航拍中国之新疆系列英文解说（四）

文字来源：网络
朗诵：郎郎乾坤
制作：Lotus

Now, we’ll head east to the heart of the second largest desert in China.

From high above a network of golden leaf veins can be seen extending for over a dozen kilometers. The veins are actually sand ridges many ten metres high and several kilometres long.      

Unlike most deserts, which are made up of shitting sand, the southern Gurbantunggut mainly features fixed dunes. The curved sand ridges generally run from south to north. Seen from the sky, they look like branches stretching over the brown earth.

On the east side of the desert lies Kalameily. From the outside, the city seems deathly quiet. But inside lives are thriving. Onagers are the most common animal here. They gather to form vast herds when winter comes. One trusted onager takes the lead in the event of danger. It sends a warning signal. When onagers flee they maintain a steady formation behind their leader. At speeds over 60 kilometers an hour, they can even outrun a pack of wolves.

You may think this is another herd of onagers. In fact, they are the last remaining wild horses on the planet. Przewalski horses have been roamed the Earth for 60 million years. Their black calves are a key marker that distinguished them from the onagers.

At one time, Przewalskf horses had gone extinct in China. Thirty years ago, people here obtained 18 of them from abroad in exchange for several kiang wild asses. With human help the Przewalski horses have recovered their survival skills. From here, they go and live in the wilderness.

Crossing the Jungar Basin from south to north were heading towards Xinjiang’s northernmost mountain range, the Altai Mountains. Here we see the lowest snow line in China. Though just 3000 metres above sea level, the area is covered in ice and snow all year round. The 150-metre deep Koktokay Pit 3 is a treasure trove of rare metals. Of the 140 known elements on earth 86 can be found here. It’s these rare metals that helped built China’s Shenzhou spacecraft which are exploring the vast outer space.

In Mongolian language, the Altai mountains means Golden Mountains. At one point hundreds of years ago，as many as 50,000 gold prospectors used to be in the mountains. But more often this has been the home to the Northern nomadic tribes.

Ten thousand years ago people tracked their preys on snow travelling fast on ski boards fashioned out of wood and animal fur. Ancient petroglyphs found here recorded the scene vividly giving proof to the Altai Region as the one of the sources of human skiing activity.