A Chinese desert of colossal megadunes cradling dozens of bright blue and green desert lakes.
Area
49,000 km²
Continent
Asia
Location
Inner Mongolia & Gansu, China
Temperature
Hot summers, cold winters
Rainfall
Under 120 mm a year
Climate
Cold desert
About the Badain Jaran Desert
The Badain Jaran holds the tallest stationary sand dunes in the world, with Bilutu Peak rising about 500 metres from its base. Astonishingly, more than a hundred small lakes dot the hollows between these megadunes, fed by underground springs — a surreal sight of water amid towering sand. Some dunes even “sing” as the sand slides.
Did you know?
It has the tallest stationary sand dunes on Earth — some rise around 500 metres.
Highlights
- The tallest stationary dunes on Earth
- Over 100 lakes between the dunes
- Dunes that “sing” as sand moves
Photo gallery
Life in the Badain Jaran Desert
Animals, birds and plants that have adapted to survive this landscape.
Animals
Bactrian camel
The two-humped camel of Central Asia, built for freezing cold-desert winters.
Jerboa
A tiny hopping rodent with long hind legs, bounding like a mini-kangaroo.
Birds
Houbara bustard
A well-camouflaged desert bird of Arabia and Central Asia.
Trees & plants
Saxaul
A gnarled Central-Asian tree that anchors shifting cold-desert sands.
Day & night in the Badain Jaran Desert
Deserts are famous for their extreme temperature swings. Flip between day and night to feel the difference — these are typical figures for a cold desert.
Midday sun
+32°C
typical daytime high
Hot or mild summer days swing to bitterly cold nights, and winters can stay far below freezing — these deserts see some of the biggest temperature ranges on Earth.
Recorded range for the Badain Jaran Desert: Hot summers, cold winters