Geology and relief
The Turpan Basin is a fault-bounded trough located in the eastern part of the Tian Shan. It covers an area of . The surrounding mountain ranges are: the central Tian Shan in the west, the Bogda Shan in the north-west, the Haerlike Shan in the north-west, and the Jueluotage Shan in the south. Beyond the surrounding mountain ranges lie the Dzungaria, Junggar Basin in the north and the Tarim Basin in the south. Some geographers also use the term Turpan-Hami Basin, which is understood as including the Turpan Depression along with the Hami Depression (located to the east of the Turpan Depression, and to the southwest of the city of Hami City, Hami) and the Liaodong Uplift separating the two depressions. A source using this terminology gave the area of the Turpan Depression proper as , that of the Hami Depression as , and for the entire Turpan-Hami Basin, as . The Turpan Basin formed in a shear zone during the Lopingian, Late Permian due to motion between the East European Craton, East European and the Angaran craton. It was subsequently deformed by the collision of the Indian plate, Indian and Eurasian plates in the Cenozoic. In the latter deformation, a thrust fault belt running from east to west, the Flaming Mountains, was formed in the center of the basin. The Flaming Mountains are long and wide; the highest peak reaches an elevation of above sea level. The Turfan volcano is located near Turpan. Also in the center of the basin lies the Ayding Lake (Moonlight Lake) which has an elevation of below sea level, the List of elevation extremes by country, sixth lowest exposed elevation on the Earth's land surface. It is the lowest surface point in China. The Shihongtan uranium ore deposit is located at the southwestern margin of the Turpan Depression, some south-southwest from Turpan City.History of human settlement
The ancient city of Gaochang was a key point on the ancient Silk Road and dates back to the 1st century BC. It was burnt down in wars in the 14th century. The Bezeklik Thousand Buddha Caves, which are located in the Flaming Mountains' Mutou Valley, about east of the city of Turpan, have been hewn into the rock from the Tang dynasty era up to the time of the Yuan dynasty (13th century). The caves are famous for their murals, which can still be found in about 40 of the 77 known caves. The desert climate has favored preservation of the content of the Astana Cemetery, Astana-Karakhoja ancient tombs, which are located about 6 km from the ancient city of Gaochang. The tombs are the burial place for nobles, officials, and others who were interred there from the times of the Jin dynasty (265–420), Western Jin dynasty until the middle of the Tang dynasty era. The modern city of Turpan has a population of 242,000, of whom 71% are Uyghurs, Uyghur. The city relies on wells and traditional ''karez'' for water.Climate
The Turpan Basin has a harsh, continental desert climate (Koppen ''BWk'') in which the precipitation is far less than the potential evaporation. At Turpan City, July is the hottest month with a 24-hour average temperature of and January the coldest with a 24-hour average temperature of . Monthly rainfall is highest in June, at and lowest in February and April, at . The annual average precipitation is only , falling on only 13 days per year. In contrast to this, the potential annual evaporation rate reaches . Because of its climate, the area is sometimes counted as one of the ''Furnaces of China'', although the locations included under this heading vary.Vegetation and agriculture
Sources
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