ENVIRONMENTAL EVOLUTION OF ORDOS DESERT IN CHINA SINCE 1.1MA B. P. AS INDICATED BY YULIN STRATIGRAPHICAL SECTION AND ITS GRAIN-SIZE ANALYSIS RESULTS

Yulin section is a typical sedimentary record for reflecting the environmental evolution of Ordos Desert, China in the past 1.1Ma. By analyzing its sequence and grain-size composition some views have been put forward in this paper as follows. The layers of sand, loess and palaeosol in Yulin section were respectively formed by wind and the pedogenesis on parent material of the sand and loess. Since 1.1Ma B. P., Ordos Desert has alternately experienced 11 stages of shifting dunes under extreme cold-dry climatic environment, 7 stages of fixed and semi-fixed dunes and 8 stages of dust (loess) under cold-dry climatic condition; and the pedogenesis environment under 15 times of warm-humid climate and 3 times of temperate-humid climate (brownish-drab soils and black soils formed respectively). The aeolian sand had already existed in Ordos Desert at latest by 1.1Ma B. P., and from that time on it has undergone a series of alternative processes of shifting sands, fixed and semi-fixed dunes, loess and soils. Ordos Desert has been situated in the transitional belt of the Mongolian High Pressure and margin of the southeast summer monsoon since 1.1Ma B. P., and influenced repeatedly by migration of the lithofacies belts of shifting sands, fixed and semi-fixed dunes, loess and soils, which have been caused by the climatic fluctuations of glacial and interglacial periods.

Studying surface structure in desert areas using multiple kinds of surface wave data

Shallow surface wave methods are mostly used for investigation of the surface velocity structure in environmental and engineering geophysics in non-desert areas. For the special geological features of the Takelamagan Desert area, we use the multi-channel analysis of surface wave （MASW） method to process multi-channel shallow surface wave records to determine the near surface velocity structure in the desert area. We also process, analyze, and compare the surface waves in many-trace records extracted from the oil exploration shot gathers in the area. We show that the MASW method can determine detailed shallow velocity structure in desert areas and the many-trace records can be used to get detailed deep geological structure. The combination of the two different datasets can obtain the exact velocity structure upper 60 m depth in the survey area.

Estimation of the Land Surface Emissivity in the Hinterland of Taklimakan Desert

An accurate accounting of land surface emissivity(ε) is important both for the retrieval of surface temperatures and the calculation of the longwave surface energy budgets.Since ε is one of the important parameterizations in land surface models(LSMs),accurate accounting also improves the accuracy of surface temperatures and sensible heat fluxes simulated by LSMs.In order to obtain an accurate emissivity,this paper focuses on estimating ε from data collected in the hinterland of Taklimakan Desert by two different methods.In the first method,ε was derived from the surface broadband emissivity in the 8–14 μm thermal infrared atmospheric window,which was determined from spectral radiances observed by field measurements using a portable Fourier transform infrared spectrometer,the mean ε being 0.9051.The second method compared the observed and calculated heat fluxes under nearneutral atmospheric stability and estimated ε indirectly by minimizing the root-mean-square difference between them.The result of the second method found a mean value of 0.9042,which is consistent with the result by the first method.Although the two methods recover ε from different field experiments and data,the difference of meanvalues is 0.0009.The first method is superior to the indirect method,and is also more convenient.

Mine rocky desertification： Another type of rocky desertification coexisting with Karst rocky desertification in Karst region

Mine rocky desertification is another type of rocky desertification which coexists with Karst rocky desertification, suggested firstly by professor SONG Jian-bo, Guizhou University. Mine rocky desertification is a process and result that the earth＇s surface is similar to desert landscapes after rock is exposed gradually, owing to mine wastes discharged at will which consist of waste residue, waste liquid and waste gas. On the basis of introducing Karst rocky desertification simply, we clarify the concept of Mine rocky desertification systemically, analyze its danger and compare the differences between Mine rocky desertification and Karst rocky desertification. Finally, we make preliminary discussion on the study significance of comprehensive treatment of Mine rocky desertification

The analysis of water vapor distribution over Taklimakan Desert

Up to now, all analysis of the distribution of water vapor over the Taklimakan desert area only depends on limited ground measurements and radio soundings setting mostly on the outer margin area. This paper establishes an approach to retrieve the water vapor over the desert at high temporal and spatial resolutions by the use of FY2C geostationary satellite split-window channels in cooperation with ground-based GPS water vapor measurement. Results show that the water vapor distribution over the Taklimakan desert is affected highly by topography and surface properties. The outer margin area has generally more water vapor than the inner area. Over the outer margin area, the western part has more water vapor than the eastern part, and the northern part has more than the southern part. The driest area lies to the south of Tazhong, east of Hotan River, and extended to the south boundary of the desert. Similar to elsewhere, water vapor over the desert area shows diurnal, monthly, seasonal and annual variations even at the driest inner area of the desert. In summer, the water vapor is transported from west to east over a long distance along the westerlies at a height between 700-400 hPa and with the average speed of 50 km h-1.