As the scarcity of global water intensifies, accurate assessments of water resource carrying capacity (WRCC) have become essential for sustainably managing regional water resources and combating the adverse effects of climate change. However, the water resources-ecology-society system is highly complex, involving multidimensional interactions anddynamic internal changes that cannot be fully captured by a single evaluation method. This paper reviews the application status and research progress of coupled-model methods for WRCC evaluation. A systematic comparative analysis reveals the strengths and limitations of the major evaluation methods—systems analysis, comprehensive evaluation, and machine learning—in WRCC evaluation. Particular attention is devoted to the challenges of these methods in arid regions. The dynamic feedback mechanisms, nonlinear modeling capabilities, data-driven characteristics, and applicabilities of different methods are analyzed through a horizontal comparison study. The review also analyzes the suitabilities and limitations of each method in arid regions and explores the feasibility of coupled models, providing new insights for resolving WRCC issues in these areas. Multimodel integration and data-driven optimization will enhance the generalizability and applicability of models in future, facilitating the transition of water resource management from static evaluation to dynamic simulation and precise prediction. These developments will offer scientific support for sustainable water resource utilization in arid regions and worldwide.

The damaging pest Agrilus viduus Kerremans was recorded for the first time in Ili Prefecture, Xinjiang. This pest has entered the core area of wild fruit forest, where it has damaged wild apples and wild apricots. Through field surveys, fixed-point observations, and laboratory rearing, the distribution range, life history, damage characteristics, and host plants of this pest in the wild fruit forest area were preliminarily studied. This pest is distributed in Xinyuan County, Gongliu County, Huocheng County, and Tekes County and has entered the wild fruit forests of Xinyuan County, Gongliu County, and Huocheng County. In terms of its reproduction, this pest exhibits one generation per year, starts to be active in the first half of May and begins to emerge in early July, with the peak emergence period in late July. Adult insects start to lay eggs in mid-July, and the emergence process ends in early August. In early November, the second-and third-instar larvae begin to overwinter. The damage mainly takes the form of larvae boring into the phloem, cambium, and xylem of host plants. When substantial infestation occurs, death of the host can occur. This pest can damage wild apricots, wild apples, and some other economically important fruit trees in the wild fruit forest. The oviposition characteristics of this pest are rather special. Eggs are laid in clusters on the bark surface and then covered with secretions to form egg cases. The distribution of this species’ egg cases is highly correlated with the height of apricot trees, with them mainly being found at heights of 120-240 cm; the distribution of the egg cases is also related to the basal diameter, being found mainly on branches with diameters of 2-3 cm. A literature review and field investigation revealed that this insect is a pest that has been newly introduced into the wild fruit forest of Xinjiang, posing a significant threat and requiring the attention of local authorities. There is an urgent need for physical control, biological control, and chemical control methods to be applied to eradicate it in accordance with its biological characteristics.

Cuscuta plants are classified as quarantine plants due to their parasitic stem characteristics, and it is important to investigate the potential spatial distribution characteristics of Cuscuta plants in China for effective control. In this study, three species of Cuscuta (C. cupulata, C. campestris and C. monogyna) were selected as the research subjects. Based on 932 records of geographical distribution, 144 records of field investigation and 20 environmental variables, the maximum entropy model and ArcGIS were used to predict potential niche distributions under current and future scenarios (2041-2060, 2061-2080) considering of greenhouse gas emissions from SSP2-4.5. The suitable areas for the 3 species of Cuscuta under the current climate conditions and land use date were analyzed. The results showed that: (1) The area under the work characteristic curve (AUC) for all subjects was greater than 0.9 indicating high prediction accuracy. (2) The main environmental factors affecting the distribution of the three species of Cuscuta within their habitable zones with a relatively small contribution rate from topographic factors varied, but all of them were dominated by climatic factors. (3) Currently C. cupulata and C. monogyna distributions are concentrated in northern China, while C. campestris is not only distributed in the north, but also concentrated in southeastern China, and in future scenarios they will expand further northward. (4) In the current period, most land areas suitable for these three species of Cuscuta have already been exploited.

Atmospheric Precipitable Water Vapor (PWV) is an important indicator to characterize the water vapor content in the atmosphere, and clarifying the conversion mechanism between PWV and precipitation is of great significance for efficient water resource utilization. This paper takes Xinjiang as the study area, calculates PWV based on multi-source data, and evaluates the advantages and disadvantages of ERA5 global atmospheric reanalysis data for calculating PWV using radiosounde data as reference, and reveals the conversion relationship between PWV and precipitation with the help of Precipitation Conversion Efficient (PCE). The results show that (1) The PWV calculated by ERA5 has a high accuracy, with correlation coefficients and root mean square errors of 0.98 and 2.6 mm, respectively, compared to the PWV determined by traditional radiosounde data dependent methods. (2) Overall increasing trend of PWV in Xinjiang from 1960-2020, with an increase of 0.1 mm·(10a)^-1; the wavelet spectrum shows that the period of PWV change in the study area is dominated by the short period, which is 2.6 a and 6 a, respectively. (3) From a point perspective, PCE increases with increasing precipitation at the station. From a line perspective, the pattern of change in PCE is “U” type in the direction of longitude and roughly “L” type in the direction of latitude. At the surface scale, the high value areas of PCE were mainly distributed in the forested land, the slope range of 25°-35° and the area above 5000 m above sea level, which were 7.17%, 5.8% and 5.1%, respectively. (4) Typical years of precipitation abundance anomalies vary significantly in PCE, with exceptionally abundant years with strong convergence and strong upward movement of water vapor giving rise to higher PCE, and flat and dry water years with lower PCE. (5) Arctic Oscillation Index and Pacific Decadal Oscillation are the main factors affecting the PCE in the whole of Xinjiang, and there are some differences in the PCE controlled factors among different regions due to differences in climate and topography. The results of the study can provide theoretical references for airborne water resource utilisation and precipitation conversion assessment in Xinjiang.

Salinization in the irrigation areas of watersheds in downstream arid regions exacerbates soil degradation, crop yield reduction, and river water salinization, severely limiting agricultural production and harming ecological stability. It arises in a manner influenced by the depth of groundwater and poor irrigation and drainage management. Scientifically formulating measures to regulate soil water-salt is key to addressing these issues. In this study, field experiments were conducted in a typical farmland area of the riparian zone by the downstream part of Aksu River. Based on dynamic observations and field survey data, an unsaturated model was established using the HYDRUS-1D software to simulate soil water and salt transport patterns during the cotton growing season, determine appropriate regulatory strategies, and explore the relationship between the stable groundwater evaporation depth and riparian soil structure. The results revealed that the identification and validation accuracy of the soil moisture content and total dissolved solids were 0.862 and 0.752 with root mean square errors of 0.033 and 0.008, respectively, indicating that the model was highly reliable. Irrigation infiltration accounted for 85% of the total soil water recharge, introducing 127.164 mg·cm^-2 of salt, while soil water discharge to groundwater accounted for 59.67% of the total discharge, removing 267.78 mg·cm^-2 of salt. The water balance error was 9.2% and the desalination rate was 33.89%. Considering the demand for water for crops and soil salinity dynamics, setting the irrigation water depth to 70 cm while maintaining the groundwater depth at approximately 220 cm can effectively reduce the soil salinity in the root zone. In sandy loam structures, the position of the loam layer has little effect on the critical evaporation depth of groundwater (150 cm), but significantly influences the stable evaporation depth and actual evaporation. If the loam layer is closer to the surface, the stable evaporation depth becomes shallower and the actual evaporation decreases. The findings provide a reference for preventing salinization and managing water resources in arid regions.

