Desert Areas Research Articles

Optimizing the characteristic cooling curves of PCM-integrated thermally active buildings: Experimental and numerical investigations

Phase change materials (PCMs) exploit their cyclic phase change (solidification and melting) to enable latent heat storage. While incorporating them in thermally activated building systems can potentially enhance energy savings and thermal comfort, they can introduce significant challenges to the building energy management system. This work first reports the result of small-scale side-by-side experiments on two thermally active cuboids with and without BioPCMs at different supply water and PCM melting temperatures, as well as irradiance levels. Next, a dynamic model is developed in TRNSYS v18.05 for a typical design of an office space under hot desert climate conditions. The model is then integrated into a multi-objective optimization routine using NSGA-II algorithms to identify the optimal characteristic cooling curves, melting temperatures, and PCM thicknesses that simultaneously minimize energy consumption and maximize the percentage of comfortable hours. The experimental observations of the PCM-integrated cuboid highlighted energy savings between 80.45 and 84.56 %, compared to the reference cuboid, at nearly the same levels of indoor temperatures. The PCM panels reduced the cooling capacity of the radiant floor but also dampened air temperature variations by up to 83.17 %. Besides, higher solar irradiance levels, encountered in desert areas, were found to enhance the cooling capacity by up to 46.8 %. The Pareto solutions highlighted the possibility of achieving acceptable unmet hours of 3.16 % using PCMs and without the need for an assisting air system, compared to 14.1 % without PCMs. Besides, at the same unmet hours of the reference system, the PCMs reduced the total energy consumption and the peak cooling power by 9.75 and 41.2 %, which translates into substantial operation and capital investments, respectively. Moreover, the study demonstrated by example the importance of calibrating the commonly used cooling curves of thermally active buildings when planning for PCM integration.

Saharan dust storms affecting the center of the Iberian Peninsula: Effect on the urban aerobiome

Dust storms are known to be atmospheric phenomena that transport mineral dust but also airborne biological particles (bioaerosols) from desert areas to distant regions. These bioaerosols can influence atmospheric processes and they have the potential of changing the composition of the local aerobiome in urban areas, which, in recent years, have been associated with allergies and the exacerbation of respiratory syndromes. Here, we studied four dust events initiated in the Sahara Desert affecting the center of the Iberian Peninsula. The biological particles before and during the phenomena were analyzed by high-throughput DNA sequencing. The global composition of bioaerosols showed a marked seasonality. The relative abundances of the most predominant groups of bacteria and fungi were not significantly altered compared to the days prior the corresponding event. Nonetheless, we detected specific bacterial and fungal taxa associated with these events, whose composition and abundance were also related to the period of the year. Although a variety of plant and animal pathogens were identified both before and throughout the days influenced by dust storms, some were only detected during the latter, suggesting a long-range transport for these species. This work highlights the importance of analyzing the storm dust events separately, especially when they occur at different seasons, and the particular effect on an urban environment in the Iberian Peninsula as a model case, providing some recommendations for future studies.

State of the Art of Renewable Sources Potentialities in the Middle East: A Case Study in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is experiencing a surge in electricity demand, with power generation increasing 4 times in 25 years from 1990 to 2014. Despite the abundant primary renewable energy sources, the country has overlooked them in the past in national energy policies. However, in recent years, renewable energy has become a part of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s energy conservation policy due to climate changes, technological progress, economies of scale, and increased competitiveness in supply chains. The Saudi government has created the King Abdullah City for Atomic and Renewable Energy (KACARE) to develop national strategies for effectively utilizing renewable and nuclear energy. This paper reviews the current state of the art of the renewable energy technologies available on the market and evaluates the installation of renewable energy plants near Saudi Arabia’s East Coast for a new town, focusing on technical rather than economic aspects. The paper provides a wide review of the possible technical solutions to exploit the producibility of different renewable sources, considering the challenging climate conditions typical of desert areas. The analysis of a real case study shows a high availability of wind and solar irradiance that allow a net energy production of 354 and 129 GWh, respectively. In addition, the comparison between a typical ground-mounted photovoltaic (PV) system and an emerging floating PV reveals that for the same installed power, occupied area, and environmental conditions, the latter has a 4% greater performance ratio due to the cooling effect of water.

