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Across Central Asia, agricultural and agroforestry practices have been shaped by a high-modernist approach since about the 1950s, with the aim of overcoming ecological limitations. Negative repercussions of this approach still affect local developments, but a shift towards resource-conserving production systems faces constraints—many of which relate to so-called 'path dependencies', i.e. historically-evolved institutions constraining the current practices, policies and local imaginaries of (un-)sustainable land use in various ways. Drawing on case studies from agriculture and agroforestry developments in Xinjiang (China), Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan, the paper explores these mechanisms and reveals a modernisation paradigm as a major source of path dependency. Moreover, the paper highlights aspects that are sometimes overlooked in the path dependency literature on Central Asia: first, path dependency should not be confused with Soviet legacies, and second, not all agricultural policies in the past were environmentally detrimental; in fact, reviving some aspects could actually be beneficial. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Xinjiang, in Northwestern China, was a key point in the prehistoric trans-Eurasian network of exchange and played an important role in facilitating the dispersal of crops across Eurasia. Millet crops were first cultivated and used ca. 10,000 years ago in Northern China, from where they spread via different routes, leaving intriguing traces in various sites across Xinjiang. This paper presents the latest data on millet in Xinjiang. By employing a multidisciplinary approach, including radiocarbon dating, archaeobotanical evidence, and carbon isotope datasets, this study explores potential routes by which millet entered Xinjiang and traces its expansion from the third millennium BC to the 10th century AD. The research highlights the significant role of millet in shaping the ancient economies and cultures of Xinjiang and Central Asia, while also underscoring the importance of further investigation to uncover the complex pathways of its dispersal across Eurasia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As one of the pioneer palaeontologists, Professor Zhuoting Liao has contributed his lifetime to promoting palaeontological and stratigraphical research in China for 60 years, and he passed away in the field excursion in South China on June 20, 2020. In his palaeontological career, Liao has worked on Late Palaeozoic to Mesozoic palaeontology and stratigraphy of almost all regions across China, and his interests have also extended to the Permian–Triassic (P‐Tr) boundary and mass extinction. He has worked on palaeontology, palaeobiogeography, biostratigraphy, tectonostratigraphy, and their implications in mineral and oil‐gas industries. Liao has established 22 new genera and 172 new species of brachiopods, and, together with his colleagues, proposed 11 new genera and 25 new species of echinoderms. He dedicated his lifetime to work on Late Palaeozoic palaeontology and stratigraphy of the previously remote and tectonically complex Xinjiang and adjacent regions, north‐west China, and established integrated stratigraphical frameworks for the Carboniferous to Permian strata, providing fundamental basis for mineral and hydrocarbon exploration in the poorly understood Central Asian terranes. In addition, he has mentored many young palaeontologists and stratigraphers in various ways. This volume assembles 30 papers addressing the Late Palaeozoic to Mesozoic palaeontology and stratigraphy of China and adjacent regions, which pays tribute to the achievement of Professor Zhuoting Liao. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Buddhist petroglyphs of the Upper Indus area are representative of the dynamics of transcultural interaction among figurative systems in antiquity. Starting from this specific category of cultural products, this paper aims at providing new perspectives on global interactions, especially looking at the diffusion of Buddhism along the Silk Roads. The iconography of the Buddhist petroglyphs along the capillary roads of the Upper Indus area suggests that traders and pilgrims across the mountains contributed to opening up the path to the development of a Chinese Buddhist visual culture. Buddhist iconography travelled from Greater Gandhāra to China also through not-official representations such as these. The representation of Jātaka stories in the Upper Indus petroglyphs and in paintings in Kizil provides the case study for the present contribution. A final section of this paper focusses on the role of the Karakorum in the transregional contacts between the Indian Subcontinent and Chinese Central Asia, highlighting the role of Buddhism as transcultural force in this process. The circulation of Buddhist iconography functions as catalyst for change and innovation and provides fresh insights toward an integration of the Upper Indus petroglyphs into the wider phenomenon of transculturation along the ancient Silk Roads. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The evaluation of gridded precipitation products is important for the region where meteorological stations are scarce. To find out the applicable gridded precipitation products in arid Central Asia (ACA) for better follow-up research, this paper evaluated the accuracy of five long-term gridded precipitation products (GPCC, CRU, MERRA-2, ERA5-Land, and PREC/L) and two short-term products (PERSIANN-CDR and GPM IMERG) on different time scales for the whole ACA and two subregions, Central Asia (CA) and Xinjiang of China (XJ). Seven evaluation indices were used to evaluate the consistency between the seven gridded precipitation products and observations at 328 meteorological stations for 40 years from 1980 to 2019. The main findings were as follows: (1) Each product can correctly reflect the trend of decreasing annual precipitation in CA and increasing annual precipitation in XJ, except for ERA5-Land. (2) GPCC captured extreme events by 75.9% for heavy rainfall and 67.9% for drought events, and GPM IMERG outperformed PERSIANN-CDR with a capture probability of 61% for heavy rainfall and 50% for drought events. (3) Annually, except for GPCC and CRU without significant deviations (BIAS < 2%), ERA5-Land, GPM IMERG, and PERSIANN-CDR generally overestimated precipitation (20% < BIAS < 60%). MERRA-2 and PREC/L underestimated precipitation, with approximately −5% for PREC/L and −20% for MERRA-2. (4) Seasonally, GPCC outperformed the other four long-term products in all seasons with the lowest BIAS (<0.93%), and GPM IMERG (BIAS < 30.88%) outperformed PERSIANN-CDR. (5) Monthly, the areas with large deviations (BIAS > 60%) for the seven products were near the Tianshan Mountains; comparatively, they performed better in CA than in XJ, with BIAS approximately 20% for CA and 40% for XJ. Despite regional differences, GPCC performed the best across the five long-term products overall, followed by CRU, MERRA-2, PREC/L, and ERA5-Land. For the two short-term products, GPM IMERG outperformed PERSIANN-CDR. