The Taklimakan Desert in China, one of the driest spots in the world, has seen an unusual wet spring-day on Saturday. A mighty 6mm of precipitation were recorded at Ruoqiang along the eastern border of the Taklimakan. The average annual rainfall between 1996 and 2001 was a mere 2.7 mm. Thus a total of more than two years worth precipitation was 'battering' the usually hyper-arid region.

Extensive amounts of rain had fallen during the recent days across China's usually parched Xinjiang Uygur Region. Over the capital of Urumqi rain has fallen everyday since Friday.