Cover Story：Shallow drilling exploration in shallowly covered area of gobi desert on the northern margin of Junggar Basin, Xinjiang. Field regional geological survey and base rock geological mapping in shallowly covered areas led to the prediction and discovery of the extending distribution of Zhaheba-Almantai ophiolite melange zone on the northern margin of Junggar in the shallowly covered areas of western China. Based on geophysical detection technologies such as gravity, magnetic and electrical method and comprehensive geological comparison, researchers carried out the study of “peeling” shallow overburden area on the geological mapping of bedrock and thus extracted the information of concealed structure and rock mass. The techniques of shallow drilling verified and revealed the landmark geological bodies of ophiolite melange zone (serpentinized ultrabasic rocks) and important metallogenic element anomalies as well as rock alteration information of copper, cobalt and gold resources. On such a basis, the prospecting of concealed ore in shallow overburden area of Junggar metallogenic belt has been expanded. The research achievement led by Professor MENG Gui-xiang obtained the honor of one of the excellent sci-tech achievements of the Chinese Academy of Geological Sciences in 2018. For details, see pp. 637-650 of this issue. (Photo by MENG Gui-xiang)