The precipitation concentration index (PCI) is a measure of precipitation during the year. Based on the monthly precipitation data of 15 meteorological stations in the Yarlung Zangbo River Basin (YZRB) from 1981 to 2024, the spatiotemporal variation characteristics of PCI, the amount of seasonal precipitation, its frequency and intensity over the last 44 years, and the reasons for a change in PCI were analyzed using a linear equation, Person coefficient, and five mutation tests, including the Mann-Kendall and Cramer tests. The results indicated that (1) The PCI increased from east to west in YZRB, whereas annual precipitation, precipitation frequency, and precipitation intensity decreased from east to west. (2) Over the past 44 years, the PCI decreased at a rate of -0.26 per decade, indicating a trend toward more evenly distributed monthly precipitation throughout the year. Precipitation exhibited an increasing trend from January to July and October (the fastest increase in July), and it decreased in other months (the most in September). Monthly precipitation accounted for the proportion of annual precipitation (MPAP), which increased in February and April-July (the largest in May). MPAP was decreased in other months (the largest decrease in September). (3) The increase of precipitation in spring, summer, and winter was primarily due to the increase in precipitation intensity, whereas the decrease of precipitation frequency played a major role in the decreased amount of precipitation during autumn. Furthermore, the increase in annual precipitation intensity resulted from the significant increase of the Tibetan Plateau-1 index and the western Pacific warm pool intensity index. The decrease in the PCI was related to a decrease in the seasonal difference under the background of warming. (4) The PCI was lower only in the 2000s, but was higher in the other three decades, although there was a sudden change in the early 1990s. The abrupt changes in annual precipitation, frequency, and intensity occurred during the first 10 years of the 2000s and the middle and late 1990s.

To examine the mineralization characteristics and their effect on soil organic carbon components in sandy loamy soils following the application of organic fertilizers in conjunction with trace elements, indoor culture experiments and field trials were conducted. We assessed the decomposition rate and residue ratio as well as the influence of varying amounts of organic fertilizer on soil organic carbon, active organic carbon, particulate organic carbon, organo-mineral-bound organic carbon, and microbial carbon content, as well as the level of amino sugars, N-galactosamine, and galactomannan. Compared with the application of organic fertilizers alone, the addition of trace elements to the indoor culture significantly decreased the amount of mineralized organic carbon in the sandy loam soils. In field trials, this addition further increased active organic carbon (1.79%-1.99%), low-active organic carbon (2.20%-4.91%), organo-mineral-bound organic carbon (3.89%-7.95%), and microbial carbon (1.71%-8.10%) content, while also enhancing the level of amino sugars (3.46%-6.32%), N-galactosamine (1.21%-13.32%), galactomannan (2.41%-6.14%), and microbial residual carbon (2.70%-4.99%). However, the increase was less pronounced for high-active organic carbon (0.71%-1.48%) and particulate organic carbon (4.91%-5.86%) content. The addition of micro and trace elements to organic fertilizers may, to some extent, mitigate the mineralization process of organic fertilizers in sandy soils, thereby enhancing the level of labile organic carbon, recalcitrant organic carbon, organic carbon bound with minerals, and microbial biomass carbon in the soil, ultimately promoting the turnover and retention of organic carbon in the soil.

To explore the differences in the responses of different soil microbial community characteristics to grazing intensity, grasslands with different grazing intensities in the middle section of the northern slopes of Tianshan Mountains were selected as a focus for this study. Combining field investigation and indoor analysis, the changing patterns of soil microbial community characteristics with grazing intensity and their intrinsic correlation with soil factors were analyzed. The results showed that Actinobacteria and Ascomycota were the dominant phyla of bacteria and fungi, respectively. Compared with the findings upon heavy grazing, light grazing significantly increased the alpha diversity of microbial communities (P<0.05) and promoted the accumulation of soil microbial biomass carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus contents. Redundancy analysis and Mantel test showed that the soil microbial community characteristics were positively correlated with the soil total nitrogen and negatively correlated with the soil bulk density (P<0.05). Furthermore, the structural equation model showed that grazing negatively impacted the microbial diversity, richness, biomass, and OTUs characteristics by increasing the bulk density and reducing the soil nutrients (P<0.05). Compared with other indicators, soil microbial community diversity was more sensitive to grazing. In summary, light grazing is conducive to improving the microbial community, and reasonable regulation of grazing intensity is a feasible strategy to ensure the stable development of microbial communities.

Incorporating agricultural irrigation water into the global trade chain and determining its sustainability is vital for ensuring water and food security. However, the issue of sustainability in the virtual water of crop trade has received limited attention, due to the conflict between economic benefits and water resource utilization. Thus, based on the crop production and trade matrix data from the Food and Agriculture Organization, this study conducted physical trade flow and spatial correlation analyses as well as multiscale geographically weighted regression to systematically analyze the spatiotemporal distribution, the spatial correlation characteristics, and the driving factors of net exported virtual water sustainability in global crop trade from 2000 to 2019. Based on the findings, the sustainable and unsustainable net exported virtual water volumes in global crop trade (especially cotton) exhibited a fluctuating upward trend (approximately 0.20 Gm³ per year) over the past two decades. However, due to agricultural technological advancements, the proportion of unsustainable virtual water in the total virtual water trade volume decreased from 42.31% to 41.40%. Although the spatial analysis revealed considerable spatial clustering of unsustainable net exported virtual water volumes between 2000 and 2009, as shown by global and local Moran’s I statistics, this clustering trend weakened and became more dispersed over the past decade. Moreover, the increase in net exported virtual water was mainly driven by changes in cultivated land area, with agricultural value-added having a significant negative impact on virtual water in trade. Overall, these results highlight the importance of implementing stringent food security policies in order to facilitate the sustainable development of the global virtual water trade in crops and to further reduce the proportion of unsustainable water use.

Assessment of the risk of soil salinization and associated monitoring are particularly significant for the precise management of saline soil and to ensure sustainable agricultural development. Taking Dali County as a focus, this study used the CRITIC weighting method to construct a comprehensive salt index, comprehensive soil index, comprehensive vegetation index, and comprehensive geographical index based on the soil salt driving mechanism and process, combined with the characterized soil salt state. It also used the analytic hierarchy process-entropy combined weight method to construct a model for assessing the risk of soil salinization. Monitoring revealed that the risk of soil salinization in Dali County is mainly mild, although the level of salinization risk in 2021 was relatively high. Meanwhile, the total area with salinization risk that is moderate or above peaked in the last four years, accounting for approximately 50% of the total. From 2020 to 2023, the changes in the level of soil salinization risk mainly involved risk escalation, and the stability of the soil salinization risk level around the Yellow River Basin in the east was relatively poor. Cultivated land is the main land cover type in the warning zone and restoration zone within the saline soil management zoning and both warning zone and restoration zone are mainly distributed in the eastern part of Dali County. Upon efforts to confirm the findings by determining the correlations between the soil salinization risk assessment results and the soil conductivity samples measured in the same period, there was a significant strong correlation between them. The model for assessing the risk of soil salinization can effectively characterize the spatiotemporal evolution of soil salinization in Dali County. In addition, the increased risk of soil salinization was shown to be mainly associated with multiple factors such as concentrated heavy rainfall, rising temperatures, rising groundwater levels, increased surface evapotranspiration, and agricultural production. Therefore, assessment of the risk of soil salinization in Dali County can provide a theoretical and scientific basis and data support for the precise and efficient management of saline soils and effectively promote the adjustment of agricultural production structure and achieve ecologically sustainable agricultural development.