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article outlines the ways in which Islamophobia, as a growing transnational phenomenon, embraces and engenders structural violence against Muslims in the context of China. How have expressions of anti-Muslim racism become part and parcel of anti-terror strategies in the context of the Global War on Terror (GWOT)? And in what ways has Islamophobia been increasingly embedded within the context of the everyday, especially with regards to exclusionary policies? This paper examines this contemporary issue with attention to historical processes, while remaining cognizant of broader global trends of increasingly accepted religious persecution and racism. In a post-9/11 hyper-securitized world, the Uyghurs' religious Muslim identity became the target of the government's campaign against terrorism. With antiterror policies so loosely defined, Islam--often synonymous with terrorism and difference--and those who visibly practice it became convenient marks of increased surveillance, suppression, detention, and even torture/death, all officially under the guise of the elusive war on terror and for the purpose of state security. In China, Islamophobia has effectively been state-sanctioned, legislated, and securitized. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The name "flax" is commonly used in various historical records of ancient China, and there have been continuous debates about the specific meaning of "flax". The "flax theorists" believe that due to climate characteristics, sesame cannot be introduced and cultivated in the northwest region of China, so "flax" inevitably refers to flax with better cold resistance. This paper maintains that the term "flax" in historical literature refers to sesame rather than flax. Meanwhile, archaeological achievements in the northwest region of China indicate that sesame may have spread to Xinjiang, China through Central Asia during the pre-Qin period, and have been active in the social and economic life of the northwest region for a long time since then. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To better understand long-term precipitation changes in arid Central Asia, reconstruction of past precipitation is critical. This paper analyzed the core sediments of Balikun lake in eastern Xinjiang. We analyzed 200 pollen samples, combined with 441 surface pollen samples and a radiocarbon chronology, using the Weighted Averaging Partial Least Sequence (WA-PLS) method, to characterize the Holocene high-resolution precipitation change process in Balikun basin. And, Combined with the vegetation types reconstructed by biome method, we discussed the landscape evolution of Balikun basin. Results show that the mean annual precipitation during the Holocene can be broken into three phases: Early Holocene (11,750–8030 cal yr B.P.), which averaged about 130 mm; Middle Holocene (8030–4420 cal yr B.P.), which averaged about 250 mm; and Late Holocene (4420–0 cal yr B.P.), which averaged about 210 mm. The vegetation changed from desert to steppe during the Holocene, and the wetlands gradually expanded, which was mainly informed by precipitation and glacial melt water. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to deepen the understanding of the occurrence mechanism and water vapor transport characteristics of the heavy rain process in the extreme arid region of Xinjiang, a rare heavy rain process in the Tarim Basin during the period of 18–22 July 2021 was comprehensively analyzed by using multi-source data. The results show that the upper tropospheric South Asian high was distributed in a "west-high-east-low" pattern during the rainstorm process, and the rainstorm area was located on the right side of the upper jet stream entrance area, while the middle-level Iranian high pressure, Baikal high pressure and Central Asian low pressure formed a "two-highs and one-low" circulation situation. The coupling of the high and low air jets and the strong vertical upward motion provided favorable dynamic conditions. Rainstorm water vapor mainly comes from the Mediterranean Sea, Central Asia and the Indian Ocean, and it enters the basin in four paths: west, east to west, west to east, and southwest and south. The water vapor mainly flows into the middle layer of the western boundary and the southern boundary and the lower layer of the eastern boundary, and it flows out from the middle and upper layer of the eastern boundary. The negative moist potential vorticity region at a low level has a strong indicator significance for the occurrence and development of heavy rain, and the superposition of positive and negative moist potential vorticity regions at vertical height is conducive to the occurrence and development of heavy rain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article draws on archival materials from late Qing Turpan Prefecture to explore Qing colonialism within the context of mass vaccination efforts in Xinjiang from 1880 to 1911. Following the reconquest of the region in 1877, Xiang Army leaders established official vaccination bureaus across Xinjiang—a colonial administration that encompassed all of East Turkestan—to combat smallpox outbreaks within Musulman (Uyghur) communities and the Qing army garrison. The vaccination bureau in Turpan, although led by Han vaccinators from Inner China, depended heavily on the labor of Musulman graduates from the region's assimilationist Confucian schools. The Turpan Vaccination Bureau reinforced the Xiang Army's broader project of colonial assimilation by training Musulman apprentices in various Chinese medical texts and using them to disseminate these ideas across the prefecture through the medium of vaccination. However, Turpan's Musulmans possessed their own sophisticated body of knowledge regarding epidemics and healing and routinely resisted the imposition of normative Qing/Chinese medical behavior. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Stripe rust, caused by Puccinia striiformis f. sp. tritici (Pst), is a foliar disease that affects both winter and spring wheat crops in Xinjiang, China, which is linked to Central Asia. Race identification of Pst from spring wheat in Xinjiang was not done before. In this study, a total of 216 isolates were recovered from stripe rust samples of spring wheat in the region in 2021 and multiplied using the susceptible cultivar Mingxian 169. These isolates were tested on the Chinese set of 19 wheat differential lines for identifying Pst races. A total of 46 races were identified. Races Suwon-11-1, Suwon11-12, and CYR32 had high frequencies in the spring wheat region. The frequencies of virulence factors on differentials “Fulhard” and “Early Premium” were high (>95%), whereas the virulence factor to differential “Triticum spelta var. Album” (Yr5) was not detected, while virulence to other differentials showed variable frequency within different counties. The predominant races in winter wheat in the same season were also detected from spring wheat cultivars, indicating Pst spreading from winter wheat to spring wheat crops. Deploying resistance genes in spring and winter wheat cultivars is critical for control stripe rust. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper argues that Beiijing's handling of the Xinjiang and Uyghur issues at the domestic, regional and international levels is characterised by a number of contradictions. Domestically, the July 2009 unrest suggests that China's longstanding approach to Xinjiang is at risk of failure due to the contradictions inherent in the logic that underpins Beijing's strategy. Regionally, Beijing faces a contradiction between its growing influence on the governments of Central Asia and the ambivalent attitude of Central Asian publics towards China. Internationally, the major implication of the July unrest has been to signal the internationalisation of the Uyghur issue whereby it has become a significant irritant in Beijing's relations with a number of major Western states, including the USA and Australia. It has been Beijing's own approach to Xinjiang domestically and its handling of the Uyghur issue in its diplomacy that has contributed to the internationalisation of the issue. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hasanli twice promises to reveal the true fate of Ma Zhongying after his defection to the Soviet Union, but at the end of several scattered discussions of him the reader can still only conclude that he disappeared under mysterious circumstances in the late 1930s. Soviet Policy in Xinjiang: Stalin and the National Movement in Eastern Turkistan Over the past decade, scholarship on Xinjiang (or East Turkestan) has undergone remarkable changes. [Extracted from the article]

Drought indices are frequently used to measure the intensity, start and end of droughts. However, the performances of these indices depend on regions and the type of droughts. Therefore, it is necessary to evaluate whether these indices are applicable for a given region. This study evaluated the ability of the self-calibrating Palmer Drought Severity Index (scPDSI), the Standardized Precipitation Evapotranspiration Index (SPEI), and the Standardized Moisture Anomaly Index (SZI) to describe the dry-wet conditions and drought events in the core zone of the "westerlies-dominated climatic regime". The results showed that the 12-month SZI (SZI12) and SPEI (SPEI12) have good correlations with precipitation and PET respectively, while the scPDSI can capture the changes in precipitation and soil moisture. In Xinjiang region of China, the SZI12 and scPDSI showed that this region gradually became wetter during 1961–2014, which was consistent with increased precipitation, decreased PET, and improved vegetation. However, the SPEI12 showed significant drying due to the strong influence of the PET, suggesting that this index exaggerated the drought conditions in this region. Precipitation in Kazakhstan and the southern Central Asian regions has increased slightly over the past 50 years, but the PET has greatly increased, altogether, all three indices suggested a drying trend in Central Asia. The evaluation of the ability of these drought indices to identify typical drought events in Xinjiang region of China suggested that the scPDSI can better detect the typical drought events compared with the SZI12. In conclusion, the scPDSI is the most suitable index for characterizing the long-term trend of hydroclimate conditions and drought events in the core zone of the "westerlies-dominated climatic regime". This study provides a theoretical basis for the rational utilization and improvement of the drought index, which is critical for monitoring, attributing, and predicting of drought events in arid areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Low-cost and efficient dynamic monitoring of surface salinization information is critical in arid and semi-arid regions, we conducted a remote sensing inversion exercise for soil salinity in the Bosten Lake watershed in Xinjiang, Northwest China, with a total area of about 43,930 km2, a typical watershed in an arid area. Sentinel MSI and Landsat OLI data were combined with measured soil salinity data in July 2020, and optimal combination bands were selected based on characteristic bands to create a grid search-support vector machine (GS-SVM) inversion model of soil salt content. The maximum value of soil salt content in the Bosten Lake watershed was 11.8 g/kg. The minimum value was 0.41 g/kg, and the average value was 4.77 g/kg, soil salinization is serious. The results of previous studies were applied to the estimation of salt content in Bosten Lake watershed and could not meet the monitoring requirements of the study area, R2 < 0.3. The GS-SVM soil salinity monitoring model was established based on the optimal DI, RI, and NDI remote sensing indexes for the Bosten Lake watershed. After model verification, it was found that the optimal model of image data was the Landsat OLI first-derivative model with R2 of 0.64, RMSE of 3.12, and RPD of 1.64, indicating that the prediction ability of the model was high. We used the first-order derivative model of Landsat OLI data to map the soil salt content in the Bosten Lake watershed in arid area, and found that soil salt content in most of the study area was between 10 and 20 g/kg, indicating severe salinization. This study not only reveals the distribution characteristics of salinization in Bosten Lake watershed, but also provides a scientific basis for soil salinization monitoring in Central Asia to lay a foundation for further soil salinization monitoring in arid areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of China is the largest arid region in Central Asia, and is heavily dependent on glacier melt in high mountains for water supplies. In this paper, glacier and climate changes in Xinjiang during the past decades were comprehensively discussed based on glacier inventory data, individual monitored glacier observations, recent publications, as well as meteorological records. The results show that glaciers have been in continuous mass loss and dimensional shrinkage since the 1960s, although there are spatial differences between mountains and sub-regions, and the significant temperature increase is the dominant controlling factor of glacier change. The mass loss of monitored glaciers in the Tien Shan has accelerated since the late 1990s, but has a slight slowing after 2010. Remote sensing results also show a more negative mass balance in the 2000s and mass loss slowing in the latest decade (2010s) in most regions. This needs further investigation on whether the slowing is general and continuing. In addition, glacier surging occurs more frequently in the Karakoram and Kunlun Mountains. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

