November 22, 2019 - Taklamakan Desert and Kongur Tagh

A fine veil of dust shrouded the western Taklamakan Desert as snow and cloud shrouded the eastern Pamirs in late November 2019. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on board NASA’s Aqua satellite acquired a true-color image of the region on November 19.

The Taklamakan Desert occupies the Tarim Basin between the Tien Shan Mountains in the north, and Kunlun Mountains in the south, with the east Pamirs touching the western edge. The lowest point of this basin is about 150 meters below sea level and it is one of the largest shifting-sand deserts on Earth. While vegetation is scarce, sand is plentiful and often is carried on the wind. The tower height of the surrounding mountains blocks air movement up slope, resulting in crisp, clear air at high elevation while the air over the Taklamakan Desert often appears murky from suspended dust and sand.

This image also captures the tallest mountain within the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of China, Kongur Tagh. At 7,649 meters (25,095 feet), Kongur Tagh is also the highest peak in the Pamirs and the nearby Kunlun Range as well. Covered by a number of large, thick glaciers, the mountain was not successfully climbed until 1981.

Image Facts
Satellite: Aqua
Date Acquired: 11/19/2019
Resolutions: 1km (623.4 KB), 500m (1.6 MB), 250m (3.1 MB)
Bands Used: 1,4,3
Image Credit: MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC