Aralkum Desert
LocationKazakhstan/Uzbekistan
ContinentAsia
TypeArid
About Aralkum Desert
The youngest desert on Earth, formed on the exposed bed of the shrinking Aral Sea. Soviet irrigation schemes diverted the Amu Darya and Syr Darya rivers to grow cotton from the 1960s. Rusting ships sit stranded in sand near Moynaq. Dust storms carry salt and farm chemicals across Central Asia. Saxaul shrubs are being planted to stabilize the old seabed.
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