East Junggar is an important part of the Central Asia Orogenic Belt and has developed a multi‐epoch and multi‐type metallogenic system. Yundukala is a recently discovered large intrusion‐related Au–Cu–Co deposit. The No. 1 main mineralization zone mainly occurs in the contact area between fine‐grained diorite and basalt. Massive and vein mineralization have developed there, but the ore‐bearing stratum, ore‐bearing intrusive rocks, and metallogenic ages are not clear. Zircon SHRIMP U–Pb dating of the porphyritic diorite and fine‐grained diorite yields ages of 416.1 ± 3.9 Ma and 411.1 ± 7.5 Ma, respectively. The dioritoid intruded into the ore‐bearing stratum, indicating that this formation is part of the Early Palaeozoic strata rather than the Middle Devonian Beishan Formation. The Re–Os isochron age of the chalcopyrite in the massive mineralization is 402.6 ± 5.2 Ma; thus, the massive mineralization is related to fine‐grained diorite and formed in the Early Devonian. Six sulphides and four sulphides from the vein mineralization yield Re–Os isochron ages of 352.8 ± 1.8 Ma and 354 ± 23 Ma, respectively, and the limited vein mineralization was formed during 353–354 Ma. The massive and vein mineralizations in the Yundukala deposit were formed in the Early Devonian and Early Carboniferous. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The loess in the arid area of Xinjiang is located at the eastern end of the Central Asia Loess Belt, and paleoclimate research about it is of great importance for understanding the mechanism of interaction of the Eurasian Westerly monsoon system and the aridity of Central Asia. This review focuses on recent progress concerning the spatial distribution, material composition and provenance of loess in Xinjiang and points out the shortcomings of and challenges to provenance and dust circulation. Field investigation and previous studies indicate that loess sediments have been mainly distributed on the river terraces and windward piedmont of the Tianshan Mountains and the Kunlun Mountains since the late Pliocene (mainly late Pleistocene). Grain size and age data show that Xinjiang loess deposits at some locations are rapid and discontinuous or sedimentary hiatus. The Siberian High system largely controlled dust mobilization and loess accumulation in northern Xinjiang but not southern Xinjiang. In southern Central Asia, the intensity of dust activity may be determined by the Caspian Sea–Hindu Kush Index (CasHKI) and local circulation. However, there is not enough evidence that the CasHKI index can affect the Tarim Basin area. Consequently, ascertaining the driving mechanism of mid-latitude Westerly winds and the dynamic process of loess deposition in Xinjiang is a specific suggestion for critical future research. Many indicators have shown that the loess dust sources in Xinjiang are composed of mainly proximal materials plus some remote materials. Alluvial plains and local proluvial fans contributed more to loess deposition, while Central Asian deserts comprise a small proportion of loess deposition in northern Xinjiang. In future provenance research, new technologies and new methods should be continuously tested to facilitate an objective understanding of the provenance of the loess in Xinjiang. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The diversity of Central Asians has been shaped by multiple migrations and cultural diffusion. Although ancient DNA studies have revealed the demographic changes of the Central Asian since the Bronze Age, the contribution of the ancient populations to the modern Central Asian remains opaque. Herein, we performed high-coverage sequencing of 131 whole genomes of Indo-European-speaking Tajik and Turkic-speaking Kyrgyz populations to explore their genomic diversity and admixture history. By integrating the ancient DNA data, we revealed more details of the origins and admixture history of Central Asians. We found that the major ancestry of present-day Tajik populations can be traced back to the admixture of the Bronze Age Bactria–Margiana Archaeological Complex and Andronovo-related populations. Highland Tajik populations further received additional gene flow from the Tarim mummies, an isolated ancient North Eurasian–related population. The West Eurasian ancestry of Kyrgyz is mainly derived from Historical Era populations in Xinjiang of China. Furthermore, the recent admixture signals detected in both Tajik and Kyrgyz are ascribed to the expansions of Eastern Steppe nomadic pastoralists during the Historical Era. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Brachyericinae is a subfamily of Erinaceidae (hedgehogs and moonrats) with a very short history and limited distribution. Fossil records of brachyericines, with rare materials, were confined to the Oligocene and early Miocene in Central Asia and to the Miocene in North America. Here, we report three forms of short-faced hedgehogs: Synexallerix junggarensis, Brachyericinae gen. et sp. indet. 1 and Brachyericinae gen. et sp. indet. 2 from Aoerban and Gashunyin Adege, localities of the early Miocene in Central Nei Mongol. S. junggarensis is the first discovery outside the Suosuoquan Formation in Xinjiang and detailed description of the new materials, including a nearly complete skull, clarifies its taxonomic position within the Brachyericinae. The new Nei Mongol material is important not only because they include a nearly complete skull of S. junggarensis (previously known by a rostral part of the skull) but also because of the presence of three taxa of the brachyericines from the same general area. The similarity of its morphological characteristics with the North American genera also further confirms the close affinities of brachyericines from the two continents during the early Miocene. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Xinjiang, an arid region of China, has experienced a substantial warming–wetting trend over the past five decades. However, climate change has affected vegetation growth/greening in arid Central Asia in unexpected ways due to complex ecological effects. We found a significant greening trend (consistent increase in the normalized difference vegetation index or NDVI) from 1982 to 1996, during the growing season; however, the NDVI consequently decreased and plateaued from 1997 to 2015, especially in naturally vegetated regions. Atmospheric vapor pressure deficit (VPD) is a critical driver of vegetation growth, is a direct measure of atmospheric aridity, and has increased sharply in recent decades. A partial correlation analysis indicated a significant relationship between growing season NDVI and VPD from 1997 to 2015. This implies that decreased VPD corresponds to increasing NDVI, and increasing VPD corresponds to a decrease and plateauing in the NDVI trend. Using the partial derivative equation method, our results suggest that the trend in growing season NDVI was affected primarily by increasing VPD (contributing 87.57%) from 1997 to 2015, especially in the grassland and desert biomes. Rising temperatures lead to a greater VPD, resulting in exacerbated evaporative water loss. Soil drought and atmospheric aridity limit plant stomatal conductance and could effectively lead to a decrease in the greening trend and increased vegetation mortality in arid Xinjiang. Our results emphasize the importance of VPD as a limiting factor of greening trends in arid regions. The influence of VPD on vegetation growth should be considered when evaluating arid ecosystem functioning under global warming. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The land surface scheme (LSS) plays a very important role in the forecast of surface meteorological elements in the Central Asia arid region. Therefore, two LSSs viz. Noah and Noah-MP were evaluated over the Central Asia arid region in January and July 2017 using the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model at a 3-km horizontal grid resolution. The objective was to assess the performance of WRF LSSs by calculated the mean error (ME) and the root mean squared error (RMSE) of simulated hourly meteorological elements, such as 2-m air temperature, 10-m wind speed, soil temperature, soil moisture at 5 and 25 cm thickness, and surface soil heat flux at 5 cm thickness. The results showed that, compared to Noah, Noah-MP modeled less surface sensible heat flux in the northern Xinjiang (15~20 W∙m−2) and surface latent heat flux in most areas of Xinjiang (<10 W∙m−2) in January, and mainly generated less sensible heat flux in most areas of north Xinjiang and the mountainous regions of southern Xinjiang (≤20 W·m−2) which on the contrary, generated more surface latent heat flux in most parts of Xinjiang (15~20 W·m−2) in July. Meanwhile, the surface soil heat flux generated from Noah-MP was closer to the observations at Hongliuhe and Kelameili stations in January, the ME increased by 17.5% and reduced by 80.7%, respectively, the RMSE decreased by 44.4% and 61.7%, respectively, and closer to the observations at Xiaotang station in July, the ME and RMSE reduced by 19.1% and 20.5%, respectively. Compared to Noah, Noah-MP improved the overall simulation of soil temperature and soil moisture over the northern and eastern Xinjiang (at 10 cm thickness), the ME and RMSE of simulated soil temperature reduced by 85.0% and 13.4% in January, decreased by 78.6% and increased by 6.2% in July, respectively, and the ME and RMSE of simulated soil moisture reduced by 67.2% and 14.9% in January, reduced by 33.3% and 2.8% in July, respectively. Compared to Noah, Noah-MP's results were lowered for the simulated 10-m wind speed and 2-m air temperature, especially the simulated 2-m air temperature over the cold climate regions of northern Xinjiang, was improved significantly, the ME and RMSE of simulated 10-m wind speed reduced by 0.8% and 4.9% in January, decreased by 6.7% and 2.8% in July, respectively, the ME and RMSE of simulated 2-m air temperature reduced by 2.8% and 1.0% in July, respectively. This study demonstrated the advantage of coupled Noah-MP over the Central Asia arid region, providing the basis for WRF/Noah-MP in future operational applications in the Central Asia arid region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The archaeological visibility of the production and consumption of gold and silver ornaments increased substantially during the Iron Age. A large number of precious metalworks rendered with distinctive 'animal style' motifs have been recovered from elite tombs in north‐west China, and have attracted great interest when investigating the dynamics of exchange, mobility and transcultural encounters in Eurasian antiquity. However, little scientific research has been undertaken to examine the manufacturing techniques and metal composition of such 'animal style' artefacts found in north‐west China and its neighbouring areas in a broader Eurasian context. Using multiple non‐invasive analytical methods, we conducted a detailed scientific analysis of two groups of precious metals excavated from Dongheigou Tomb 12 (fourth–second centuries bce) and Xigou Tomb 1 (third–second centuries bce) in present‐day Balikun county, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. The results suggest that mould‐pressing technology was employed for the production of the 'animal style' appliqués found in these two tombs. The current analysis provides a definitive explanation for the traces of superficial crafting through their specific microstructure and the tool marks of manufacturing, and will thus be of significant interest for further research concerning the metallurgic knowledge and technological practice of precious metalworking industry in north‐west China and Central Asia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The magma source, petrogenesis, tectonic setting and geochronology of the late Paleozoic A‐type granites widely exposed in the Zhaheba area, East Junggar, have thus far not been well‐constrained. A better understanding of these issues will help to reveal the magmatic processes and continental growth of Central Asia. The A‐type granites in Zhaheba include the Ashutasi alkaline granites and the Yuyitasi syenogranites, which were emplaced at 321.5 ± 4.8 Ma and 321.7 ± 0.6 Ma, respectively. The major rock‐forming minerals are orthoclase, perthite, arfvedsonite and quartz, which exhibit the following principal geochemical characteristics of A2‐type granites. (1) Their REE distribution curves each exhibit a 'V'‐shaped pattern and a marked depletion in Eu. They are rich in large‐ion lithophile elements Rb, Th and U as well as high‐field‐strength elements Nb, Ta, Zr and Hf, but significantly depleted in Ba, Sr, P and Ti. (2) Their (87Sr/86Sr)i values (0.7021–0.7041), εNd(t) values (4.57–5.16) and REE distribution patterns are in basic agreement with those of the Kalamaili A‐type granite belt in East Junggar. The TDM2 values of the alkaline granites and syenogranites range from 661 to 709 Ma. The A‐type granites may be the products of upwelling asthenosphere‐triggered partial melting of immature lower crust. The alkaline granites were late‐stage products of crystallization and differentiation. Compared to the syenogranites, the alkaline granites are significantly lower in K2O, Na2O, Al2O3, FeO, MgO and CaO, but significantly higher in incompatible elements (e.g., SiO2, Rb, and Sr). The magmatic crystallization temperatures of the syenogranites and alkaline granites are 874°C and 819°C, respectively. As their age gradually decreases (peak ages: 322 Ma and 307 Ma, respectively), there is a gradual decrease in the TDM2 of the A‐type granites and a gradual increase in the εNd(t) value from the Ulungur belt to the Kalamaili belt in East Junggar. The study of A‐type granites is therefore one of the keys to understanding the laws and mechanisms of crustal accretion during the Phanerozoic period, as well as also being of great significance for understanding the Paleozoic accretion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aerosols are an important component of the atmospheric system. Long time-series observations for aerosols are essential for examining global climate change and the ecological environment. Based on Google