__NOTOC__ The Baltoro Glacier ( zh, 巴爾托洛冰川, ), at in length, is one of the longest

glacier A glacier (; ) is a persistent body of dense ice that is constantly moving under its own weight. A glacier forms where the accumulation of snow exceeds its Ablation#Glaciology, ablation over many years, often Century, centuries. It acquires dis ...

s outside the

polar regions The polar regions, also called the frigid zones or polar zones, of Earth are the regions of the planet that surround its geographical poles (the North and South Poles), lying within the polar circles. These high latitudes are dominated by float ...

.The Fedchenko Glacier in the

Pamir Mountains The Pamir Mountains are a mountain range between Central Asia and Pakistan. It is located at a junction with other notable mountains, namely the Tian Shan, Karakoram, Kunlun, Hindu Kush and the Himalaya mountain ranges. They are among the world ...

of Tajikistan is 77 km long, the

Siachen Glacier The Siachen Glacier is a glacier located in the eastern Karakoram range in the Himalayas at about , just northeast of the point NJ9842 where the Line of Control between India and Pakistan ends. At long, it is the longest glacier in the Kar ...

which lies southeast of the Baltoro is 70 km long, and the Biafo Glacier to the northwest of the Baltoro is 67 km long. Exact lengths are relatively easy to determine with modern maps and imagery so as to include recent

glacial retreat The retreat of glaciers since 1850 affects the availability of fresh water for irrigation and domestic use, mountain recreation, animals and plants that depend on glacier-melt, and, in the longer term, the level of the oceans. Deglaciation occu ...

. Measurements are from recent imagery, generally supplemented with Russian 1:200,000 scale topographic mapping as well as Jerzy Wala,''Orographical Sketch Map: Karakoram: Sheets 1 & 2'', Swiss Foundation for Alpine Research, Zurich, 1990.

Geography

It is located in the

Shigar District Shigar District ( ur, ) is one of the 14 districts of Pakistani territory of Gilgit-Baltistan. The district is bounded on the north by the Nagar District, the Hunza District, and the Kashgar Prefecture of China's Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Reg ...

Gilgit-Baltistan Gilgit-Baltistan (; ), formerly known as the Northern Areas, is a region administered by Pakistan as an administrative territory, and constituting the northern portion of the larger Kashmir region which has been the subject of a dispute bet ...

region of

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

. It runs through part of the

Karakoram The Karakoram is a mountain range in Kashmir region spanning the borders of Pakistan, China, and India, with the northwest extremity of the range extending to Afghanistan and Tajikistan. Most of the Karakoram mountain range falls under the ...

mountain range. The

Baltoro Muztagh Baltoro may refer to: *Baltoro Glacier, a glacier in the Karakoram mountain range northern Pakistan. ''Baltoro'' as single expression without adjunct usually refers to this glacier. * Baltoro Muztagh, a mountain range in the Karakoram mountain rang ...

lies to the north and east of the glacier, while the

Masherbrum Mountains __NOTOC__ The Masherbrum Mountains ( ur, ) are a subrange of the Karakoram mountains, located in Ghanche District in the Baltistan region of Pakistan-administered Kashmir. Geography The Masherbrum Mountains are located on the south side of the ...

lie to the south. At 8,611 m (28,251 ft), K2 is the highest mountain in the region, and three other

Eight thousanders The International Mountaineering and Climbing Federation (UIAA) recognises eight-thousanders as the 14 mountains that are more than in height above sea level, and are considered to be sufficiently independent of neighbouring peaks. There is no p ...

within 20 km.

is separated from the Baltoro glacier by the Conway Saddle (or pass). The glacier gives rise to the Braldo River which is a tributary of

Shigar River Shigar River ( ur, ) is located in the mountainous Baltistan region of northern Pakistan. The Shigar River is formed from the melted water of the Baltoro Glacier and Biafo Glacier. It flows through the Shigar Valley. The river is tributary to I ...

, which is a tributary of the

Indus River The Indus ( ) is a transboundary river of Asia and a trans-Himalayan river of South and Central Asia. The river rises in mountain springs northeast of Mount Kailash in Western Tibet, flows northwest through the disputed region of Kashmir, ...

. Several large tributary glaciers feed the main Baltoro Glacier, including the

Godwin-Austen Glacier The Godwin-Austen Glacier is a glacier in the Karakoram range and is close to K2, the second tallest peak on Earth, in Gilgit–Baltistan, Pakistan. It is the highest mountain peak in Pakistan. Its confluence with the Baltoro Glacier is called ...