Air pollution and diabetes mellitus: Association and validation in a desert area in China.

Despite the growing evidence pointing to the detrimental effects of air pollution on diabetes mellitus (DM), the relationship remains poorly explored, especially in desert-adjacent areas characterized by high aridity and pollution. We conducted a cross-sectional study with health examination data from over 2.9 million adults in two regions situated in the southern part of the Taklamakan Desert, China. We assessed three-year average concentrations (2018-2020) of particulate matter (PM1, PM2.5, and PM10), carbon monoxide (CO), nitrogen dioxide (NO2), and sulfur dioxide (SO2) through a space-time extra-trees model. After adjusting for various covariates, we employed generalized linear mixed models to evaluate the association between exposure to air pollutants and DM. The odds ratios for DM associated with a 10 µg/m3 increase in PM1, PM2.5, PM10, CO, and NO2 were 1.898 (95% CI: 1.741, 2.070), 1.07 (95% CI: 1.053, 1.086), 1.013 (95% CI: 1.008, 1.018), 1.009 (95% CI: 1.007, 1.011), and 1.337 (95% CI: 1.234, 1.449), respectively. Notably, men, individuals aged ≥50 years, those with lower educational attainment, nonsmokers, and those not engaging in physical exercise displayed more susceptible to the adverse effects of air pollution. Multiple sensitivity analyses confirmed the stability of these findings. Our study provides robust evidence of a correlation between prolonged exposure to air pollution and the prevalence of DM among individuals living in the desert-adjacent areas. This research contributes to the expanding knowledge on the relationship between air pollution exposure and DM prevalence in desert-adjacent areas.

Prediction of the potential distribution area of Glycyrrhiza inflata in China using a MaxEnt model

Glycyrrhiza inflata Batalin is an important medical plant of the genus Glycyrrhiza. It is one of the key protected plants in China, distributed in the desert areas of southern Xinjiang and Dunhuang of Gansu Province. It has a strong resistance to drought, heat, and salt stresses, and plays a pivotal role in sand fixtion in desert areas. In this study, based on 157 valid distribution records and eight environmental factors including climate factors and altitude, the potential distribution area of G. inflata in the last glacial maximum, middle Holocen, modern, and future (2050) times in China were predicted, using the optimized MaxEnt model and ArcGis 10.2 software. The results showed that the predicted distribution area was highly consistent with the current distribution range, and the area under the receiver operating characteristic (AUC) curve was 0.986, indicating that the prediction performance was excellent. The key climatic factors affecting the distribution were precipitation in December and the average annual precipitation. Meanwhile, the suitable area of G. inflata in modern times was 1,831,026 km2, mainly distributed in Turpan-Hami Basin, Tarim Basin, and Dunhuang of Gansu Province, with Lop Nur Town of Xinjiang as the distribution center. In 2050, the potential suitable area forG. inflata in China will be 1,808,090 km2, 250,970 km2 of which will be highly suitable, which is 150,600 km2 smaller than that in modern times, with a reduction rate of 60.0%. Therefore, there is a trend of great reduction in the suitable area of G. inflata. From the last glaciation maximum to the middle Holocene, the geographical distribution center shifted to the southwest margin of the Kumtag Desert, Xinjiang, then later continued to shift to the southwest. This study will provide a basis for understanding the origin and evolution of G. inflata, developing conservation strategies to minimize the impacts of environment change, and utilizing plant resource.

Analysis of characteristics and changes in three-dimensional spatial and temporal distribution of aerosol types in Central Asia

