, etc. to go deep into Lop Nur and its surrounding areas, where the experts inspected the three main supply rivers of Lop Nur, the Peacock River, the Tarim River and the Qarqan River Basin. A series of stage investigation results have been obtained on hydrological changes, the distribution of wild terrestrial animal and plant species, the distribution of aquatic organisms, and soil types and distribution characteristics, which have laid a solid foundation for later investigations and comprehensive analysis research.

Bird view of Turpan-Hami Basin and Junggar Basin

In order to further explore the trend of ecological change in Lop Nur under the background of global warming and humidification, CBCGDF scientific expedition will focus on investigating the changes in surface hydrology of important rivers in Lop Nur and its surrounding areas and the reasons of the changes on the basis of the previous two surveys. Based on the changes of groundwater in this area, the flora group will also conduct supplementary investigations on important areas in this area. Among the planned areas , in addition to the investigation of the Peacock River, Tarim River and Qarqan River basin, the Andil River in Minfeng County and its end point Aksu Kule Lake are areas that have not been reached by the previous two scientific expeditions. The groundwater geology in the piedmont area of Altun Mountain and the exposed conditions of the groundwater in the eastern and northern margins of Lop Nur will also be investigated in this scientific expedition.

Original Chinese Article: https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s?__biz=MzAxOTExMzM4Mg==&mid=2649699675&idx=2&sn=478e576dcbbb17e09450ebe605962da8&chksm

Translator: Nicole

Checked by Sara

Editor: Sherry

Contact the editors: v10@cbcgdf.org;  +8617319454776

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