Based on the 2022 daily precipitation data from weather stations in the eastern Tibetan Plateau, this study evaluated the accuracy of three datasets from the China Meteorological Administration: the Multi-source Precipitation Analysis System (CMPAS), Land Data Assimilation System (CLDAS), and Global Atmospheric Reanalysis (CRA)—via error indices and grading methods. The results indicate: (1) CMPAS exhibits the lowest error and highest correlation, making it the most reliable for annual precipitation analysis. (2) CMPAS monthly data align closely with observations, while CRA overestimates and CLDAS underestimates precipitation in most months. (3) During two large-scale precipitation events, CLDAS best captures accumulated rainfall, while CMPAS more accurately reflects precipitation centers, intensities, timing, and location. Overall, CMPAS is the most effective dataset for analyzing precipitation in the region, supporting improved monitoring of sparse areas and laying a solid foundation for climate operations and disaster prevention.

Desertification is a serious environmental problem globally, severely restricting the sustainable development of regional economies. In recent years, clay minerals have been widely used for improving wind-eroded and sandy soil, and bentonite with its unique 2:1 layered structure has particularly good prospects for application in the improvement of wind-eroded and sandy soil. In this study, the effects of different proportions of bentonite [without bentonite addition (B0), 2% bentonite addition (B2), and 4% bentonite addition (B4)] on the physical and chemical properties of wind-eroded and desertified soil and plant growth were studied. The results showed the following: (1) Bentonite addition increased the content of fine-grained soil and improved the soil’s water retention and water holding capacity (12%-88%). (2) The shear strength of wind-eroded and sandy soil supplemented with B2 and B4 bentonite was increased by 150% and 205%, respectively, compared with that upon B0 treatment. (3) Bentonite addition can lead to crust formation on the sandy surface, which is beneficial for sand fixation. (4) Among the treatments, B4 bentonite addition significantly increased plant coverage, biomass, and plant height by 32%-33%, 56%-85%, and 71%-107%, respectively. In summary, the addition of bentonite not only improved the soil’s water retention capacity, improved the soil’s physical properties, and fixed the sandy surface, but also promoted plant growth.

Scientifically assessing cloud water resources and studying the distribution and evolution of cloud water resources is of great significance to guide the local weather modification work, accelerate the development and utilization of aerial water resources, and alleviate water shortage. In this study, the monthly reanalysis data of ERA-5 from 1979 to 2022 and the EOF decomposition method were used to analyze the spatial and temporal distribution characteristics of cloud water resources in the Tarim Basin in summer. The following results were revealed. (1) Regarding spatial distribution, the atmospheric water vapor content in the Tarim Basin was higher in the west, lower in the east, and slightly higher in the north than in the south. The water vapor content of the whole layer in the basin displayed an increasing trend in the past 44 years. (2) The two modes of EOF revealed that the water vapor transport in the basin in summer was mainly consistent in the whole region, followed by more water vapor transport in the southwest and less in the northeast. (3) The total cloud cover and cloud water content in summer were higher in the north and south and lower in the middle of the Tarim Basin, and the cloud cover in the mountainous areas was higher than that in the oasis and desert areas. Meanwhile, the cloud ice water content in the north was higher than that in the south of the basin in summer, and the cloud liquid water content in the south was higher than that in the north. The largest cloud liquid water content in the basin was concentrated in the Pamir Plateau, and the peak value of the cloud ice water content was located in the Tianshan Mountains. (4) The mountainous areas and the northern slope of the Kunlun Mountains were dominated by water-bearing medium and low clouds. In contrast, the cloud water thickness in the Tianshan Mountains was deeper, and the cloud ice water content was larger. A significant increase in cloud water content was observed in the mountainous areas of the Kunlun Mountains and the northern slope of the Kunlun Mountains, while a decrease was observed in the Tianshan Mountains after 2000. The results of this study provide a scientific basis for assessing aerial cloud water content and weather modification operations in the Tarim Basin.

Using MODIS snow product data, this study investigates the spatiotemporal variation characteristics of the snowmelt period over the Mongolian Plateau during the 2003-2022 hydrological years. The movement of the snowmelt line toward higher latitudes and its response to air temperature are tracked and analyzed at 15-day intervals. The results show that: (1) The proportion of snow-covered area to the total area of the Mongolian Plateau during the 2003-2022 hydrological years ranged from 55.59% to 87.61%, with the smallest snow cover in 2018 and the largest in 2009. Additionally, over the past 20 years, the snowmelt start time on the Mongolian Plateau exhibited a significant advancing trend at a rate of 0.18 days per decade (P<0.05), while the stable snow-cover area showed a delaying trend. (2) Spatially, snowmelt occurred significantly later in northern regions of the Mongolian Plateau compared to southern regions. Stable snow-cover areas were primarily concentrated in the western Mongolia and northeastern Inner Mongolia, where snowmelt times were generally later. Approximately 64.9% of these areas showed an advancing trend in snowmelt, while regions with delaying trends were mainly distributed in the northwestern part of the study area. (3) Observational analysis at half-monthly scales from January during the winter season revealed that the movement of the snowmelt line demonstrated successive synchronicity with the -5 ℃ and 0 ℃ isotherms. Correlation coefficients between snowmelt line positions and temperature, except for the year 2018 (with the least snow cover), generally fell within the higher range of 0.72 to 0.98, indicating that temperature is a key factor influencing the position of the snowmelt line.

The method for estimating evapotranspiration using remote sensing evapotranspiration models has been widely applied, but there is need for research into improving its accuracy. Crop growth models exhibit strong mechanistic foundations and accuracy in simulating crop transpiration. This study integrated the WOFOST crop growth model with the three-temperature remote sensing evapotranspiration model to design a novel method for estimating remote sensing-based evapotranspiration in maize fields. The core approach involved localizing the WOFOST model, validating its simulation accuracy, and using its simulated crop transpiration data to construct an auxiliary calibration function. This function calibrated the transpiration component of the three-temperature model and combined it with the calibrated soil evaporation component to derive the evapotranspiration for the maize fields. Using actual evapotranspiration observed by an eddy covariance system as a reference, the estimation accuracy and applicability of the novel method were evaluated. The results showed that the correlation coefficients of evapotranspiration, crop transpiration, and soil evaporation in the uncalibrated three-temperature model were 0.61, 0.71, and 0.12, respectively, with root mean square errors (RMSE) of 1.76 mm·d^-1, 1.91 mm·d^-1, and 3.02 mm·d^-1, respectively, and negative Nash-Sutcliffe efficiency coefficients. After calibrating only the soil evaporation component, the correlation coefficients improved to 0.77, but the error remained large (1.91 mm·d^-1) with a Nash-Sutcliffe efficiency coefficient of -0.74. However, when the three-temperature model was calibrated using the WOFOST-simulated crop transpiration data, the correlation coefficient between the estimated and observed values significantly increased to 0.89, the RMSE decreased to 0.65 mm·d^-1, and the Nash-Sutcliffe efficiency coefficient reached 0.79. These results indicate that the proposed method effectively improves the estimation accuracy of the three-temperature remote sensing evapotranspiration model and offers insights for enhancing the accuracy of other remote sensing evapotranspiration models.

Drawing upon China’s comprehensive land use data and socioeconomic panel statistics spanning 1980-2020, this study meticulously analyzed the spatiotemporal evolution characteristics of nonagricultural and nongrain farmland. It aimed to elucidate their underlying patterns of change and driving mechanisms, establishing a solid foundation for sustainable cultivated land utilization and stable food security. Utilizing the SD ellipse and trend analysis, we comprehensively assessed the dynamic evolution traits of these nontraditional agricultural uses. Furthermore, we constructed a comprehensive index system tailored for nonagricultural and nongrain farmlands and developed a partial correlation model to quantitatively assess the relative contributions of various influencing factors. This comprehensive approach offers a nuanced understanding of the intricate dynamics governing these farmland transitions and their implications for China’s agricultural sustainability and food security. (1) Regarding time, the current situation of nonagriculture farmland in China is getting better, but the nonagriculture phenomenon is still prominent in some areas and tends to intensify further. (2) Regarding space, the degree of nonagriculture is more serious in the northeast, central, and eastern regions, while it is higher in the northwest, south, and some coastal areas of southeast China. The polarization phenomenon exists in the direction of nonagricultural chemical evolution. The nongrain center exhibited a development trend of moving from the southwest to the northeast. (3) Economic factors are the leading driving effect of nonagricultural chemistry, and their degree of influence has decreased in the past ten years. Agricultural production condition is the basic factor of nongrain production, and it is gradually increased by economic factors, such as the output value of grain per acre and the income gap between urban and rural areas. The spatiotemporal evolution characteristics and influencing factors of nonagricultural and nongrain lands in China from 1980 to 2020 can provide a reference for the scientific implementation of cultivated land protection decisions.