Earth Engine and MODIS MCD19A2 data, we monitored the spatio-temporal dynamic characteristics of the aerosol optical depth (AOD) in Central Asia from 2001 to 2020. The effects of six environmental factors on the AOD distribution were explored using a geographic detector model and analysed in combination with the land-use/land-cover change (LUCC) and desertification in different periods. The results showed that the average multi-year AOD in Central Asia was 0.1442, with insignificant interannual variations. The high-value areas were mainly distributed in the Aral Sea and surrounding areas of the Tarim Basin in Xinjiang, with notable seasonal variations. The evaluation results for the influencing factors showed that the relative humidity and precipitation had a large effect on the spatial distribution of the AOD. The LUCC directly affected contributions to the AOD. Desertification of land provides rich dust sources, which are the main aerosol sources in Central Asia, thus exacerbating dust aerosol pollution. This study investigated the temporal and spatial characteristics and influencing factors of the AOD in Central Asia, providing a theoretical basis for the prevention and control of air pollution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Quantification of grassland carbon (C) variations is necessary for understanding how grazing and climate change interact to regulate carbon capture and release. Central Asia (CA) has the largest temperate grassland belt in the world and unique temperate dryland ecosystems, which experienced severe climate change and grazing-induced disturbances. However, the impact of grazing on C dynamics is highly uncertain owing to climate variations. Here, an arid ecosystem model (AEM) supplemented with a grazing module that specifically addressed physiological and ecological characteristics of dryland vegetation was developed to quantitatively simulate grassland C dynamics in response to changes in precipitation, temperature, grazing intensity, and CO2 level in the past decades. The regional simulation results showed that net primary productivity (NPP) was affected mainly by precipitation (in 59% of the studied area). Grazing had a negative effect on NPP and C stocks, whereas overcompensation occurred in 25.71% of the studied area, mainly in the dry western parts. The complex interaction effects of climate, CO2, and grazing negatively affected productivity, with a grassland NPP decrease of − 1.14 g C/m2/a and high interannual variability. We found that the temporal pattern of cumulative C sequestration, especially total C and vegetation C (VEGC), closely followed the annual fluctuations of precipitation. VEGC stocks decreased from 182.22 to 177.82 g C/m2, with a very low value between 1998 and 2008, when precipitation significantly decreased. The results indicate that southern Xinjiang and the Turgay Plateau of Kazakhstan are ecologically fragile areas due to grassland degradation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We investigated the precipitation changes in mid‐latitude arid central Asia (ACA, including Central Asia and Xinjiang) and the related mechanisms in the mid‐Holocene using the output from the Paleoclimate Modeling Intercomparison Project phases 3 and 4 (PMIP3/4). The annual precipitation in ACA was decreased in the mid‐Holocene compared with the preindustrial period, consistent in direction with reconstruction records. Such change was mainly due to deficient winter and spring (December‐May) precipitation in the mid‐Holocene. The decrease in incoming solar radiation in the mid‐Holocene winter and spring caused stronger surface and tropospheric cooling in the northern low latitudes. It reduced the meridional temperature gradient in the troposphere, thereby weakening the westerly winds and related transport of water vapor. More importantly, the cooling weakened the local water cycle in ACA. Finally, the precipitation decreased over almost all of ACA. In the mid‐Holocene summer (June‐August), the meridional temperature gradient and related westerly winds were also reduced. It was mainly caused by stronger surface and tropospheric warming in the northern mid‐ to high latitudes. The stronger warming was due to increased summer incoming solar radiation in the mid‐Holocene. This process differed from that occurred in winter and spring. Therefore, the water vapor transport was weakened, and the summer precipitation was deficient in northern ACA. At the same time, strengthened descending motions contributed to the decrease in summer precipitation in most parts of Central Asia. On the contrary, intensified ascending motions increased summer precipitation in southeastern Xinjiang. Key Points: Annual precipitation deficit in arid central Asia (ACA) was mainly due to reduced winter and spring precipitation in the mid‐HoloceneThe mid‐Holocene orbital forcing weakened the westerly winds, thereby reducing precipitation in most regions of ACADuring the mid‐Holocene winter and spring, weakened local water cycle played a dominant role in reducing precipitation in ACA [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Natural enemies that impact pest populations must be understood in order to build integrated pest control strategies and to understand the most important aspects affecting pest dynamics. Haloxylon ammodendron (C. A. Mey.) Bunge is an important perennial plant species extensively used in sand stabilization and wind prevention in arid areas. This study aimed to determine the main defoliators that damage H. ammodendron and the parasitoid complex associated with them. Twelve species of defoliators were found in Northern Xinjiang, and Teia dubia (Tauscher) (Lepidoptera: Lymantriidae), Scrobipalpa sp. (Lepidoptera: Gelechiidae), and Eucharia festiva Hüfnagel (Lepidoptera: Arctiidae) were the dominant pests. T. dubia is the predominant defoliator with three generations a year. Northwest China, Central Asia, and the Mediterranean region are potentially suitable habitats for T. dubia in the world, while Xinjiang is the primary distribution area in China. Parasitoids belonging to seven species and four families were reared from the larvae of T. dubia, they were all endoparasitoids and koinobiont. Cotesia sp. (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) is the dominant parasitoid and prefer to parasitic in the 3rd–5th instar larvae. The present study provides the basis for understanding the species composition and natural enemies of lepidopteran defoliators. It will be an effective tool for the integrated pest management programs of H. ammodendron forest. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An essay is presented on the role of Xinjiang in the foreign policy of China toward Central Asia. Topics include the important role of China in the Central Asian region following the collapse of the Soviet Union, how Xinjiang influences China's foreign policy in Central Asia, and the rapid development of Xinjiang due to Central Asian states' share in the foreign trade volume in the province.

