CHINA. Turpan, Xinjiang.1983. The Gobi Desert stretches across Nei Mongol, Gansu, and Xinjiang. Here in Turpan, it is called the "Great Gobi Desert", to differentiate it from other parts of the desert. For hundreds of kilometers, fist-size rocks covers the ground like a carpet. It is impossible to cultivate the soil, but some say valuable resources buried underground in many places.