Atmospheric aerosol types and characteristics have regional and seasonal characteristics mainly due spatial and temporal differences in emission sources and diffuse transport conditions. We explored regional three-dimensional spatial and temporal distribution characteristics of aerosol types in Central Asia from daytime to nighttime by using long-term (2007–2021) CALIPSO lidar measurements. The three results are as follows: (1) Average aerosol optical depth (AOD) values during the 14 years were 0.44 and 0.47 during daytime and nighttime, respectively, with an overall decreasing trend, among which the AOD in spring in the southern border region and in winter in the northern border region showed high values, 0.66 and 0.31 during daytime and 0.69 and 0.33 during nighttime, respectively, and nighttime AOD values were higher than those of daytime, possibly due to the lower signal-to-noise ratio of the CALIPSO during the daytime than during the nighttime. (2) The primary representative aerosol type in the Taklamakan Desert region being pure sand and dust, and more apparent winter-polluted sand and dust exist along the northern slope of the Tianshan Mountains in Xinjiang in winter than in other areas. High-altitude soot mainly existed below 4 km and was primarily concentrated in northern Central Asia, with the highest values (0.016 and 0.003) in summer and winter, respectively, which may be due to different diffusion and transport conditions. (3) Dust aerosols in spring were mainly concentrated in the region of 2–6 km in the Taklamakan Desert area; pure dust particles in summer and fall lifted height diffusion and gradually moved to the northern border region; polluted dust was mainly in northern Xinjiang in fall and winter and spread to northern Central Asia; and the average top height of aerosols in the transmission process reached the top of the troposphere, and transmission height was higher than source area.

Bioregionalization of the Atlantic Sahara (North Africa): a contribution to the phytogeography of a poorly known area of the largest desert of the world

Bioregionalization of the Atlantic Sahara (North Africa): a contribution to the phytogeography of a poorly known area of the largest desert of the world

EXPERIMENTAL STUDY AND MONITORING OF TEMPERATURE AND SURFACE ROUGHNESS AND MICRO-HARDNESS OF THE WHEEL–RAIL CONTACT IN THE DESERT REGION OF THE OUARGLA TRAMWAY

Public transport via trams has become increasingly important in daily life to meet the growing demand for economic and environmental considerations. In order to ensure the safety of the railway system and reduce service costs, it is necessary to understand the tribological behavior of the system. There are various types of damage such as fatigue, wear, and cracking that can harm the wheels and rails. To determine the wear mechanisms and identify the situations in which wear movements occur, it is crucial to monitor factors such as temperature, surface roughness, and contact micro-hardness between the wheel and the rail. The objective of this study is to analyze the tribological behavior and the impact of climatic conditions on the wheel–rail contact system in the desert area of the Ouargla tramway in Algeria. To achieve this, an intelligent sensor programmed by a microcontroller was utilized to measure the temperature of the wheel–rail contact. Additionally, a hardness tester was used to measure the micro-hardness of the rail, and a roughness tester was utilized to monitor the surface condition of the rail. The measured temperature values during the passage of the tramway varied between ambient temperature and a temperature of 450∘C. The micro-hardness values ranged from 270 Hv to 440 Hv, and the roughness values varied between 0.4[Formula: see text][Formula: see text]m and 2.7[Formula: see text][Formula: see text]m.

Microscopic characteristics and sources of atmospheric dustfall in open-pit mining coal resource-based city in the arid desert area of Northwest China

Atmospheric dustfall is solid air pollutant, has a major impact on the environment and human health. The objective of this study was to investigate the microscopic characteristics and sources of atmospheric dustfall in open-pit mining coal resource-based city in the arid desert area of Northwest China. The characteristics of size and shape factors, variation of shape factors with size distribution, types of individual particles, and sources of atmospheric dustfall, which were collected in the open-pit mining area and surrounding areas, were analyzed by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy coupled with an energy dispersive spectrometer (SEM–EDS) combined with graphical method and shape factors. The results showed that the atmospheric dustfall in all functional areas was dominated by coarse-grained particles. The shape of the atmospheric dustfall deviated from spherical shape, and with decreasing particle size, the difference in shape factors increased in each functional area. The EDS and XRD analyses indicated the presence of 13 types of particles. The sources were mainly local and included soil dust from each functional area; industrial dust, construction dust, biogenic impurities, fossil fuel combustion, wear products of motor vehicle parts, motor vehicle exhaust emissions, and emission and excreta from biological activities in each functional area except the desert area; emissions from a steel plant in the industrial area; coal-associated ore, coal dust, coal gangue emissions, and emissions from the spontaneous combustion of coal gangue in the open-pit mining area; secondary chemical crystallization products in the industrial area and the open-pit mining area; dust generated by vehicles abrading the surface of the off-mine coal road and in the open-pit mining area.

