EPOW - Ecology Picture of the Week

Green Gobi

Gobi Desert
Mongolia

Explanation:  Half way between Ulaanbaatar and Dalanzadgad, in south central Mongolia, I was surprised to see how green the Gobi Desert appeared!  

This is high steppe country in central Asia.  And here, at the end of July, the grasslands were still retaining enough moisture to paint the plains a verdant green, save for the sinuous dirt tracks left by vehicles.  

But despite the greenery, studies are predicting that deserts of the world will expand under climate change, including the Sahara, the Kalahari, the Great Sandy Desert ... and the Gobi.  

Information:
     Zeng, N., and J. Yoon. 2009. Expansion of the world's deserts due to vegetation-albedo feedback under global warming. Geophysical Research Letters 36(17):https://doi.org/10.1029/2009GL039699.