The deserts and desertification research is focused of the physics on aeolian sands and erosion, desertification processes and their impacts and mitigation. The core research faculty is the Key Laboratory of Desert and Desertification (KLODD), the major research objects are sands and wind actions in arid and semiarid regions, physical mechanisms of wind and sand moving and transfer, desertification processes, and responses to and feedbacks on the global change. These studies are important for providing theoretical analyses and technical supports for decision-making for sustainable environmental and social development in arid and semiarid China and beyond.