Since September 11, 2001, and the subsequent U.S. politico-military penetration of Central Asia there has been much speculation regarding China's perceived strategic "defeat" in that region, which is said to have compromised China's long-term plans regarding the integration of Xinjiang. This paper, however, will argue that the strategic implications of the U.S. penetration of Central Asia have in fact resulted in the re-invigoration and reinforcement of China's goal and instruments of integration in Xinjiang. This dynamic has been expressed within Xinjiang, in the form of the strengthening of the major instruments of internal control and development, and externally in the form of China's foreign policy calculus in the context of its relations with the states of Central Asia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Airborne pollen is indicative of vegetation and climatic conditions. This study investigates airborne pollen trapping in the Betula microphylla-dominated wetland of Ebinur Lake in Northwestern China from September 2012 to August 2015 using Pearson correlation analysis and the Hybrid Single-particle Lagrangian Integrated Trajectory model. Higher temperatures and moderate precipitation during the flowering period facilitated an increase in birch pollen with more exotic spruce pollen carried from the Tianshan Mountains by airflows, leading to the highest arbor pollen concentrations from September 2012 to August 2013. Peak pollen concentrations from September 2013 to August 2014 were possibly due to an increase in herbaceous pollen resulting from higher temperatures, lower precipitation and more exotic pollen from the desert of southwest Ebinur Lake and Central Asia in summer and autumn. Between September 2014 and August 2015, unfavorable climate conditions in summer and autumn decreased the pollen dispersal of xerophytes such as Artemisia and Chenopodiaceae, with little pollen transported from the Kazakh hilly area in late summer, resulting in the lowest pollen concentrations. Climatic parameters and air mass movements both greatly affected the atmospheric pollen concentration. The results provide information concerning the dispersion and distribution of birch pollen, paleoenvironmental reconstruction and wetland conservation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

New data on the Anthicidae (ant-like flower beetles) from Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region are presented. Three new species are described and illustrated, namely Anthicus (s. str.) lobanovi sp. n., Nitorus uyghur sp. n. and Stricticomus kucha sp. n. Anthicus laetus L.Medvedev, 1974 is redescribed. Four new regional records are presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The World Bank and Transparency International rank the Central Asian republics as highly corrupt.1 This opinion is shared by international media and by NGO personnel and academics working on the ground in these countries. Yet, the kind of practices that are labelled as "corrupt" by these observers seem much too diverse to meaningfully be covered by the same term, such as illicit selling and buying of government contracts at the highest level; tax evasion in the millions; the faster processing of a passport for a relative; and a taxi driver bribing the traffic police. This presents both an analytical and an ethical problem. This article argues that condemning discourses on corruption are often used by the powerful both nationally and internationally to dominate colonised and marginalised groups. Such groups, excluded from or exploited within formal structures, rely on networks and communities for their livelihoods. The upkeep of these social relations comes into conflict with the imperatives of state law and bureaucracy. Anti-corruption thus becomes a weapon of the strong against the weak and aligns with a long history of colonial tradition of domination and vilification of those "yet-to-be-civilised." Its focus on regions of the Global South such as Central Asia marks a continuation of colonial legacy but also the region's continued marginality in the capitalist world system. This article posits that in order solve these analytical and ethical problems, we must be careful not to conflate a legal state-notion of corruption with a moral one thus accepting as default the perspective of the dominant groups running states and organisations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, the Flexible Particle Dispersion Model (FLEXPART) is employed to simulate the trajectories of global air parcels from March 1979 to February 2018 to analyse the moisture sources of precipitation over Xinjiang in China. The results show that more than 90% of the moisture can be tracked when the backtracking time is set to 10 days. There are three similar moisture transport paths in winter and summer, namely, the Mediterranean–Caspian Sea–Balkhash Lake path, the Eastern European Plain–Western Siberian Plain–Balkhash Lake path, and the Arabian Peninsula–Iranian Plateau–Pamir Plateau path. Besides, there is one more path in summer: the Indian Ocean–Indian Peninsula–Pamir Plateau. The paths of moisture transport in spring (autumn) are similar to those in winter (summer). In summer, the contribution rate of Xinjiang itself and Central Asia accounts for more than 80%, among which the local contributions account for 52%. In the other three seasons, Xinjiang, Central Asia, North Africa–Arabian Peninsula, and South Asia are the main sources of moisture. The contribution rates of moisture uptake in the source regions other than Central Asia vary greatly with the seasons. The interannual variation of contribution rate to precipitation of each source region is limited. Regionally, the moisture source distribution for southern Xinjiang resembles those of the whole Xinjiang; for the northern Xinjiang, the contribution of Central Asia becomes more important. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Ladakh is one of the largest administrative units in India, in terms of its territory. Due to its contiguity with Xinjiang and Tibet and its close proximity to Central Asia, and enjoying a central position in the network of overland caravan routes that were linked to the Silk Route, Ladakh acted as an important gateway in the Indo-Central Asian exchange of men, materials and ideas through the ages. By declaring the Leh and Kargil districts of erstwhile Jammu and Kashmir State a Union territory, the Government of India has, rekindled hopes in the region of revival of traditional India-Central Asia trade routes passing through Ladakh and Xinjiang. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

China has been quite successful in developing its relations with Central Asian states and expanding its influence in the region since the 1990s. Most analysts contribute the success to the strategy and policy of China’s national central government. This observation certainly has a lot of truth, but at the same time we should not neglect or downplay the role that the local government in Xinjiang has played in cementing China–Central Asian ties. Xinjiang has functioned as an indispensable actor in China’s look-west and act-west policies towards Central Asia and beyond. With Chinese foreign policy elites increasingly interested in using the act-west policy as part of their counter-hedging strategy in Asia, Xinjiang appears to enjoy many more opportunities and play an even more significant role in China’s relations with countries in its western flank. