The Xilin Gol area is located in central Inner Mongolia, China. It had been a fertile prairie in northern China, but desertification and sand storms have increased in past decades. This study shows the spatial and temporal distribution of sand storms in the Xilin Gol area. The results of the analysis show:
(i) Factors such as strong winds (usually beyond seven levels), rain and temperature have an impact on sand storms. The correlation coefficient between sand storm days and strong wind days is 0.89.
(ii) There are more sand storm days in the west than in the east.
(iii) In the last 30 years, the frequency of sand storms have been consistently decreasing.