Badain Jaran Desert

Badain Jaran Desert Chinese: pinyin:
Desert
Country	China
Provinces of China	Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, Gansu Province, Ningxia Province
Landmarks	Badain Jilin Temple, Khara Khoto
Area	49,000 km2 (18,919 sq mi)
Biome	Desert
The Badain Jaran lies in the People's Republic of China as a section of the Gobi Desert.

Coordinates: 40°4′21″N 102°12′36″E / 40.07250°N 102.21000°E / 40.07250; 102.21000

The Badain Jaran Desert (Chinese: ; pinyin: ) is a desert in China which spans the provinces of Gansu, Ningxia and Inner Mongolia. It covers an area of 49,000 square kilometres (19,000 sq mi). By size it is the third largest desert in China.

This desert is home to some of the tallest stationary dunes on Earth, with some reaching a height of more than 500 meters (1,600 ft), although most average at around 200 meters (660 ft). Its tallest dune is also measured, from base to peak, as the world's third tallest dune and highest stationary dune in the world.

The desert also features over 100 spring-fed lakes that lie between the dunes, some of which are fresh water while others are extremely saline. These lakes give the desert its name which is Mongolian for "mysterious lakes". It is also crossed by one river, the Ruo Shui ("weak water"), which has formed an alluvial plain in the desert.

Measuring over 49,000 square kilometres (19,000 sq mi), the Badain Jaran Desert covers a significant part of the south-central part of the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region as well as the North part of Gansu province. Located in the Alxa Plateau at about 1200 meters above sea level it is listed as a subsection to the Gobi Desert. It is bound to the north by the Gobi and to the East by Mount Lang which separates it from the Ulan Buh Desert (Pinyin: wū lán bù hé shā mò Chinese: 乌兰布和沙漠)