The ongoing decline in biodiversity adversely effects ecosystem services. Investigating spatiotemporal changes in land use and habitat quality in the Three River Source Region is crucial for ecological protection and restoration. This study, based on the PLUS model and the InVEST model’s habitat quality module, conducts multi-scenario simulations to predict land use changes and estimate habitat quality. The results are as follows: (1) During the historical period, 9663.53 km² of grassland converted to unused land, represented the largest proportion of total land conversion, whereas unused land converted to grassland only covered 3659.27 km², the grassland degraded into unused land to a relatively serious extent in the Three River Source Region. (2) Multi-scenario predictions for 2030 reveal that the biodiversity conservation scenario performs best, followed by the grassland protection scenario, then the water resources protection scenario, and finally the natural development scenario. (3) Among conversion types, the contribution rate of converting unused land to grassland in enhancing habitat quality is highest at 0.7167, followed by that of converting unused land to water bodies, at 0.2603. Implementing biodiversity protection strategies, resolving the grass-livestock conflict, and enhancing management of unused land, while reducing grassland-to-unused land conversion will help mitigate the decline in habitat quality.

In arid areas, farmlands are few, water-holding capacity is poor, seepage is considerable, and crop yield is low. Understanding soil moisture movement in sandy loam farmland is crucial for conserving water resources and enhancing crop yields. This study focused on the sandy loam maize farmland in the middle reaches of the Heihe River, and three experimental plots—flat film irrigation, ridge mulching irrigation, and drip irrigation under film irrigation—were set up. The HYDRUS-2D model was used to simulate the soil moisture migration process of the maize farmland under different irrigation modes. The results revealed that: (1) The simulated values of the HYDRUS-2D model agreed strongly with the measured data, with R² reaching more than 0.864 and RMSE remaining below 0.006 cm³·cm^-3, which verified the feasibility and reliability of the model in the dynamic simulation of soil moisture in sandy loam farmland. (2) Compared with the flat land mulching irrigation mode, the ridge mulching irrigation mode could increase the soil volume water content of the crops’ root zone by about 20% and reduce the seepage loss by 13.3% when the irrigation water volume was reduced by 2099 m³·hm^-2. Compared with the flat land mulching irrigation mode, the drip irrigation mode under film irrigation could reduce the irrigation water consumption by 50% and the leakage by 50.7%. (3) The drip irrigation mode under film displayed “frequent irrigation and small amount” so that the water could be more directly and efficiently replenished in the crops’ root zone, which significantly improved the soil volume water content in the root zone of maize and further reduced the seepage. The sandy loam farmland in the middle reaches of the Heihe River should be irrigated by drip irrigation under film to save water and increase yield. (4) The HYDRUS-2D model’s parameter system can also provide a reference for the dynamic simulation of irrigation water in the same type of sandy loam farmland in northern China.

The interaction between wind and water is key in shaping the morphology and spatial distribution of eolian landforms. Quantifying the influence of rivers on eolian landforms has always been challenging. This work selected the Hotan River, which crosses the Taklamakan Desert and the surrounding eolian landforms, as the research object. Based on high-resolution remote-sensing images, DEM and NDVI data, comparing relevant characteristic parameters of typical cross-sections, and analyzing the pattern of eolian landforms and the changes in river channel morphological parameters, the following results were obtained. (1) In the intersection area of the Hotan River and eolian landforms, NDVI=0.05 can be used as a critical value to distinguish the influence of rivers on the pattern of eolian landforms. Consequently, the spatial distribution of the area affected by the Hotan River on eolian landforms is revealed: its area is 20700 km² and its width ranges from 6 to 121 km. (2) The channel morphology of the Hotan River changes little, making it difficult to cause long-distance lateral migration of the river channel; the impact area on the surrounding eolian landforms will not change significantly. In the process of the interaction between wind and water, the Hotan River plays a leading role. Moreover, the southern section belongs to the fully fluvial dominant type, while the northern section belongs to the mostly fluvial dominant type. (3) The distribution pattern of eolian landforms that can be recognized as sabkhas, longitudinal dunes, transverse ridges, and reticulate dunes in sequence from the river channel to both sides results from long-term interactions between wind and water.

The five typical plant communities in the ecological public welfare forest in the desert area of Minqin County, namely, Phragmites communis+Achnatherum splendens, Suaeda glauca+Nitraria tangutorum, Sarcozygium xanthoxylon+Nitraria tangutorum, Salsola passerine+Haloxylon ammodendron, Reaumuria songarica+Haloxylon ammodendron as research objects, through the field plant community survey and soil sampling, studied the plant community structure, plant species diversity and its relationship with soil factors, the results show that: (1) Minqin County desert area ecological public welfare forests plant species composition is relatively simple, there are only 10 families, 19 genera and 22 species, and the Reaumuria songarica+Haloxylon ammodendron community is relatively rich in species composition. The Margalef richness index (R), Simpson’s dominance index(D), and Shannon-Wiener diversity index (H') of the Reaumuria songarica+Haloxylon ammodendron community were the largest among the five plant communities, and the Pielou evenness index (Jsw) of the five communities ranged from 0.55 to 0.99 with no significant difference among the five communities. (2) In terms of soil physicochemical properties of the five communities, the Reaumuria songarica+Haloxylon ammodendron community had the smallest soil bulk density and the highest soil organic carbon content. (3) The relationship between the α-diversity index and soil factors was found by Redundancy Analysis (RDA) that the soil bulk density (SBD) and soil organic carbon (SOC) content explained a higher percentage of α-diversity, which were 56% and 14.3%, respectively. Therefore, the Reaumuria songarica+Haloxylon ammodendron community has relatively high species richness and relatively good soil physicochemical properties, which can improve the vegetation ecology in the desert area of Minqin County, and is of positive significance for the protection and enhancement of plant community diversity in the ecological public welfare forests in the desert area of Minqin County.

Soil multifunctionality is a vital component of ecosystem multifunctionality. Exploring the multifunctionality of soil in the Picea schrenkiana plantation at various ages offers valuable insights into soil capabilities. This research should enhance our understanding and support the management of vibrant forest ecosystems, making a significant contribution to environmental science. This study investigated the Picea schrenkiana plantation at the ages of 30, 40, 50, and 60 years, focusing on 15 indicators related to soil carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus, to evaluate the soil multifunctionality of the Picea schrenkiana plantation. The findings reveal the following: (1) Soil moisture content, total nitrogen, and available nitrogen initially decreased before increasing with forest age, while daily average temperature and organic matter content exhibited a consistent decline with increasing forest age. (2) The activity of soil urease displayed an inverted “N” shaped trend concerning forest age, whereas the activities of cellulase and invertase initially rose and then declined. Catalase activity gradually decreased with increasing forest age. (3) Soil multifunctionality increased and then decreased with aging of the forest. The main factors affecting soil multifunctionality included the available nitrogen and urease. Therefore, forest age is a significant ecological factor that influences soil multifunctionality of the Picea schrenkiana plantation. In addition, managing related factors such as soil physical and chemical properties and enzyme activity is crucial. These research findings are significant for the sustainable management of Picea schrenkiana plantation on the northern slopes of Tianshan Mountains in Xinjiang.

