Formation and evolution of sand deserts in Xinjiang, Northwest China : II. The palaeo-environmental reconstruction

Auteur(s) et Affiliation(s)

ZHU, B.

Key Lab. of Water Cycle and Related Land Surface Processes, Inst. of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, CAS, Beijing, Chine

YU, J.

Key Lab. of Water Cycle and Related Land Surface Processes, Inst. of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, CAS, Beijing, Chine

Q., X.

Key Lab. of Cenozoic Geology and Environment, Inst. of Geology and Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, Chine

RIOUAL, P.

Key Lab. of Cenozoic Geology and Environment, Inst. of Geology and Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, Chine

ZHANG, Y.

Key Lab. of Water Cycle and Related Land Surface Processes, Inst. of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, CAS, Beijing, Chine

XIONG, H.

Key Lab. of Oasis Ecology, Ministry of Education, Urumqi, Chine

Description :
Based on the palaeoclimatic and palaeoenvironmental evidences of geological history and human history periods, this paper reviews the researches and progresses on the development of the sandy deserts in Xinjiang. The regional patterns of climate and environment since the Quaternary were characterized by the overall persistent drought accompanied by fluctuations in the secondary scale. Evidences from aeolian deposits/rocks at the edge and in the hinterland of these sandy deserts and their chronological data indicate that an arid climate and land surface aeolian processes have occurred at the edge of the Tarim Basin and its hinterland areas since the Tertiary period. However, the duration time of these processes at mass scale should have begun after the middle Pleistocene and lasted to the Holocene. Occurrence of dune fields in recent 2000 years in the oasis areas should be greatly influenced by human factors.

Type de document :
Article de périodique

Source :
Journal of geographical sciences. Acta geographica sinica, issn : 1009-637X, 2014, vol. 24, n°. 3, p. 539-559, nombre de pages : 21, Références bibliographiques : 73 ref.

Date :
2014

Editeur :
Pays édition : Chine

Langue :
Anglais