Bogda Mountains#

Image courtesy of USGS., under PD

This false-color, high-resolution satellite photo shows the Turpan Depression, nestled at the foot of Chinas Bogda Mountains, south of the oasis city of Turpan.

A strange mix of salt lakes and sand dunes, this fault-bounded trough is the lowest exposed surface in China.

At the center of the basin lies Ayding Lake (bottom left), which is the third lowest exposed point on the earths surface at -154 m (-505 ft).