Yueyaquan is a crescent-shaped lake in an oasis, 6 km south of the city of Dunhuang in Gansu Province, China. It was named Yueyaquan in the Qing Dynasty. According to measurements made in 1960, the average depth of the lake was 4 to 5 meters, with a maximum depth of 7.5 metres In the following 40 years, the depth of the lake continually declined. In the early 1990s, its area had shrunk to only 5,500 m2 with an average depth of 0.9 meter (maximum 1.3 meter). In 2006, the local government with help of the central government started to fill the lake and restore its depth; its depth and size have been growing yearly since then. The lake and the surrounding deserts are very popular with tourists, who are offered camel and 4x4 rides.

The impressive gallery shows beautiful landscapes that might appear to be from more exotic climes, but they were all taken on British soil. Alessio Putzu, 31, a professional landscape photographer from London, snapped the amazing shots during his trips to Devon and Cornwall, England; Pembrokeshire, Wales; and the Isle of Skye, Scotland. Here: Bedruthan Steps, Cornwall. (Photo by Alessio Putzu/Caters News Agency)

Pottery heads by artist Johan Thunell are displayed at The Affordable Art Fair on March 15, 2012 in London, England. 120 galleries are displaying works costing from £40 – £4000. Photography, paintings, prints and sculptures are on sale from 15–18th March 2012. (Photo by Peter Macdiarmid/Getty Images)

School children take photographs as Queen Elizabeth II arrives in Valentine's Park Redbridge as part of her Diamond Jubilee tour of the UK on March 29, 2012 in London, England. (Photo by Chris Jackson/Getty Images)

A muslim woman protests opposite Downing street against the military action taken by the UK, USA and France against Libya on March 21, 2011 in London, England. The Pentagon says that United States and United Kingdom military forces have fired more than 110 missiles, with French planes attacking pro-Gaddafi forces near rebel-held Benghazi. (Photo by Oli Scarff/Getty Images)

A girl allows a butterfly to be placed on her nose at the Sensational Butterflies exhibition at the Natural History Museum on April 6, 2011 in London, England. The exhibition is divided up into five sensory zones exploring how butterflies see, hear, taste, smell and touch. The display containing hundreds of butterflies runs from April 12 to September 11, 2011. (Photo by Peter Macdiarmid/Getty Images)

Event curators Harry Parr (L) and Sam Bompas (R) sit in paddle boats in the Truvia Voyage of Discovery installation on the roof of Selfridges department shop on July 21, 2011 in London, England. Selfridges is opening its roof to the public for only the second time since WW2 to host the installation, which includes a boating lake with dyed water and bar. (Photo by Matthew Lloyd/Getty Images)