Snow and Sand in Asia

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Text, Earth Watch, Exploring the blue planet by satellite. Earth Observatory. Earth Observatory dot nasa dot gov. Operational Land Imager, Landsat 8 satellite.
 
Snow and Sand in Asia. December 5, 2018. The Tien Shan is one of the longest continuous mountain ranges in the world, stretching across 2,500 kilometers, 1,500 miles of northwestern China, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan. The image is oriented so north points to the bottom left corner of the screen. The Tien Shan Mountains stretch from the top left to the bottom right of the image. Text, Sometimes called Central Asia's Water Tower, the Tien Shan Mountains hold many of Asia's major glaciers.
 
In the spring and summer, melting of ice and snow replenishes local rivers, providing essential fresh water to the region.
 
In this photograph, snow extends from peaks and valleys of the Tien Shan down toward the sand dunes of the Taklimakan Desert to the south. We travel south and the Taklimakan Desert is labeled in the top right. Text, A low-lying basin in the rain shadow of the Tien Shan and other mountain ranges, the Taklimakan remains extremely dry for most of the year.
 
The sand dunes are shaped by winds, which can be strong enough to cause major dust storms in the spring and summer.
 
Particles from the Takliman Desert can be carried eastward for vast distances across China, and even as far as the Pacific.
 
To learn more, go to earth observatory dot nasa dot gov.