The landscape altered the interaction between vegetation and climate in the desert oasis of Hotan River Basin, Xinjiang, China

In the arid region, the oasis is characterized by a desert substance and a mosaic of vegetation. The biophysical processes and interactions between vegetation and the local climate in this kind of region are determined by the macroscopic structure of the ecosystems, i.e. landscape patterns. To understand how these landscape patterns impact regional hydro-heat coupling across space and evolve over time, we utilized remote sensing observational data and methods to examine the relationships among these factors. In this case, we focused on the oasis along the upstream of the Hotan River Basin in the Taklamakan Desert in Xinjiang of western China and employed the satellite imagery datasets of Landsat from 1993 to 2019 to investigate the dynamics of vegetation–climate factors. Based on the land use and cover change datasets, the landscape pattern metrics, including patch density (PD), contagion index (CONTAG), fractal dimension (FRAC), were calculated to measure the landscape features on the different aspects, i.e. the fragmentation, the connectivity, and the complexity. With the algorithm of land surface energy balance, the land surface indicators, including the soil-adjusted vegetation index (SAVI), albedo, surface irradiance temperature (Ts), and evapotranspiration (ET), were calculated to represent the key process in the interaction of vegetation–climate. The temporal-spatial dynamics of the landscape patterns and the vegetation–climate metrics were mapped and demonstrated in a quantitative manner. The statistical results revealed that during the past decades, the agricultural land in the study area had significantly increased by 17 %. Grassland and shrubs had also expanded, while the desert area decreased from 82.57 % to 78.82 % of the total area, with an overall reduction rate of 1.4 %/10a. It was found the study area was getting warmer and dryer based on the general trends of Ts and ET observed during the period of 1993–2019. The agricultural land had the highest PD and CONTAG, and the lowest FRAC. The agricultural land had the lowest Ts and the highest ET. The results of structural equation model identified the decoupling effects of PD and CONTAG on the regional hydro-heat environment, while confirmed that FRAC had positive impact on the coupling between Ts and ET. Our study bridged the landscape pattern with the regional vegetation–climate interaction and provided the suggestions for the landscape planning and management for a more sustainable arid region.

Spatiotemporal Absorption Features of Yellow Willow Water Usage on the Southern Edge of the Semi-Arid Hunshandak Sandland in China

The improvement of water usage efficiency and productivity, as well as the development of effective water management plans, necessitates a comprehensive understanding of how water utilization patterns in different soil layers within arid and semi-arid climates impact the capacity of plant roots to absorb water. However, there is currently no knowledge regarding the water use strategies employed by artificial yellow willow. So, we conducted a study on the hydrogen and oxygen isotopic composition of rainfall in yellow willow (Salix gordejevii) from the semi-arid region located at the southern edge of the Hunshandak Sandland in China. This study utilized measured data on xylem water, groundwater, soil moisture, and rainfall. By employing a combination of the direct comparison method and the MixSIAR model, we investigated the water uptake strategies employed by yellow willow throughout its growing season. The findings revealed that the mean δ D was highest in precipitation and lowest in groundwater, whereas the mean δ18O was highest in stem water and lowest in groundwater. The δ D and δ18O fluctuated significantly in precipitation but were steady in groundwater. Because precipitation was significantly less than evaporation, the slope and intercept were lower for the local than global atmospheric precipitation line. Water availability steadily declined with increasing depth. Lower δ18O values were caused by precipitation diluting the soil water. The MixSIAR results indicated that the primary source in May, September, and October was utilized at 19%, 18%, and 18%, respectively. In contrast, the utilization rate of each source varied considerably in June, July, and August (the primary source was utilized at 19%, 18%, and 18%, respectively). Comparatively high rates of water absorption and utilization were observed in June (19% of the total water source), July (18%), and August (23%). Therefore, the vertical distribution of the root system and variations in the soil water content regulate water usage for the yellow willow. To prevent excessive water usage and promote ecosystem restoration with artificial yellow willow plantations in water-limited desert settings, policy makers should consider the patterns of plant water use and soil water availability. By selecting drought-adapted plant species and optimizing irrigation management, it is possible to reduce water wastage and ensure that water is used efficiently for revegetation and ecosystem restoration, avoiding overuse of water and maintaining the sustainability of revegetation in water-stressed desert areas.

