Shaanxi Luochuan Loess National Geopark is located in Luochuan County, southern Yan’an City, Shaanxi Province, covering a total area of 5.9 square kilometers in its initial description (the main body Heimugou covers 8.2 square kilometers). It lies 135 kilometers north of the revolutionary sacred site Yan’an and 240 kilometers south of the ancient capital Xi’an. Additionally, it is 35 kilometers from the Yellow Emperor’s Mausoleum — the resting place of the Chinese nation’s ancestor, 130 kilometers from the renowned Hukou Waterfall, and 140 kilometers from Hancheng, the hometown of Sima Qian, the Sage of History. The surrounding area boasts a sound tourism layout.

Luochuan County sits within a loess tableland region, with terrain sloping down from north to south. The broad, flat tableland surface tilts gently toward the southeast. The highest elevation of the tableland surrounding the geopark reaches 1,136 meters, making this a typical zone of well-developed loess landforms on China’s loess tablelands. Valleys are incised to depths of 80 to 140 meters with steep valley slopes ranging from 30° to 60°. Subject to gravity and subsurface groundwater, loess landslides and collapses are widespread in the gullies, accompanied by intense headward erosion at gully heads.

Heimugou features steep slopes and a V-shaped cross-section, with numerous landslides on both banks and abundant hanging gullies on valley walls. The loess stratigraphic profile of Heimugou is fully exposed, featuring continuous and intact strata with distinct paleosol layers that offer high comparability and immense academic research value. Moreover, a rich variety of miniature loess landforms can be found here, including loess landslides, collapses, hanging gullies, sinkholes, loess natural bridges, loess pillars and loess walls. These uniquely shaped micro-landforms formed by natural processes deliver outstanding ornamental value.

The loess geological relics in Heimugou, Luochuan County, are the combined outcome of endogenic and exogenic geological processes throughout geological history. They faithfully record 2.4 million years of evolution in crustal structure, tectonic movement and landform development. Complete and stable loess sequences from all epochs are exposed here, preserving comprehensive records of paleoclimate, paleoenvironment, paleogeography, paleovegetation and major geological events since the Quaternary Period. This profile serves as a standard loess stratigraphic reference for correlation with strata across the entire Loess Plateau.

Centered on Heimugou and covering an area of 8.2 square kilometers, Shaanxi Luochuan Loess National Geopark is situated south of downtown Luochuan County, Yan’an City, Shaanxi Province. The park is distinguished by its complete loess stratigraphic profiles and spectacular loess geomorphic landscapes. It also preserves vertebrate fossils and extremely distinctive typical loess geological relics that authentically document key Quaternary geological events and information regarding paleoclimate, paleoenvironment and paleobiology. It constitutes a representative geological body for researching Quaternary geological events across China’s mainland and even the entire Eurasian continent.