Taklamakan Desert
Coverage of Taklamakan Desert in the Nexus archive.
- China’s desert mock-up rehearses a US warship’s death at sea
Satellite imagery revealed a full-scale replica of a US Navy Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer constructed in China’s Taklamakan Desert. The 155-meter mock-up, built at the Ruoqiang Test Range in Xinjiang, was completed within six months starting October 2025.
- China builds 3D, 510-foot replica of US warship in the middle of the desert
China has constructed a full 3D replica of a US Navy destroyer in the Taklamakan Desert, as shown by satellite images. The replica is 510 feet long and appears to be a detailed model of a US warship.
- ‘Totally unexpected’: China’s trial Taklamakan Desert wheat yield doubles national average
A wheat variety called Jingmai 189, developed by the Beijing Academy of Agriculture and Forestry Sciences, achieved a yield of 768kg per mu in a saline plot within China’s Taklamakan Desert, nearly doubling the 2025 national average. The trial demonstrated resilience to drought, saline soil, and nutrient-poor conditions.
- Drowning desert: how Xinjiang’s infrastructure could fail under record rain
Rare but intense rainfall in Xinjiang's Taklamakan Desert caused flooding and infrastructure damage, highlighting risks from extreme weather in arid regions. The China Weather Network reported two major flood events this month along the desert's margins, linked to warmer, wetter conditions in recent decades.