An Innovative Concept for 3D Sand-Printed Sustainable Refugee Shelters in a Sandy Desert in a Hot and Dry Climate

This article deals with the urban and architectural concept of a shelter for refugees (refugees from civil war-stricken Syria), located in a desert area, in a hot and dry climate. The aim of the research was to develop a design concept for a temporary shelter that would provide refugees with decent living conditions and, at the same time, meet the demands of sustainable development. The conceptual design of the shelter includes a complex of 100 residential units intended for 500 refugees, service buildings, and public spaces. The proposed urban layout can be expanded multiple times. At an architectural scale, the concept includes several variants of residential units. To implement this project, it is proposed to use an innovative, environmentally friendly 3D printing technology employing quartz sand and using solar energy. The implementation of this technology in the construction of shelters for refugees in sandy desert areas will solve many problems related to logistics, availability of building materials, and energy costs. The design solutions proposed in the article are the result of taking into account technological, functional, cultural, humanitarian, economic, climatic, and ecological aspects.

Effect of climate change on the seasonal variation in photosynthetic and non-photosynthetic vegetation coverage in desert areas, Northwest China

Efficient prediction of the response of vegetation to future climate change requires an in depth understanding of the effect of climate change on the land cover by photosynthetic (fPV) and non-photosynthetic vegetation (fNPV) and its driving mechanism. Here, we aimed to estimate fPV and fNPV, and analyze the impacts of climate factors on their seasonal variability in the arid desert of northwestern China. First, optimal vegetation indices (VIs) were selected to estimate fPV and fNPV based on measured spectral reflectance, and the accuracy of estimated fPV and fNPV using Sentinel-2 images was evaluated with data from an unmannedaerialvehicle (UAV). Then, partial correlation, multi-correlation and time‐lag effect analyses were used to obtain the correlation coefficients and lag times between fPV, fNPV and climate change. The results showed that Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) and Dead Fuel Index (DFI) were the optimal VIs to estimate fPV and fNPV in the desert, with the accuracy of 67 and 52 % for fPV and fNPV, respectively. The average fPV and fNPV were 8.15 and 9.26 % from March to November, their seasonal variability was consistent with plant phenology, and there was a decrease in fPV and fNPV from east to west with a decrease in precipitation. The variability in fPV was driven by precipitation while that of fNPV was dominated bytemperature. The time-lag of temperature and precipitation effect on fPV was 1.28 ± 1.28 and 1.61 ± 1.16 months, respectively, and on fNPV was 1.28 ± 1.2 and 1.19 ± 1.24 months, respectively. The time-lag of temperature-precipitation interaction on fPV and fNPV were 1.4 ± 1.22 and 1.2 ± 1.28 months, respectively. Accumulated precipitation had a positive effect on fPV and a negative effect on fNPV, while the impact of accumulated temperature was the opposite. We conclude that there were time-lag and cumulative effects of climate change on fPV and fNPV variability in desert areas. This study helps us better understand the climate-vegetation interactions and provides a scientific basis for desert vegetation management under climate change.

Investigation of Icelandic Dust Presence in the Aerosols Collected at Hornsund (Svalbard, Norwegian Arctic) in Spring 2019

Investigation of Icelandic Dust Presence in the Aerosols Collected at Hornsund (Svalbard, Norwegian Arctic) in Spring 2019

National-scale Geochemical Survey: Distribution of chemical elements in stream sediment of South and Central Asia

