description Lop Nur Overview
Lop Nur is a largely dried salt-lake basin in China's Xinjiang region, at the eastern end of the Tarim Basin between the Taklamakan and Kumtag deserts. It was an endorheic lake, meaning that its water had no outlet, and its former basin now contains saline mudflats and salt crusts after the loss of surface inflows. An area northwest of Lop Nur became China's principal nuclear-weapons test site, where the first test took place in 1964. [Sources](https://science.nasa.gov/earth/earth-observatory/lop-nur-xinjiang-china-51039/), [IAEA report](https://www-pub.iaea.org/MTCD/Publications/PDF/te_1591_web.pdf)
help Lop Nur FAQ
Where is Lop Nur located?
Lop Nur is in Xinjiang, China, at the eastern end of the Tarim Basin. It lies between the Taklamakan and Kumtag deserts.
What happened to Lop Nur's water?
Lop Nur was an endorheic lake, so its water had no outlet. The former lake basin is now largely dried and contains saline mudflats and salt crust.
What does endorheic mean in the case of Lop Nur?
An endorheic lake has no river outlet to the sea or another drainage basin. Water leaves mainly through evaporation or seepage, which helps explain the basin's salt deposits.
Is Lop Nur still a large freshwater lake?
No. It is now a largely dried salt-lake basin rather than a large freshwater lake. Its remaining landscape is characterized by saline mudflats and salt crust.
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