Train rolls into China's mysterious "no man's land"

LOP NUR, Xinjiang, Nov. 29 (Xinhua) -- A train entered Lop Nur in remote northwest China on Thursday, marking the operation of the first railway connecting the sparsely-populated region to the rest of China.

Lop Nur still holds the mystery of the disappearance of Loulan, an ancient Silk Road civilization, in the third century. It was also the site of China's first atomic bomb test in 1964.

Since its lake dried up in the 1970s, the 10,000 square-kilometer area has become a vast salt-encrusted lake bed with an abundance of potassium-rich salt and non-ferrous metals, according to geologists.

Prior to the operation of the railway, Lop Nur's only link to the rest of the country was a six-year-old highway.

The 374.8-km railway is widely considered vital for accelerating the mining of the abundant potassium-rich salt in the region to boost the country's ability to meet its own fertilizer demand.

We Recommend:
Cute girls and children in chilling China	'Devil bodyguard training camp' in Sanya	China through the lens of Japanese photographer
Cheongsam inspired by women's secret language	Outrage as little girls don bikinis at auto show	Body painting show attracts public's view
Tough nail household in Wenling, Zhejiang	'Gangnam style' life of young rich in China	Sexy models and fancy cars rock auto show