This work was carried out as the Pakistani, Uzbekistani, Tajikistani, and Kyrgyzstani contribution to the National-scale Geochemical Survey of South and Central Asia (NGSSCA) project, the objective of which was to document and study the amounts and distribution of chemical elements in stream sediment of South and Central Asia where such national-scale geochemical mapping is launched for the first time. In the framework of the NGSSCA project deployed in Pakistan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, and Kyrgyzstan, 9237 stream sediment samples (<2 mm grain-size fraction in alpine desert and mountainous area) were collected at an average density of 1 sample site/100 km2, on the basis of a common stream sediment sampling protocol. The resultant compositional data sets and cartographic products will vastly benefit future mineral exploration activity, surficial (and even solid Earth) geochemical processes studies (e.g., chemical weathering), and environmental evaluation. Eight elements of economic interests (e.g., Ag, Sb, W, Mo, Li, Be, Cu, and Co) are selected to demonstrate their distribution pattern in stream sediment and the main controlling factors. It's concluded that the anomalies for the selected elements in the NGSSCA project can thus be directly linked to different geogenic sources, e.g., underlying bedrock, soil type, mineralization or ore deposits, and large-scale fault systems. Based on the results and the integrated anomaly maps, some new target areas for the corresponding metallic mineralization are predicted, which will provide a basis for further mineral exploration.

Urban planning impact on summer human thermal comfort in Doha, Qatar

Urbanization entails extensive construction and substantial land use alterations, converting natural areas into residential, commercial, mixed-use and industrial. These alterations disrupt the land surface energy, impacting the land surface temperatures (LSTs). Elevated LSTs affect the thermal comfort of urban residents exerting pressure on the environment and ecosystems. This study investigates the repercussions of elevated LST on human thermal comfort, focusing on Doha municipality in Qatar for 2002–2003, 2013, and 2022, with a specific focus on summer temperatures. Utilizing remote sensing and Geographical Information Systems (GIS), we conducted an in-depth investigation, employing Landsat data along and GIS tools to create land use maps and LST pattern maps and establish a correlation between land use and LST. The findings reveal a notable increase in the built-up area of Doha municipality, predominantly at the expense of desert land and water bodies. The LST increases consistently by 0.65 °C annually, shifting human thermal comfort from "moderate" to "heat stress" from 2002 to 2013 and 2023 in all neighborhoods of Doha. Our comparison of LST between different urban areas indicates lower temperatures near water bodies and suburban developments and higher temperatures in downtown areas. Suburban developments exhibit a favourable impact in desert areas compared to compact developments. Our methodology of combining LST from remote sensing data with thermal comfort indices for more comprehensive and accurate estimation of outdoor thermal comfort can be applied in various geographies.

Intra-hour solar irradiance forecasting using topology data analysis and physics-driven deep learning

Real-time Direct Normal Irradiance (DNI) prediction is crucial for reliable and economic operation of Concentrated photothermal Solar Power (CSP) system in arid desert areas. However, the stochastic characteristics of short-term multidimensional meteorological time series make intra-hour DNI prediction a challenging task. In this study, we have proposed a deep learning model called TLD, which is combined with topological features captured by Topology Data Analysis (TDA) and temporal features captured by LSTM to address this challenge. Experimental results demonstrated that TLD outperformed the five latest models (Ridge, RF, C_GRU, BiLSTM, and GBRT) on seven solar radiation datasets in arid desert areas. Further analysis revealed that the proportion of cloudy days is a key factor affecting the model's performance. To enhance the forecast ability of TLD, we developed a physics-informed hybrid model named TLDP based on TLD and a smart persistence model, which fully combines the DNI prediction ability of TLD under cloudy conditions and that of the smart persistence model under sunny conditions. Experimental results of eight datasets collected from real-world solar photothermal power stations indicated that TLDP outperformed existing models, which may lay a foundation for more economical and stable operation of CSP plants in arid desert areas.

Would future climate warming cause zoonotic diseases to spread over long distances?