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Central Asia is one of the most significant loess regions on Earth, with an important role in understanding Quaternary climate and environmental change. However, in contrast to the widely investigated loess deposits in the Chinese Loess Plateau, the Central Asian loess–paleosol sequences are still insufficiently known and poorly understood. Through field investigation and review of the previous literature, the authors have investigated the distribution, thickness and age of the Xinjiang loess, and analyzed factors that control these parameters in the Xinjiang in northwest China, Central Asia. The loess sediments cover river terraces, low uplands, the margins of deserts and the slopes of the Tianshan Mountains and Kunlun Mountains and are also present in the Ili Basin. The thickness of the Xinjiang loess deposits varies from several meters to 670 m. The variation trend of the sand fraction (>63 μm) grain-size contour can indicate the local major wind directions, so we conclude that the NW and NE winds are the main wind directions in the North and South Xinjiang, and the westerly wind mainly transport dust into the Ili basin. We consider persistent drying, adequate regional wind energy and well-developed river terraces to be the main factors controlling the distribution, thickness and formation age of the Xinjiang loess. The well-outcropped loess sections have mainly developed since the middle Pleistocene in Xinjiang, reflecting the appearance of the persistent drying and the present air circulation system. However, the oldest loess deposits are as old as the beginning of the Pliocene in the Tarim Basin, which suggests that earlier aridification occurred in the Tarim Basin rather than in the Ili Basin and the Junggar Basin. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Water Resource Sustainability Management plays a vitally important role in ensuring sustainable development, especially in water-stressed arid regions throughout the world. In order to achieve sustainable development, it is necessary to study and monitor the water quality in the arid region of Central Asia, an area that is increasingly affected by climate change. In recent decades, the rapid deterioration of water quality in the Ebinur Lake basin in Xinjiang (China) has severely threatened sustainable economic development. This study selected the Ebinur Lake basin as the study target, with the purpose of revealing the response between the water quality index and water body reflectivity, and to describe the relationship between the water quality index and water reflectivity. The methodology employed remote sensing techniques that establish a water quality index monitoring model to monitor water quality. The results of our study include: (1) the Water Quality Index (WQI) that was used to evaluate the water environment in Ebinur Lake indicates a lower water quality of Ebinur Lake, with a WQI value as high as 4000; (2) an introduction of the spectral derivative method that realizes the extraction of spectral information from a water body to better mine the information of spectral data through remote sensing, and the results also prove that the spectral derivative method can improve the relationship between the water body spectral and WQI, whereby R2 is 0.6 at the most sensitive wavelengths; (3) the correlation between the spectral sensitivity index and WQI was greater than 0.6 at the significance level of 0.01 when multi-source spectral data were integrated with the spectral index (DI, RI and NDI) and fluorescence baseline; and (4) the distribution map of WQI in Ebinur Lake was obtained by the optimal model, which was constructed based on the third derivative data of Sentinel 2 data. We concluded that the water quality in the northwest of Ebinur Lake was the lowest in the region. In conclusion, we found that remote sensing techniques were highly effective and laid a foundation for water quality detection in arid areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Changes in the vegetation and climate of the westerly-dominated areas in Central Asia during the Holocene were interpreted using pollen-assemblages and charcoal data from a 300-cm-long sediment core of the Sayram Lake, northern Xinjiang. Accele-rator Mass Spectrometry (AMS) radiocarbon dating methods were applied to bulk organic matter of the samples. Artemisia spp./Chenopodiaceae ratios and results from principal component analysis were used to infer that the lake basin was dominated by desert vegetation before ca. 9.6 cal. ka BP, which suggests a warm and dry climate in the early Holocene. Desert steppe/steppe expanded during 9.6-5.5 cal. ka BP, indicating a remarkable increase both in the precipitation and temperature during the mid-Holocene. Desert vegetation dominated between 6.5 and 5.5 cal. ka BP, marking an extreme warmer and drier interval. The steppe/meadow steppe recovered, and temperatures decreased from 5.5 cal. ka BP in the late Holocene, as indicated by the increased abundance of Artemisia and the development of meadows. Holocene temperatures and moisture variations in the Sayram Lake areas were similar to those of adjacent areas. This consistency implies that solar radiation was the main driving factor for regional temperature changes, and that the effect of temperature variations was significant on regional changes in humidity. The evolution of climate and environment in the Sayram Lake areas, which were characterized as dry in the early Holocene and relatively humid in the middle-late Holocene, are clearly different from those in monsoonal areas. Dry conditions in the early Holocene in the Sayram Lake areas were closely related to decreased water vapor advection. These conditions were a result of reduced westerly wind speeds and less evaporation upstream, which in turn were caused by seasonal changes in solar radiation superimposed by strong evaporation following warming and drying local climate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Asia is not a Westphalian system. Transnational politics, in which political communities are subdivided by nominally sovereign boundaries, are just as common in Asia as international politics. This non-Westphalianism is also a persistent feature of Asian security, as subnational, transnational, and international conflicts are embedded in each other. This article examines China's security relations with Central Asia in terms of these features, beginning with a discussion of the developmental and ethno-national politics of China's Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region. The Chinese state has advanced a program of economic modernization and intensive security campaigns to eradicate what it terms the "three evils" of splittism, terrorism, and extremism and to promote a common political identity for modern China. But this campaign has resulted in a segregated Xinjiang in which Uyghurs still look to a transnational community outside of China as an alternative to political assimilation. The second part of the article examines the interaction between transnational and international security in Central Asia, and China's promotion of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization as its preferred mechanism for managing this relationship. The authors identify three aims of the SCO - repressing transnational radicalism; stabilizing regional regimes and their foreign policy orientations; and checking U.S. influence - but argue that these are more restraints on the political options of others than a means to expand China's own options. The fact that the problems of China's transnational regions and the future of SCO remain unresolved leads the authors to conclude that an ascendant China faces an uncertain future in the fluid environment of Central Eurasia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Along with the global climate change, gully erosion, flood and drought jointly restrict the sustainable development of arid rangeland in Central Asia. Rainwater harvesting (RWH) system in gully is a flexible practice that alleviate complex environmental problems. In the Kulusitai watershed of Xinjiang, China, our study presented a decision-making system using GIS combined with multi-criteria analysis and a field survey to identify suitability of gully for RWH. The results showed that nearly 40% of rangeland belonged to high runoff potential area, and gullies as the runoff collection channel became the potential site of RWH. The selection of RWH systems depended on catchment environment and gully characteristics. Therefore, based on the unique natural conditions of Xinjiang and successful RWH cases in other regions, we discussed some suitable low-cost RWH techniques to restore degraded grassland and promote community development. Our study will provide some suggestions for ecological restoration and pasture management in arid regions of Central Asia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]