Jiayuguan Meteorological Tower

The city of Jiayuguan, situated in the inland Chinese province of Gansu, in the middle of the vast desert of Gobi, has a very dry and sunny climate, where it does not rain more than fifteen or twenty times a year (many more than in the desert caused by building artificial lakes around the city to soften the climate). A huge dolphin-shaped tower in one of the local parks has been the weather forecasting center for a little more than a year and gives a clue as to the importance of the climate in this area.