Lop Nur is located in the northeastern part of Ruoqiang County, Bayingolin Mongol Autonomous Prefecture, Xinjiang. The famous ruins of the ancient Loulan city are situated at the northwestern corner of Lop Nur. Currently, apart from the protection station, the ancient city ruins are largely uninhabited. Coupled with the lack of water sources and harsh climate, it has become a no-man’s land.
According to the Ruoqiang County Cultural Relics Protection and Tourism Bureau, Loulan has not opened any type of tourism so far and prohibits any travel agency from organizing or conducting Loulan ruins exploration tours. Meanwhile, the Lop Nur region is a national military restricted zone where unauthorized entry is not allowed. Only scientific expeditions approved by the National Cultural Heritage Administration or the autonomous region’s cultural heritage bureau are permitted to enter.
Jiao Yingxin, head of the Ruoqiang County Cultural Relics Protection and Tourism Bureau, warns adventurers that Lop Nur and the Loulan ancient city are extremely dangerous for those unfamiliar with the local conditions—venturing in blindly is an irresponsible act toward one's own life. Additionally, as the Loulan ancient city is built from rammed earth, even just walking there can cause damage to this millennia-old site. Under the "Cultural Relics Protection Law Management Measures," unauthorized intruders may face fines ranging from 20,000 to 100,000 yuan.
“Since the establishment of the Loulan Protection Station in 2003, there have been intrusions into Lop Nur and the Loulan ruins every year, causing inconvenience to the work of the local government and the protection station,” said Jiao Yingxin. In recent years, the Loulan Protection Station has set up barriers on some major routes and strengthened management, which has reduced—but not eliminated—illegal entries into Loulan. On March 13 of this year, a domestic Daqing expedition team encountered a sandstorm after entering the Loulan ancient city without authorization, lost their way, and used a maritime satellite to call for help. They were found and escorted back by rescuers two days later.
“Amidst the yellow sands and through countless battles, our golden armor pierced—but we will not return until Loulan is conquered.” The ancient Loulan Kingdom, first mentioned in "Records of the Grand Historian" ("Shiji"), was once a strategic fortress along the Han Dynasty’s Silk Road. It flourished for a time but mysteriously disappeared 1,600 years ago. In 1900, the ruins of the ancient city were rediscovered by Swedish explorer Sven Hedin and hailed as the "Pompeii of the Desert."
Lop Nur was once China’s second-largest inland lake. In the mid-to-late 20th century, due to severe desertification in the surrounding areas, the lake rapidly shrank and completely dried up by the late 1970s, earning it the nickname “Sea of Death.”