“Giant, Mysterious Body of Water Found Under China Desert”

The Tarim Basin The Tarim Basin in China’s Xinjiang province is incredibly dry. It covers about 350,000 square miles. The mountains surrounding it let almost no moisture pass through and the Tarim river does not bear much water. Yet scientists have discovered that a huge water supply lies beneath the this dry desert -- ten times the amount of all five great lakes combined (2.3×1016 liters).

The Study Professor Li Yang led a team of scientists from the Chinese Academy of Sciences to investigate carbon dioxide absorption in the region. They discovered that the Tarim Basin acts like a carbon sink. There is a huge body of salt water underneath it, protected by an aquifer.

AQUIFER: AN UNDERGROUND LAYER OF POROUS ROCK, SAND, ETC AQUIFER: AN UNDERGROUND LAYER OF POROUS ROCK, SAND, ETC. CONTAINING WATER INTO WHICH WELLS CAN BE SUNK. CARBON SINK: A NATURAL OR ARTIFICIAL RESERVOIR THAT ACCUMULATES AND STORES SOME CARBON-CONTAINING CHEMICAL COMPOUND FOR AN INDEFINITE PERIOD.

The Investigation The scientists obtained deep underground water samples and measured the level of carbon dioxide. They deduced that the carbon dioxide in the snowmelt from the surrounding mountains gradually seeps into the ground and the areas alkaline soil helps the carbon dissolve into the water.

The Problem After studying the water samples, the scientists discovered that the water is far too salty for residents of the province to use. Li Yang also told the South China Morning Post that the water and the surrounding aquifer was “like a can of Coke” and if the aquifer were to be opened “ all the greenhouse gases will escape into the atmosphere.”