To more accurately obtain precipitation distributions in remote areas, this study combined the high-resolution advantages of radar and the wide-coverage detection of satellites. By integrating radar and satellite-derived precipitation, we generated high-precision quantitative precipitation estimation products. Using the strong convective events in Xinjiang on August 12 and 13, 2023, as an example, we used radar reflectivity for precipitation inversion based on cloud classification and Z-R relationships. We fed the Himawari 9 satellite brightness temperature and IMERG precipitation into a BP neural network model to establish the relationship between the average brightness temperature and the average rainfall intensity. Subsequently, we used the instantaneous brightness temperature of the Himawari 9 satellite to invert the momentary precipitation through the BP neural network model. We also proposed two precipitation data fusion schemes: Scheme I uses a uniform correction value to integrate radar and satellite precipitation, whereas Scheme Ⅱ further considers the precipitation intensity levels for comparison. Finally, we obtained high-precision precipitation inversion products for Xinjiang. The results showed that: (1) Cloud classification based on brightness temperature can finely estimate precipitation within the radar range, and brightness temperature differences can reduce the impact of non-precipitating clouds to some extent. (2) The root mean square error (RMSE) of the satellite precipitation inversion was 1.793 mm·h^-1, with a coefficient of determination (R²) of 0.572, indicating reasonable model accuracy. The binary classification score indicated that the model can accurately invert precipitation in over 70% of the areas. (3) The fusion of precipitation by the two schemes slightly improved the accuracy of short-duration light rain distributions. Scheme Ⅱ outperformed Scheme I for short-duration moderate rain but showed a slight decline for short-duration heavy rain compared with Scheme I, indicating that the asynchrony between satellite observation and near-surface precipitation had some impact. (4) Under a 95% confidence interval, the P-values for the RMSE and R² differences between the two schemes and satellite inversion were all less than 0.005, while the P-value for Scheme Ⅱ compared with Scheme I was greater than 0.05. Both fusion schemes significantly improved the accuracy of the satellite precipitation; however, the improvement of Scheme Ⅱ, which considers the precipitation intensity levels, over Scheme I was minimal.

This study aimed to clarify the adaptability strategies of Salix psammophila to different environments from the perspective of resource allocation for the stable construction and sustainable management of S. psammophila plantations. S. psammophila plantations in four types of sites (windward slope, leeward slope, interdune land, and flat sand land) were surveyed in the Mu Us Sandy Land in Ningxia. The characteristics of the S. psammophila population, including morphological parameters like basal diameter, branch length, and stem and leaf biomass, were recorded. The effects of topography on the biomass accumulation and distribution between the S. psammophila organs were studied based on the allometric growth model. (1) With growth, S. psammophila tends to reduce the proportion of leaf resources and increase the proportion of stem resources. (2) The site factors significantly impact biomass and its distribution between the S. psammophila organs. The average biomass of branches in the dune (windward and leeward slopes) is significantly higher than that in the interdune land (P<0.05), and the allometric growth index of leaf-stem biomass is significantly higher in the dune than in the interdune and flat sand lands (P<0.05). (3) The main soil factor that affects biomass and its distribution between the S. psammophila organs is soil moisture. Soil moisture of the whole section (0-100 cm) determines the biomass, and soil moisture of the deep layer moisture content (60-100 cm) affects the biomass distribution trade-off between the stem and leaf. The biomass accumulation and allocation of S. psammophila displayed significant differences among different site types, and the effect of deep soil moisture on biomass allocation was more significant than that of full-profile soil moisture. In the future, artificial intervention can be adopted to satisfy the water requirement for S. psammophila growth and realize the stable development of the S. psammophila plantation population.

Wind-sand activities cause surface erosion or accumulation, affecting the safe operation of photovoltaic power plants. This study analyzed the field characteristics of wind speed flow and the erosion variation of photovoltaic panels under different wind speed conditions (6, 8, and 10 m·s^-1) through wind tunnel experiments and numerical simulations to elucidate the mechanism of surface wind erosion in desert PV power plants. The research results revealed that (1) photovoltaic panels change the near-surface wind speed and flow field, forming a front plate airflow lifting zone, a bottom plate airflow acceleration zone, a back plate vortex deceleration zone, and a tail plate airflow recovery zone; the wind speed near the surface of the board significantly increases, making it prone to erosion, while the wind speed behind the board decreases, making it prone to accumulation. (2) when the wind direction is reversed, the “narrow tube effect” under the photovoltaic panel leads to increased airflow, and wind erosion is significantly greater than normal airflow. The accumulation behind the panel is related to the deceleration of the vortex on the leeward side. (3) the wind erosion under the edge array panel of the photovoltaic power station is the most severe, while the wind erosion inside the power station array is relatively light; as the height of the photovoltaic modules increases, the wind erosion under the panels is reduced to some extent. The results provide a scientific basis for sand hazard prevention and efficient production of desert photovoltaic power plants.

The purpose of this study was to explore the relationship between the soil fungal community structure and function and soil chemical properties and enzyme activity in Pinus tabuliformis sand-fixing forests of different ages, so as to provide a theoretical basis for the rational management and protection of P. tabuliformis sand-fixing forests. Taking the mobile sand of Horqin Sandy Land as the control (0 year), P. tabuliformis forests with sand fixation for 18, 34, 48 and 56 years were selected as the research objects, and high-throughput sequencing technology was used to analyze the differences in soil fungal community structure and functional groups. The results show: (1) The 2517 OTUs obtained from the soil of the P. tabuliformis sand-fixing forest belong to 14 phyla, 48 classes, 127 orders, 286 families, and 579 genera of fungi. The dominant phyla were Ascomycota (47.91%-67.34%), Basidiomycota (18.45%-43.70%), and Mortierellomycota (1.41%-8.36%); the dominant genera were Biappendiculispora, Scleroderma, Tomentella, Knufia, and Amphinema. (2) Venn diagram and NMDS analysis showed that afforestation has a greater impact on soil fungal community structure. The ace index and chao index of soil fungi at each stand age increased significantly (P<0.05), and were related to organic matter, total nitrogen, and total phosphorus, urease, dehydrogenase, catalase, neutral phosphatase, sucrase and neutral protease have a significant positive correlation (P<0.05). (3) The fungal community was mainly composed of symbiotic and saprophytic types. After afforestation, the relative abundance of symbiotic types increased compared with the control, while the relative abundance of saprophytic types was relatively stable. Afforestation plays an important regulatory role on the structure and function of soil fungal communities. The research results enrich the research content of soil microbial communities in sand-fixing forests and provide a basis for soil health evaluation of P. tabuliformis sand-fixing forests in Horqin Sandy Land.

With rapid socioeconomic development, competition between human activities and the natural environment has intensified significantly, making the balance between socioeconomic development and environmental protection critical. This study constructs a coupling coordination model for a water resources-socioeconomic-ecological environment system to assess the coordination status of the Inner Mongolia section in the Yellow River Basin from 1998 to 2022. Additionally, an improved LSTM model is employed to predict the development trends over the next five years under four integrated regulation scenarios. The results indicate that: (1) The evaluation indices of the water resources, socioeconomic, and ecological environment subsystems across cities in the Yellow River Basin are 0.47-0.57, 0.47-0.87, and 0.42-0.58, respectively, reflecting moderate overall coordination level in the water resources and ecological environment subsystems, whereas the socioeconomic subsystem exhibits relatively higher values but still has room for improvement. (2) The coupling coordination degree of the system in each city shows a gradual upward trend (0.67-0.80), with an overall increase of 19%. (3) Future scenario predictions reveal that joint regulation of water resources and socioeconomic factors leads to the most significant improvements in Alxa, Bayannur, and Ulanqab, whereas joint regulation of socioeconomic and ecological environment factors yields the greatest improvements in Wuhai. Meanwhile, joint regulation of water resources and the ecological environment proves most effective in Baotou, Hohhot, and Ordos.