, flowing south from K2; the Abruzzi and the various Gasherbrum Glaciers, flowing from the

Gasherbrum Gasherbrum ( ur, ) is a remote group of peaks situated at the northeastern end of the Baltoro Glacier in the Karakoram mountain range. The peaks are located within the border region of Xinjiang, China and Gilgit-Baltistan, Pakistan. The ...

group of peaks; the Vigne Glacier, flowing from

Chogolisa Chogolisa ( ur, from ''Chogo Ling Sa''; literally "Great Hunt") is a trapezoidal mountain in the Karakoram range in the Gilgit-Baltistan region of Pakistan. It lies near the Baltoro Glacier in the Concordia region, which is home to some of th ...

, and the Yermandendu Glacier, flowing from

Masherbrum Masherbrum ( ur, ; formerly known as K1) is a mountain located in the Ghanche District, Gilgit Baltistan, Pakistan. At , it is the 22nd highest mountain in the world and the 9th highest in Pakistan. It was the first mapped peak in the Ka ...

. The confluence of the main Baltoro Glacier with the Godwin-Austen Glacier is known as Concordia; this location and K2 base camp are popular trekking destinations. The trough of this glacier is very wide. Small valley glaciers form icefalls where they meet the trunk glacier. The sidewalls vary from very steep to precipitous. The glacier has carved striations on the surrounding country rocks. Moving ice has formed depressions, which serve as basins for numerous glacial lakes. The glacier can be approached via the Balti town of

Skardu , nickname = , motto = , image_skyline = , map_caption = , pushpin_map = Gilgit Baltistan#Pakistan , pushpin_label_position ...

List of peaks

A list of notable peaks adjacent to or near the Baltoro Glacier includes: *

Biarchedi Biarchedi Peak ( ur, ) is a mountain peak on the south of the Baltoro Glacier in Pakistan. In its southwest is Masherbrum (7,806 m) and in its east is the Mitre Peak (6,010 m). In its northeast is the Biarchedi Glacier that flows north into the ...

, 6,781 m *

Broad Peak Broad Peak ( ur, ) is a mountain in the Karakoram on the border of Pakistan and China, the twelfth-highest mountain in the world at above sea level. It was first ascended in June 1957 by Fritz Wintersteller, Marcus Schmuck, Kurt Diemberger, an ...

, 12th highest in the world at 8,047 m. *

, 36th highest in the world at 7,665 m. *

Gasherbrum III Gasherbrum III ( ur, گاشر برم -3; ), surveyed as K3a, is a summit in the Gasherbrum massif of the Baltoro Muztagh, a subrange of the Karakoram on the border between Xinjiang, China and Gilgit-Baltistan, Pakistan. It is situated between ...

, 7,946 m. (Often regarded as a subpeak of Gasherbrum II.) *

Gasherbrum II Gasherbrum II ( ur, ; ); surveyed as K4, is the 13th highest mountain in the world at above sea level. It is the third-highest peak of the Gasherbrum massif, and is located in the Karakoram, on the border between Gilgit–Baltistan, Pakistan a ...

, 13th highest in the world at 8,035 m. *

Gasherbrum IV Gasherbrum IV ( ur, گاشر برم -4; ), surveyed as K3, is the 17th highest mountain on Earth and the 6th highest in Pakistan. It is one of the peaks in the Gasherbrum massif. The Gasherbrums are a remote group of peaks located at the nort ...

, 17th highest in the world at 7,932 m. *

Gasherbrum I Gasherbrum I ( ur, ; ), surveyed as K5 and also known as Hidden Peak, is the 11th highest mountain in the world at above sea level. It is located in Shigar District in the Gilgit–Baltistan region of Pakistan. Gasherbrum I is part of the Ga ...

, 11th highest in the world at 8,080 m. * K2, 2nd highest in the world at 8611m *

(K1), 22nd highest in the world at 7,821 m. * Mitre Peak, 6,010 m. * Muztagh Tower, 7,273 m. * Snow Dome, 7,160 m. *

Trango Towers __NOTOC__ The Trango Towers ( ur, ) are a family of rock towers situated in Gilgit-Baltistan, in the north of Pakistan. The Towers offer some of the largest cliffs and most challenging rock climbing in the world, and every year a number of expedi ...

, 6,286 m. (Their vertical faces are the world's tallest cliffs.) * Uli Biaho Tower, 6,417 m.

Image gallery

File:Baltoro Glacier animation.gif, Looking NE towards K2, at top centre File:Baltoro Glacier, Pakistan.jpg, Close-up photo of the glacier File:Baltoro from Urdukas campsite.JPG, View of the Baltoro Glacier from Urdukas campsite File:Baltoro Glacial Mushroom.JPG, A glacial mushroom on Baltoro Glacier

References

External links

Photos from trekking to K2 over Baltoro by Michael Holtrop

Photos from Concordia by Kelly Cheng
{{Authority control Baltistan Glaciers of Gilgit-Baltistan

Geography

List of peaks

Image gallery

See also

References

External links