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Betpak-Dala Бетпақдала / Бетпак-Дала | |
|---|---|
Desert | |
 Panorama of the desert area | |
  Betpak-Dala | |
| Coordinates:46°02′N70°12′E / 46.033°N 70.200°E /46.033; 70.200 | |
| Area | |
| • Total | 75,000 km2 (29,000 sq mi) |
| Dimensions | |
| • Length | 500 kilometers (310 mi) |
| • Width | 170 kilometers (110 mi) |
| Elevation | 300 meters (980 ft) - 500 meters (1,600 ft) |
| Highest elevation | 974 meters (3,196 ft) (Zhambil (Жамбъл)) |
Betpak-Dala orBetpaqdala (Kazakh:Бетпақдала,Betpaqdala; from Turkicbatpak, “swampy,” or Persianbedbaht, “unlucky” and Turkicdala, “plain”;Russian: Бетпак-Дала or Сeверная Голодная степь, lit.Hungry Steppe) is a desert zone in theUlytau,Karaganda,Turkestan, andZhambyl regions,Kazakhstan.[1]
In Autumn 2014, English explorerJamie Bunchuk completed an expedition to cross the Betpak-Dala to its fullest longitudinal extent, fromLake Balkash in the east to theSarysu River in the west. He also ran 190 miles, nearly eight marathons, back-to-back, over the course of eight days within the region.[2]
Anepizootic ofpasteurellosis occurred in Betpak-Dala in May 2015, in which more than 120,000saiga antelope — representing more than a third of the global population — were confirmed dead.[3]
The Betpak-Dala is located between the lower reaches of theSarysu River, theChu River, andLake Balkhash. In the north, near the 46°30’ parallel, Betpak-Dala borders on theKazakh Uplands, an area of low, rounded, isolated hills. Its area is approximately 75,000 square kilometres (29,000 sq mi). To the southwest lies theAshchykol Depression.[4]The desert is a flat, gently rolling plain with an elevation ranging from 300 metres (980 ft) to 350 metres (1,150 ft) and a general south-western incline. Elevations are greatest in the east. In the southeast, theZheltau highland reaches an elevation of 599 metres (1,965 ft) at MountSuykadyr (Суықадыр) and of 972 metres (3,189 ft) at MountKyzylbelen (Кызылбелен).[4]
The western part of Betpak-Dala is composed of foldedMesozoic rock and horizontally layeredPaleogene friable rock (sand, sandstone, clay, and conglomerates). The eastern hilly region has a plicate structure and is composed of LowerPaleozoic sedimentary-metamorphic rock series and granite. The climate is sharply continental. The annual precipitation is between 100 millimetres (3.9 in) and 150 millimetres (5.9 in), of which only 15 percent occurs in summer. Summers are dry and hot; winters are cold with little snow. The average temperature in January ranges from −12 °C (10 °F) to −14 °C (7 °F), and the average temperature in July ranges from 24 °C (75 °F) to 26 °C (79 °F).
There are many shallow, oftenSor-type of saline lakes, such asArys,Buralkynyn Tuzy andKarakoin. Underground waters, emerging in places, are abundant. The predominant soils are gray-brown desertsolonchak andsolonets.
The western region of Betpak-Dala is anargillaceous sagebrush desert;Anabasis salsa grows in the salt-marsh depressions, while Pamirian winterfat (Krascheninnikovia ceratoides)[verification needed] and Siberian pea shrub (Caragana arborescens) grow on the sand dunes. In the east the argillaceous desert merges with the stony desert whereSalsola arbuscula grows on the rocky hills. Betpak-Dala is used as a spring and autumn grazing land.
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