Based on the data from 19 sounding stations in 2022-2023, this study investigates the temporal and spatial variations of the temperature inversions in the lower, middle, and upper troposphere in northwest China. The results indicated the following: (1) In terms of monthly variations, inversions across all three tropospheric levels exhibit similar patterns, peaking in December and January-February of the following year and reaching a minimum from June to August. (2) In terms of spatial distribution, among the low-level inversions, low-level inversions were most frequent in northern Xinjiang, at 40%-60%; the greatest thickness of low-level inversions was observed in northern Shanxi, exceeding 90 m; the intensity of low-level inversions was stronger in most areas of Xinjiang, ranging from 2 ℃ and 3 ℃. For mid-level inversions, their frequency was highest in Qinghai and decrease outward from this region. High-level inversions were most pronounced in northern Xinjiang, with their frequency decreasing outward from this region. (3) The occurrence of low-level inversions in northwest China is influenced by surface radiation and topography, the occurrence of mid-level inversions is associated with warm advection and subsidence movement, and the occurrence of high-level inversions may be related to the top of the temperate troposphere and ozone. (4) In the summer of northwest China, influenced by solar radiation and surface cooling. below the 0 ℃ isotherm height, the intensity of inversions is stronger; above the 0 ℃ isotherm height, the inversions have weaker intensity.

Objective, accurate, and timely evaluation of the spatiotemporal changes and driving forces of ecological environment quality is of great significance for the formulation of ecological protection plans and policies. Taking Alxa Left Banner as an example, this study constructs a Remote Sensing-based Ecological Index (RSEI) for arid regions based on the Google Earth Engine (GEE) platform and analyzes the spatiotemporal changes and driving forces of RSEI over the past 30 years (1991-2021). The study shows that: (1) Over the past 30 years, the RSEI of Alxa Left Banner has shown a fluctuating upward trend, with the maximum RSEI in 2012 (0.360) and the minimum in 2007 (0.264). (2) Over the past 30 years, the area of ecological improvement (RSEI>0.2, 3.15%) in Alxa Left Banner is larger than the area of degradation (RSEI<-0.2, 2.48%), with the largest area showing no change (-0.2<RSEI<0.2, 94.37%). Regions with poorer RSEI are mainly distributed in bare land areas, while the RSEI of forest, grassland, farmland, and impervious surface areas has gradually improved. (3) From 1991 to 2021, the Global Moran’s I index ranged between 0.600 and 0.650, indicating a high degree of clustering. (4) According to the results of the linear mixed-effects model, human activities account for 89% of the changes in RSEI, while climate change accounts for 11%. In summary, over the past 30 years, the overall ecological environment quality in the Alxa Desert area has gradually improved, with significant improvements in the northern edge of the Tengger Desert, primarily due to human activities, especially the aerial seeding afforestation projects.

As the fundamental terrain of deserts, sand ridges play a crucial role in shaping the surface water and thermal environment at different slope positions, which profoundly influences how biological soil crusts develop and their spatial distribution patterns. Lichen crusts are widely distributed on the desert surface. However, issues such as how lichen crusts at different slope positions affect the soil phosphorous cycle and what factors play key roles in influencing this remain unclear. Against this background, this study was conducted in Gurbantunggut Desert, involving a systematic analysis of the changes in phosphorus fractions and related enzyme activities in the lichen crust and 0-5 cm soil layer beneath the crust at different slope positions. The results showed that stable phosphorus in the soil (HCl-Pi, HHCl-Po, HHCl-Pi, and Residual-P) accounted for over 75% of the total phosphorus (TP) content, followed by medium labile phosphorus (NaOH-Pi and NaOH-Po) and labile phosphorus (Resin-P, NaHCO₃-Pi, and NaHCO₃-Po). The slope position had a significant impact on stable phosphorus, and the soil layer had a significant impact on medium labile phosphorus (P<0.05). The data on the contents of stable phosphorus, TP, organic phosphorus (Po), and inorganic phosphorus (Pi) all revealed that, in the crust layer, the values at the bottom of the slope were significantly higher than those on the east and west slopes, while in the 0-5 cm soil layer, the values on the west slope were significantly lower than those at the bottom of the slope and on the east slope (P<0.05). However, the content of NaOH-Pi was significantly higher on the east and west slopes than at the bottom of the slope in the crust layer, and it was significantly higher on the west slope than on the east slope and at the bottom of the slope in the 0-5 cm soil layer. In terms of soil enzymes, the east slope exhibited the lowest activity of alkaline phosphatase activity (ALP) and β-glucosidase activity (GC) in the crust layer, but the highest in the 0-5 cm soil layer. Random forest model analysis showed that the changes in moisture and temperature brought about by the slope position were the most important factors affecting the levels of labile phosphorus and stable phosphorus in the crust soil, respectively. This provides scientific support that enriches the theoretical framework of soil phosphorous cycling in desert ecosystems.

The characteristics of variation in leaf functional traits of different plant types (shrubs, herbaceous plants) in Hexi Corridor and the relationships between these functional traits are extremely important for maintaining the stability of the ecosystem in this region. To explore the mechanisms of adaptation and the ecological strategies of different plant life forms in arid environments, we established survey sites in the eastern, central, and western sections along Hexi Corridor, following a gradient of decreasing natural precipitation from southeast to northwest. We selected 26 dominant desert plant species, including 14 shrubs and 12 herbaceous plants, and analyzed their variability and regional patterns of 14 key leaf functional traits. We also investigated the trade-offs and adaptive strategies among these traits. The following results were obtained: (1) The coefficient of variation for leaf-bound water content (BW), carbon to phosphorus ratio (C:P), plant height (H), and leaf free water content (FW) of dominant desert plant species in the Hexi Corridor exceeds 100%. (2) Plants in different regions of Hexi Corridor displayed diverse survival strategies: plants in the eastern section adopted a “slow-return” strategy, shrubs and herbaceous plants in the central section exhibited “slow-return” and “fast-return” strategies respectively, while shrubs in the western section adopted a “rapid resource acquisition” strategy under resource-rich conditions, and herbaceous plants adopted a “slow-return” strategy under unfavorable soil conditions. The survival strategies of plants are influenced by multiple ecological factors, and they adapt to arid environments through trait optimization and resource allocation.

Utilizing the Google Earth Engine (GEE) cloud computing platform, the Net Primary Productivity (NPP) of Ordos was calculated based on an improved CASA model. Sen’s slope analysis and MK trend analysis methods were used to analyze the spatiotemporal changes in NPP from 2001 to 2020 and estimate the carbon sequestration capacity of Ordos City. (1) NPP in Ordos City displayed a significant seasonal variation from 2001 to 2020, with the highest values in July and August and an average annual NPP of 78.04 g C·m^-2·a^-1, following an overall fluctuating upward trend. (2) Spatially, NPP demonstrated clear heterogeneity, with higher values in the northeast and lower values in the northwest; high values were concentrated in Dalate Banner and Jungar Banner, while low values were mainly in Hanggin Banner. (3) The implementation of ecological projects and NPP changes were not fully synchronized, with a general trend of initially slow then accelerating growth; NPP change rates significantly increased after 2011 in most areas, but areas with harsher ecological conditions, such as Hanggin Banner, exhibited a lower improvement and some lag. (4) In 2011, Ordos displayed a widespread negative carbon sequestration rate. Yet, by 2020, the spatial heterogeneity in carbon sequestration had significantly increased, with higher values in the east and lower values in the west. The carbon sequestration capacity in Hanggin Banner’s western region still requires reinforcement, while Dalate Banner significantly improved its carbon sequestration capacity.

