Long-term Hydrographic Network Data for Xinjiang, China (1900–2020)

This dataset contains digitized hydrographic vector features (natural rivers and canals) and derived 10 km grid-based hydrographic network density (HND, km/km²) for five periods (1900s, 1930s, 1960s, 1990s, 2020s) in Xinjiang, China. Data for the 1900s, 1930s, 1960s, and 1990s were reconstructed from historical maps via manual digitization and GIS analysis. The 2020s dataset was derived from the 1:1,000,000 Public Edition of Fundamental Geographic Information Data (National Catalogue Service for Geographic Information, https://www.webmap.cn/commres.do?method=result100W). Projection: Albers Conical Equal Area (Central Meridian: 85°E, Standard Parallels: 38°N and 44°N, Latitude of Origin: 41°N, based on GCS_WGS_1984). Vector files in shapefile format. Used in the study of long-term water system evolution in Central Asia and similar arid regions worldwide. Users are kindly requested to cite this dataset using the DOI provided. For substantial derivative works or extended analyses based on this dataset, the authors welcome inquiries about potential collaboration. Please feel free to contact either the first author (Raorao Su, [e-mail]) or the corresponding author (Zhen Zhao, [e-mail]).