The Kaidu River (;
Uyghur: قايدۇ دەرياسى ;), also known under its ancient name Chaidu-gol, is a river in the
Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region
Xinjiang, SASM/GNC: ''Xinjang''; zh, c=, p=Xīnjiāng; formerly romanized as Sinkiang (, ), officially the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region (XUAR), is an autonomous region of the People's Republic of China (PRC), located in the northwest ...
of
China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, most populous country, with a Population of China, population exceeding 1.4 billion, slig ...
and an important source of water for the region. The Kaidu River is responsible for many substantial effects on the environment. Affecting the land and its people in many different ways.
The sources of the Kaidu River are located on the central southern slopes of the
Tian Shan
The Tian Shan,, , otk, 𐰴𐰣 𐱅𐰭𐰼𐰃, , tr, Tanrı Dağı, mn, Тэнгэр уул, , ug, تەڭرىتاغ, , , kk, Тәңіртауы / Алатау, , , ky, Теңир-Тоо / Ала-Тоо, , , uz, Tyan-Shan / Tangritog‘ ...
from where it flows through the
Yulduz Basin
''Yulduz'' ('Star') was a weekly Uzbek language newspaper published in Afghanistan. ''Yulduz'' was published in Arabic script
The Arabic script is the writing system used for Arabic and several other languages of Asia and Africa. It is the s ...
["Xinjiang River Guide"]
and the Yanqi Basin into
Lake Bosten for which it is the most important tributary.
[Seespiegelschwankungen des Bosten-Sees ]
/ref> The river leaves the lake under the name Kongque River (), which literally means "Peacock River", but is derived from the Uyghur name "كۆنچى دەرياسى / Konchi Darya" which means "Tanner's River".[Nara Shiruku Rōdo-haku Kinen Kokusai Kōryū Zaidan, Shiruku Rōdo-gaku Kenkyū Sentā: Opening up the Silk Road: the Han and the Eurasian world, Nara International Foundation Commemorating the Silk Road Exposition, 2007] The Kongque River flows through the Iron Gate Pass
The Iron Gate Pass connects the Yanqi Basin and the Tarim Basin in central Xinjiang, China. The pass follows the gorge of the kaidu River. The main settlements linked by the pass are the town of Yanqi in the Yanqi Hui Autonomous County to the n ...
() into the Tarim Basin
The Tarim Basin is an endorheic basin in Northwest China occupying an area of about and one of the largest basins in Northwest China.Chen, Yaning, et al. "Regional climate change and its effects on river runoff in the Tarim Basin, China." Hyd ...
.
Settlements on the river
Kaidu River
* Karashahar
Kongque River
*Tashidian
Tashidian () is a town in the Bayingolin Mongol Autonomous Prefecture, in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, China. It is located on the Kongque River and national road G218, about 10 km to the north of Korla
Korla,The official spel ...
*Korla
Korla,The official spelling according to also known as Kurla, United States National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency or from Mandarin Chinese as Ku'erle or Kuerle, is the second largest city in Xinjiang. It is a county-level city and the seat ...
Significant problems
The Kaidu River is a determinant factor of climate change in Northwest China. The river is a result of sensitivity due to climate variability. Due to studies through the usage of hydrologic sensitivity analysis, researchers were able to make this observation and make proof of it.
Northwest China has been subjected to affects from the Kaidu River because of global warming and water perturbation. Studies have shown a correlation between the temperature and the precipitation being the leading cause to these issues. Additionally, the Kaidu River resides in an arid zone, causing many different trends in temperature due to this climate change.
Land use-conversion is also a very problematic issue that is caused in the region of Northwest China due to climate change as well. Many of the people within this area have had to deal with deceases in natural grassland area. Cultivated land increased due to this issue as well. Land reclamations were what led to this, as well as an increase in the growth of socioeconomic development. This led to an increase in water management activities, which became an issue because of the consistent change of runoff.[Wang, Y., Chen, Y., Ding, J., & Fang, G. (2015). Land-use conversion and its attribution in the Kaidu–Kongqi River Basin, China. Quaternary International, 380-381, 216-223. doi:10.1016/j.quaint.2014.10.010
]
References
{{reflist
Rivers of Xinjiang
Sites along the Silk Road