There are high levels of boron in surface water and groundwater in the oasis area of Qiemo County, Xinjiang, which seriously affects the health of residents. To clarify the chemical characteristics of the oasis water and the main source of the boron, 24 groundwater samples from each of 20 locations were collected in 2023. They were then analyzed using a Piper three-line plot, Gibbs diagram, and correlation analysis, along with evaluations of hydrogen-oxygen isotopes. An APCS-MLR (absolute principal component-multiple linear regression) model of the chemical characteristics of surface water and groundwater and the source of the boron was also constructed, as well as quantitative evaluation of the contribution of different factors to water boron levels and other hydrochemical components. The results showed that the surface water and groundwater in the oasis area of Qiemo County are weakly alkaline, the mean pH is 8.22, the groundwater is mainly brackish water, and the anode ions are mainly S O_4^{2-}and Na⁺. There are many types of hydrochemistry, with surface water and groundwater mainly containing SO₄·Cl-Na·Mg. The mean level of boron in the surface water in the study area was 2.34 mg·L^-1, with an exceeding rate of 100%; meanwhile, the corresponding value in the groundwater was 1.73 mg·L^-1, with an exceeding rate of 70%. APCS-MLR receptor model analysis revealed that the hydrochemical components and boron sources were mainly soluble filter-enrichment factors (F1: 58.21%), native geological factors (F2: 15.42%), human activity factors (F3: 11.18%), and unknown sources. These findings clarify the cause of the excessive boron in the area, and show that the geological environment has a great influence on the accumulation of boron in water.

The classification of the ground substrate is a fundamental basis for conducting ground substrate surveys and monitoring. It reveals the synergistic coupling relationship between the ground substrate and the surface cover layer, which aids in understanding the mechanisms of interaction between the ground substrate and the ecological environment from both the surface cover and subsurface spatial elements. This study targeted the Sangong River Basin in Xinjiang, a typical inland river basin in an arid region. Based on the heterogenous distribution of the mountain-oasis-desert landscape in arid regions, a three-tier classification and zoning system for ground substrates was developed, considering the distribution area, elevation range, and main surface cover of the surface substrates. The overall classification was divided into four primary categories, 17 secondary categories, and 28 tertiary categories. Considering the physical and chemical properties of the soil and the distribution characteristics of vegetation root systems, the suitable survey depth for ground substrates in the southern mountainous area was 50 cm; in the central plain area, it was 3 m; and in the northern desert area, it was less than 10 m. Additionally, based on the differentiation characteristics of Net Primary Productivity in vertical zonal ecosystems, the rationality of the classification system was validated, reflecting the role of ground substrate layers in nurturing and supporting land cover. These results provide theoretical and technical support for future natural resource surveys, monitoring, and scientific management decisions in arid regions.

Exploring the quantitative pre assessment of the climate impact of vegetation greenness changes in the Qaidam Basin can help promote the integrated protection and systematic management of mountains, waters, forests, fields, lakes, grasses, sands, and gases. This article is based on MODIS NDVI data, meteorological data, and climate change prediction datasets. It monitors the changes in vegetation greenness with NDVI ≤ 0.3 in the Qaidam Basin from 2000 to 2023, analyzes the climate driving factors of vegetation with different greenness, and predicts the future trends of vegetation changes with different greenness. The results showed that in the past 24 years, vegetation types Ⅰ, Ⅱ, and Ⅲ in the Qaidam Basin accounted for 49.33%, 19.81%, and 30.86% of low green vegetation, respectively. Among them, the vegetation areas of S_sum, S_Ⅰ, and S_Ⅱ decreased significantly (P<0.001), while the vegetation area of S_Ⅲ increased significantly, indicating a clear improvement in vegetation quality; The cumulative effect of water and heat conditions on precipitation of low green vegetation for 2-3 years and temperature for 5 years is significantly (P<0.01) greater than that of the current year, indicating that a warm and humid climate promotes the healthy development of grasslands; Under the three emission scenarios of RCP2.6, RCP4.5, and RCP8.5 in the future, the overall trend of low green vegetation in the Qaidam Basin is decreasing, and future climate conditions are favorable for vegetation restoration and expansion. The research results can provide scientific basis for the development of ecological environment protection and desertification control measures in the Qaidam Basin.

Against the backdrop of a gradual decline in global atmospheric nitrogen deposition, the legacy effects of long-term nitrogen addition on alpine grassland ecosystems remain unclear. This study investigated such legacy effects on plant communities in alpine grasslands through a 16-year controlled experiment conducted in the Bayinbuluke alpine grassland of the central Tianshan Mountains. The results revealed that: (1) Four years after the end of fertilization and regarding the functional traits of the dominant species, high nitrogen treatment (N15) significantly increased the plant height (+20%), leaf area (+16%), and specific leaf area (+5%) of Leymus tianschanicus but reduced the plant height (-23%) and specific leaf area (-1.5%) of Festuca kryloviana. Moreover, the legacy effects on F. kryloviana gradually weakened over the recovery time. (2) At the community level, long-term nitrogen addition exhibited positive legacy effects on rhizomatous grasses but adverse legacy effects on brunch grasses, significantly enhancing the cover and aboveground net primary productivity of the community. However, these legacy effects exhibited a diminishing trend over time. Under the N15 treatment, the increase in community cover declined from 32% to 18%, while the ANPP decreased from 64% to 44%. (3) Regarding soil chemical properties, adding nitrogen had significant positive legacy effects on the total soil nitrogen content but no significant legacy effects on the total soil phosphorus or organic carbon content. The negative legacy effect on soil pH gradually weakened, with the inhibitory effect under N15 treatment decreasing from -3.4% in 2023 to -1.4% in 2024. Soil total phosphorus and organic carbon content exhibited low correlations with vegetation characteristics, and the four soil factors collectively explained only a small proportion of the vegetation variation. This study demonstrates that, against the background of reduced or ceased atmospheric nitrogen deposition, historical nitrogen deposition continues to exert persistent legacy effects on grassland ecosystems, with some of these effects gradually diminishing over the recovery time.

Few studies have used the characteristic variables extracted from the details of the hyperspectral reflectance curves of bare soil to evaluate the separability of various desert types. In this study, salt desert, gravel desert, mud desert, and desert in the lower reaches of the Shiyang River were used as the research objects, and cumulative difference, first-order differentiation, continuum removal, vegetation index calculation and principal component analysis were used to identify the hyperspectral reflectance features of various desert types, extract the key categorical variables, and quantify the degree of differentiation of various desert types. The results showed that (1) the absorption valleys at 446-600 nm and 2150-2285 nm differed significantly among the desert types. (2) the Carter index 1, Greenness Index, and Green NDVI hyper 2 differed significantly among the desert types. (3) The Modified Chlorophyll Absorption Ratio Index, Soil Adjusted Vegetation Index, and 2265 nm and 1790-1810 nm reflectance had larger weight values in constructing the principal component indexes; and (4) the differentiation index of each desert type: desert & salty desert>desert & muddy desert>muddy & salty desert>gravelly & salty desert>desert & gravelly desert>mud & gravelly desert. These findings provide ground verification and data support for the remote sensing monitoring of deserts in the northwest Arid Zone.

