Topic: Gobi Desert

Can a 4,000-mile wall of trees stop Sahara Desert's drift?

The pan-African Great Green Wall project aims to build a literal wall of trees to stop the Sahara Desert's southward creep. But is the idea too good to be true? 

Slight warming could mean big permafrost thaw, say scientists

A study of Siberian caves suggests that a rise of only 2.7 degrees Fahrenheit could melt vast areas of permafrost, which would in turn accelerate warming.

Change Agent Len Stanmore mixes adventure with helping others

He's about to set a world record by climbing the highest peaks on seven continents and crossing the four most inhospitable deserts. But when he added a charitable aspect to his quest he made it even more meaningful.

Modern Parenthood China adoption diary: over the pole, the odyssey begins

Part 1 – China adoption diary: The Belsie family begins their journey to adopt their second daughter from China with a 12-hour, 7,000-mile flight over the pole and down through Siberia to Beijing.

After 13 days in orbit, China's first female astronaut returns to Earth (+video)

The three-member crew, which includes China's first female astronaut, emerged grinning from their Shenzhou 9 space capsule.

China's first female astronaut returns to Earth (+video)

China's first female astronaut and two other crew members completed a 13-day mission Friday to an orbiting prototype for a future Chinese space station.

Disputed Tyrannosaur skeleton will soon be returned to Mongolia from US

The 70-million-year-old dinosaur skeleton, discovered in Mongolia, will soon be returned by the US to its home country. 

Did someone smuggle a Tyrannosaur skeleton out of Mongolia? (+video)

A US attorney is seeking to return a 70-million-year old dinosaur skeleton to the Mongolian government, who claims it was sneaked out of the country. 

Tyrannosaur allegedly smuggled to US to be returned to Mongolia (+video)

Paleontologists and Mongolian officials have maintained that the skeleton, which belongs to a type of tyrannosaur called a Tarbosaurus bataar, was taken illegally from their country.

Could China's Shenzhou 9 success usher in a new space race? (+video)

Chinese astronauts successfully docked with a prototype space station, making China only the third nation, after the United States and Russia, to perform such a maneuver.  

Fighter pilot set to become first Chinese woman in space (+video)

Liu Yang will be part of a three-person crew aboard a Chinese spacecraft set to launch Saturday night. She will become China's first woman in space.

North Korean women sold into 'slavery' in China

Like the thousands of women who fled North Korea before her, Kim Eun-sun made it into China and paid a woman to help her, only to discover she'd traded one form of captivity for another.

China's great space station leap

China has successfully launched the first component to build its own space station, indicating that it is closing the gap with the big space powers such as the US and Russia.

Ai Weiwei: Can an artist change society?

Chinese artist Ai Weiwei's provocative work spotlights human rights and pushes government boundaries.

Ai Weiwei: Why does he make Chinese authorities nervous?

The famous Chinese artist and political dissident Ai Weiwei hasn’t been heard from since his arrest Sunday by Chinese authorities. The disappearance of Mr. Ai, who uses his art to express political dissent, is just one of a slew of recent arrests by the Chinese government in what seems to be a bid to prevent protests inspired by the Middle East uprisings to China. Ai has long been at odds with the Chinese government, and this isn’t the first confrontation. What has made Ai a marked man in China?

The Way Back: movie review

Peter Weir’s 'The Way back' is a harrowing escape story of a gulag survivor.

Did horned dinosaurs island-hop to Europe?

The discovery of a horned dinosaur in Hungary suggests that these types of dinosaurs, which were once thought to be limited to Asia and North America, might have island-hopped their way to Europe.

Dust storm in Australia turns Sydney into Mars

Australia's worst dust storm in 70 years has given a rusty tint to the the continent's east coast.

A solar eclipse for the people

Not just devoted eclipse-chasers but millions of others were able to view the longest solar eclipse of the century as it passed over Asia Wednesday.

Skiing 'with Chinese characteristics?'

A resort in hilly Hebei Province, northwest of Beijing, offers unexpectedly long and enjoyable runs – not to mention a Swiss chalet hung with Chinese lanterns.

Tibet shepherds live on climate frontier

Shrinking glaciers mean longer hikes to water flocks

Chinese Muslims join global Islamic market

They are forging economic ties with the Muslim world at a time when interest in Islam is also growing.

New film aims to remind South Koreans of suffering to their north

Ahead of Beijing Olympics, the international group Justice for North Korea hopes to press China to accept North Korean refugees as defectors, not migrants.

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