Gobi - geography.

Gobi - geography. Gobi, extensive desert area of southern Mongolia and northern China. The largest desert in Asia, it is also known as Shamo, the Chinese word for "sand desert." The Gobi, which is about 1,600 km (about 1,000 mi) in extent from east to west and about 1,000 km (about 600 mi) from north to south, has a total area of 1,300,000 sq km (500,000 sq mi). It is bounded by the Da Hinggan Ling (Greater Khingan Range) on the east, the Altun Shan and Nan Shan mountains on the south, the Tian Shan mountains on the west, and the Altay and Hangayn Nuruu (Khangai) mountains and Yablonovyy Range on the north. The Gobi is formed by a series of small basins within a larger basin rimmed by ...