Dipus sagitta is a major rodent found in arid environments and desert areas. They feed on plant seeds, young branches and some small insects, and have hibernating habits. Peak Dipus sagitta numbers impact the construction of the plant community in the environment, but also have a human impact as these rodents carry a variety of parasitic fleas capable of spreading serious diseases to humans. Based on 216 present distribution records of Dipus sagitta and seven environmental variables, this article simulates the potential distribution of Dipus sagitta during the Last Glacial Maximum, the mid-Holocene, the present and the future (2070s, RCP4.5, RCP8.5). This study also analyzes the geographic changes of the population distribution and evaluates the importance of climate factors by integrating contribution rate, replacement importance value and the jackknife test using the MaxEnt model. In this study, we opted to assess the predictive capabilities of our model using the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) and partial receiver operating characteristic (pROC) metrics. The findings indicate that the AUC value exceeds 0.9 and the AUC ratio is greater than 1, indicating superior predictive performance by the model. The results showed that the main climatic factors affecting the distribution of the three-toed jerboa were precipitation in the coldest quarter, temperature seasonality (standard deviation), and mean annual temperature. Under the two warming scenarios of the mid-Holocene and the future, there were differences in the changes in the distribution area of the three-toed jerboa. During the mid-Holocene, the suitable distribution area of the three-toed jerboa expanded, with a 93.91% increase in the rate of change compared to the Last Glacial Maximum. The size of the three-toed jerboa's habitat decreases under both future climate scenarios. Compared to the current period, under the RCP4.5 emission scenario, the change rate is -2.96%, and under the RCP8.5 emission scenario, the change rate is -7.41%. This indicates a trend of contraction in the south and expansion in the north. It is important to assess changes in the geographic population of Dipus sagitta due to climate change to formulate population control strategies of these harmful rodents and to prevent and control the long-distance transmission of zoonotic diseases.

Factor analysis of hydrologic services in water-controlled grassland ecosystems by InVEST model and geodetector.

Water conservation is highly important for a successful desert grassland ecosystem, but there was no comprehensive view on how to assess influencing factors in managing and addressing water yield and water conservation in desert steppe. The Integrated Valuation of Ecosystem Services and Trade-offs (InVEST) model, which is specifically used for the assessment of ecosystem services, was combined with geographic detectors to identify the priority areas for water conservation function and analyze the driving factors of water conservation in the Tabu River Basin, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, China, using different meteorological data sources. (i) The InVEST model has the advantage of modeling water yield and water conservation at spatial scales by fusion downscaling data. High water yield mainly occurs in the southern hilly mountainous areas, low water yield in the northern desert and grassland areas, and between the two in the central agro-pastoral areas; the multi-year average water conservation and water yield based on the InVEST model are 3.3 and 16mm, respectively. (ii) Water yield and water conservation roughly show a transitional phenomenon of "high in the south and low in the north." The water yield and water conservation per unit area of the Tabu River Basin are relatively large for construction land, unused land, and cropland, relatively small for grassland and forestland, and basically zero for water bodies. Forest land has the strongest water conservation capacity, followed by grassland and farmland, while the order of water yield capacity is the opposite. (iii) Precipitation shows the strongest explanatory power for water yield (q = 0.427), followed by land use types (q = 0.411). The precipitation ∩ actual evapotranspiration has the strongest explanatory power for water yield (q = 0.87). The explanatory power of water yield on water conservation is the strongest (q = 0.752), followed by precipitation (q = 0.4), and the water yield ∩ soil has the greatest explanatory power on water conservation (q = 0.91). These findings are crucial for promoting regional hydrologic services and can provide a water resources management strategy for decision-makers.

Windblown sand hazards risk assessment along the highways based on GIS-game theory combination weight.

Windblown sand hazards seriously threaten the safe operation of highways in desert areas. Reasonable risk assessment can provide the basis for windblown sand hazards prevention and risk reduction. To facilitate the formulation of better windblown sand hazards prevention and reduction strategies, a new windblown sand hazards risk assessment model along the highways was proposed, in which seven evaluation indicators were selected from danger of the hazard-causing factors, vulnerability of the hazard-forming environment, and the vulnerability of the hazard-bearing body. The model was established based on the combination weighting method of game theory, and the risk map was generated based on the GIS platform. Finally, the model was applied to the windblown sand hazards risk assessment along the Wuhai-Maqin Highway. The result showed that the risk of the windblown sand hazards along the Wuhai-Maqin Highway is mainly medium, low, and very low. High and very high risk windblown sand hazards sections account for only 33% of the total length of the highway. The high and very high risk highway sections of the windblown sand hazards are mainly distributed in the hinterland of shifting dunes area and near the horizontal curve with a small radius in the flat sandy land area. By comparing with the real information of windblown sand hazards along the highway, correlation was up to 85.93%, which verified the accuracy of the model. The model can be applied to windblown sand hazards risk assessment along the highways.