Recent flooding in China’s Taklimakan Desert, located in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, has generated significant attention on social media. A video that emerged online features vehicles navigating a waterlogged road amidst the desert, highlighting substantial water accumulation alongside the highway.
Situated in the Tarim Basin in southern Xinjiang, the Taklimakan Desert is framed by the Tianshan, Kunlun, and Altun Mountains. It typically receives an average annual rainfall of less than 100 millimeters, paired with evaporation levels reaching up to 3,000 millimeters.
Despite its arid reputation, flooding is not an unusual occurrence in this desert environment. High temperatures in early to mid-August, soaring above 35 degrees Celsius and surpassing 40 degrees Celsius locally, contributed to the melting of glaciers and snow in the mountains.
Further complicating the situation, the western parts of southern Xinjiang experienced substantial rainfall, particularly in mountainous areas, leading to mixed flooding, according to Lv Xinsheng, an expert from the Xinjiang Meteorological Bureau. During the period from August 20 to 24, several tributaries of the Tarim River exceeded flood warning levels, resulting in water inundating the sand dunes.
While local residents have noted on social media that the increased water levels may aid the recovery of desert vegetation, experts suggest that the overall arid nature of the Taklimakan Desert remains unchanged. The desert’s capacity for retaining water is limited, as water seeps quickly into the ground.