In this study, three typical sand-fixing plants in the desert-oasis transition zone were used as the research objects. To simulate water infiltration of 10 L, 15 L, and 20 L, respectively (simulating light rain, moderate rain, and heavy rain), the field staining tracer method and computer image processing technology were used. The distribution rules and characteristic parameters of the priority flow in the vertical and horizontal sections of the dyed images were analyzed, and the characteristic parameters were selected as evaluation indexes. The mean square decision method was used to determine the degree of development of the soil priority flow in the root zone of typical sand-fixation plants, which provided a reference for the restoration of sand-fixation vegetation and effective utilization of water resources in the desert-oasis transition zone. The results showed that (1) Soil preferential flow occurred in the root zone of sand-fixing plants in the desert-oasis transition zone, and the main types were funnel flow and finger flow. When infiltration water water was increased, the preferential flow occurred laterally. (2) Under the various conditions of water infiltration, the soil staining area ratio in the root zone of the three sand-fixing plants showed a nonlinear decrease with an increase in soil depth. The curve of the soil staining area ratio in the root zone of Haloxylon sacralis and Jujube sacralis showed an “S” shape, and the water infiltration was non-uniform. (3) The priority flow evaluation index P_FI was from large to small: Haloxell (0.685), Sphaerophora sphaerophora (0.543), and Hippophora hippophobia (0.502). The degree of priority flow development of the soil in the root zone was the highest.

This study examines the surface deformation characteristics and deformation rate prediction of large-scale landslides in the upper regions of the Yellow River between the Longyang and Jishi Gorge riverbanks. The study area was the Xijitan giant landslide within the Guide region of the upper Yellow River. The Small Baseline Subset Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Rader（SBAS-InSAR）technology was employed to monitor the surface deformation of the Xijitan giant landslide and analyze, its deformation rates and variation characteristics for the period 2019-2022. The results show that the following. (1) The maximum surface deformation rate of the landslide body was -96 mm·a^-1, with a maximum cumulative deformation of 464.71 mm. Distinct deformation zones were observed along the front and rear edges of the landslide body, with surface deformation rates ranging across -96-16 mm·a^-1. (2) The cumulative deformation of characteristic points on a landslide body, determined using SBAS-InSAR technology, exhibited a maximum cumulative deformation of -140.50 mm. (3) The long short-term memory (LSTM) neural network model was used to predict the cumulative deformation of these points, and the results were compared with those obtained using Support Vector Machine（SVM） and Back Propagation（BP） neural network models. The LSTM model demonstrated high prediction accuracy, with an absolute error within 5 mm and a goodness-of-fit (R²) greater than 0.8. This confirmed the effectiveness of the LSTM model in predicting the cumulative surface deformation of landslides. Thus, the findings of this study provide data support and practical guidance for the enhanced monitoring of giant landslide deformation in the upper Yellow River region and the early detection of potential landslides.

The success of sand fixation projects in deserts is dependent on soil hydrothermal conditions, which are essential for the healthy growth of sand fixation plants. Vertical pipe surface drip irrigation is a new water-saving and temperature-control conservation technology focused on combating soil drought and surface heat stress on seedlings. However, the mechanisms regulating hydrothermal distribution and migration status remain unclear, and its widespread application in sand-fixing areas lacks a theoretical formulation. Thus, this study constructed a mathematical model of soil water-heat migration for vertical tube surface drip irrigation using HYDRUS-2D software. The study investigated the effects of key irrigation parameters (drip head flow rate and irrigation water temperature) and vertical tube parameters (tube diameter and burial depth) on soil water-heat distribution and migration. The accuracy of the constructed model was confirmed through indoor experiments. Consequently, a single-factor analysis was conducted involving nine simulation scenarios to study the impacts of four influencing factors—drip head flow rate (1, 2, and 3 L·h^-1), irrigation water temperatures (10, 20, and 30 ℃), riser diameter (9.6, 11.6, and 13.2 cm), and riser depth (15, 20, and 25 cm) to obtain the distributions and migration patterns of the soil hydrothermal properties. The results showed the following. (1) Soil hydrothermal changes during irrigation occurred through water-heat coupling influenced by irrigation water temperature. Dynamic changes were most pronounced in the early stage of irrigation, particularly in the inner surface layer of the tube. Over time, these changes stabilized. Water infiltration from the bottom holes of the tube into the surrounding soil increased the soil moisture rapidly before stabilizing. Further, the soil temperature was affected by the irrigation water temperature, exhibiting slight increases or decreases. (2) The diameter of the vertical tube had a minimal effect on the soil hydrothermal changes during drip irrigation. However, the burial depth had a significant influence on the soil moisture but minimal impact on the thermal environment. Outside the tube, the soil moisture distribution around the tube formed a distinct pattern, with the bottom of the tube functioning as a dividing line. Above this line, the soil moisture content at the same point decreased as the burial depth increased, while below this line, the soil moisture content increased with greater burial depth. (3) The drip head flow was a critical factor in determining the soil moisture status although its impact on the soil temperature distribution was limited. The larger the drip head flow, the higher the soil moisture content at the same points outside the pipe. (4) The influence of the irrigation water temperature on the soil moisture distribution was relatively weak; however, it directly influenced the soil temperature. Higher irrigation water temperatures resulted in increased soil temperature at the same points inside and outside the pipe. (5) When adjustments to the vertical tube’s diameter and burial depth were not feasible, soil hydrothermal conditions in the root zone could be effectively regulated by adjusting the drip head flow rate and irrigation water temperature. Thus, this study offers a scientific basis for the design, operation, and management of a vertical pipe surface drip irrigation project for sand fixation plants.

Stoichiometric homeostasis of carbon (C), nitrogen (N), and phosphorus (P) in the plant-soil-microbial continuum is crucial for the maintenance of nutrient cycling stability in fragile ecosystems. To address the challenges of imbalanced C:N:P stoichiometry in eolian sandy soils and the uncertain effects of organic amendments in the Horqin Sandy Land, this study conducted a field experiment to compare the impacts of biochar and straw additions on the stoichiometric characteristics of C, N, and P within an oat cultivation system. The experimental design included a control group (CK), biochar amendment treatments (low B1: 3%, medium B2: 5%, and high B3: 10% by mass), and straw amendment treatments (low S1: 3%, medium S2: 5%, and high S3: 10% by mass). Grounded in ecological stoichiometry and homeostasis theory, this study systematically analyzed the C:N:P response characteristics of oat plants, soil, and microbial communities. The results showed that (1) Biochar amendments (B2 and B3) significantly enhanced the C-N-P cycling efficiency of the oat system and demonstrated superior regulation over elemental allocation compared with straw addition. While biochar had negligible effects on C, N, and P content in oat shoots, it considerably increased these nutrients in the roots. Under the B3 treatment, root C, N, and P content increased by 45.2%, 65.2%, and 71.4%, respectively, relative to the control (CK), outperforming straw S3 by 28.7%, 60.2%, and 14.5%. Soil C, N, and P pools exhibited even greater responses: biochar B3 elevated soil C (240.2% vs. CK; 118.4% vs. S3), N (157.8% vs. CK; 81.4% vs. S3), and P (81.2% vs. CK; 17.5% vs. S3) contents. Microbial biomass followed a similar trend, with C, N, and P increasing by 95.3%, 88.7%, and 134.7% over CK, and by 61.2%, 21.7%, and 43.5% over S3, respectively. Additionally, biochar significantly reduced the C:N and C:P ratios in the shoots, roots, and microbial biomass while increasing these ratios in the soil. This bidirectional regulatory effect was not observed with straw treatment. (2) The homeostasis of oat roots under biochar and straw addition exhibited weaker stability and higher sensitivity to exogenous nutrient inputs compared with stems, leaves, and microorganisms. (3) The C, N, and P concentrations in the plants and microbial biomass of different organs of jasmine followed the order of C>N>P, and the C:N, C:P, and N:P ratios followed the order of N:P>C:P>C:N. Collectively, biochar amendments significantly enhanced the C sequestration capacity and elemental stoichiometric stability of the plant-soil-microbial continuum by improving the oat’s N and P assimilation efficiency. The high-dose biochar (B3 treatment) demonstrated the most pronounced effects. This study establishes a mechanistic foundation for sustainable management of sandy agroecosystems and provides practical guidelines for using biochar as a carbon-negative soil amendment in arid regions.