Geladaindong Peak (also spelled Geladandong, Geladaintong or Kolha Dardong) is a snow-covered mountain (or

massif In geology, a massif ( or ) is a section of a planet's crust that is demarcated by faults or flexures. In the movement of the crust, a massif tends to retain its internal structure while being displaced as a whole. The term also refers to a ...

) located in Southwestern

Qinghai Province Qinghai (; alternately romanized as Tsinghai, Ch'inghai), also known as Kokonor, is a landlocked province in the northwest of the People's Republic of China. It is the fourth largest province of China by area and has the third smallest pop ...

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

near the border of

Tibet Autonomous Region The Tibet Autonomous Region or Xizang Autonomous Region, often shortened to Tibet or Xizang, is a Provinces of China, province-level Autonomous regions of China, autonomous region of the China, People's Republic of China in Southwest China. I ...

. It is the tallest mountain in the Tanggula Mountain Range of the

Tibetan Plateau The Tibetan Plateau (, also known as the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau or the Qing–Zang Plateau () or as the Himalayan Plateau in India, is a vast elevated plateau located at the intersection of Central, South and East Asia covering most of the Ti ...

with an elevation of above

sea level Mean sea level (MSL, often shortened to sea level) is an average surface level of one or more among Earth's coastal bodies of water from which heights such as elevation may be measured. The global MSL is a type of vertical datuma standardised g ...

. The traditional source of the

Yangtze River The Yangtze or Yangzi ( or ; ) is the longest list of rivers of Asia, river in Asia, the list of rivers by length, third-longest in the world, and the longest in the world to flow entirely within one country. It rises at Jari Hill in th ...

, begins with

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 on its surface. The Yangtze's true source, however, lies away at the head of the Dam Qu. The mountain's name is Geladaindong in the

Tibetan language Tibetan language may refer to: * Classical Tibetan, the classical language used also as a contemporary written standard * Lhasa Tibetan, the most widely used spoken dialect * Any of the other Tibetic languages See also *Old Tibetan, the language ...

. The name in

Chinese Chinese can refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation ** List of ethnic groups in China, people of ...

is 各拉丹冬 (Pinyin: Gèlādāndōng) or 各拉丹冬峰 (Pinyin: Gèlādāndōng Fēng, literally "Geladandong Peak").

Location

Geladaindong is located in the administrative unit known as

Tanggula Town Tanggulashan (, ), or Dangla Town, is a town in the southwest of Qinghai province, China. It forms the southern exclave of the county-level city of Golmud, in Haixi Mongol and Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, partially administrated by Amdo County, ...

: an

exclave An enclave is a territory (or a small territory apart of a larger one) that is entirely surrounded by the territory of one other state or entity. Enclaves may also exist within territorial waters. ''Enclave'' is sometimes used improperly to deno ...

Haixi Prefecture Haixi Mongolian and Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture (; mn, ᠬᠠᠶᠢᠰᠢ ᠶᠢᠨ ᠮᠣᠩᠭᠣᠯ ᠲᠥᠪᠡᠳ ᠦᠨᠳᠦᠰᠦᠲᠡᠨ ᠦ ᠥᠪᠡᠷᠲᠡᠭᠡᠨ ᠵᠠᠰᠠᠬᠤ ᠵᠧᠦ; bo, མཚོ་ནུབ་� ...

, in the middle section of Tanggula Shan (the Tanggula Mountain Range). The Geladaindong Peak is encircled by over twenty high peaks exceeding in height. It is approximately long from north to south and approximately wide from west to east, covering an area of approximately with ice and snow, covered by over 40

s. This area is directly across the border from

Amdo County Amdo County (; ) is a county within Nagqu of the Tibet Autonomous Region of China. The county covers an area of 43,410.85 square kilometres and is dominated by mainly by Tibetan grassland. In 2000 it had a population of 32,843 . Its capital is ...

Nagqu Prefecture Nagqu (also Naqu, Nakchu, or Nagchu; ; ) is a prefecture-level city in the north of the Chinese autonomous region of Tibet. On May 7, 2018, the former Nagqu Prefecture was officially declared the sixth prefecture-level city in Tibet after Lhasa, ...

. The Qinghai-Tibet Railway crosses the Tanggula Mountain Range around to the east of Geladaindong Peak.

Climate

Due to the area's arid climate, its annual precipitation is only . In the high-altitude area of over , however, there exists violent local air circulation and its yearly precipitation is several hundred mm more than that in the foothill area. Thus,

snow Snow comprises individual ice crystals that grow while suspended in the atmosphere—usually within clouds—and then fall, accumulating on the ground where they undergo further changes. It consists of frozen crystalline water throughout ...

and

hailstone Hail is a form of solid precipitation. It is distinct from ice pellets (American English "sleet"), though the two are often confused. It consists of balls or irregular lumps of ice, each of which is called a hailstone. Ice pellets generally fal ...

s frequently fall, presenting conditions for the development of glaciers. The average temperature is , and the hottest months are from June to August with a temperature of over , while the coldest month is January, with a temperature of . In the high-altitude area of over , it remains cold all year round, the lowest temperature being less than .

Wildlife

The mountain serves as a shelter for more than twenty kinds of wild animals, including the white-lipped deer, Asiatic

wild ass The wild asses (''Asinus'') are a subgenus of single toed grazing ungulates. Its species are: *African wild ass ''Equus africanus'' **Nubian wild ass ''Equus africanus africanus'' (likely ancestor of the domestic donkey) **Somali wild ass ''Equus a ...

snow leopard The snow leopard (''Panthera uncia''), also known as the ounce, is a Felidae, felid in the genus ''Panthera'' native to the mountain ranges of Central Asia, Central and South Asia. It is listed as Vulnerable species, Vulnerable on the IUCN Red ...

, and alpine

snowcock The snowcocks or snowfowl are a group of bird species in the genus ''Tetraogallus'' of the pheasant family, Phasianidae. They are ground-nesting birds that breed in the mountain ranges of southern Eurasia from the Caucasus to the Himalayas and we ...

Climbing

Geladaindong was first climbed by Japanese team in 1985 after three years of trying to obtain a permit.http://c498469.r69.cf2.rackcdn.com/2009/348_China_aaj2009_web.pdf They ascended the peak via the northwest ridge approaching from the northeast. In 1997 an American team climbed a new route up the northeast face (55–60°). The team consisted of William N. Rom M.D., Dan Luchtel PhD, and Mark Newcomb. Mark Newcomb also pioneered a face solo route on the same expedition. Mark Newcomb was a guide with Exum Guides from

Grand Teton National Park Grand Teton National Park is an American national park in northwestern Wyoming. At approximately , the park includes the major peaks of the Teton Range as well as most of the northern sections of the valley known as Jackson Hole. Grand Teton Na ...

. Although a dangerous peak to climb, Geladaindong is popular among Chinese

mountain climbers A mountain is an elevated portion of the Earth's crust, generally with steep sides that show significant exposed bedrock. Although definitions vary, a mountain may differ from a plateau in having a limited summit area, and is usually higher ...

. In 1994, the Mountaineering Association of

Peking University Peking University (PKU; ) is a public research university in Beijing, China. The university is funded by the Ministry of Education. Peking University was established as the Imperial University of Peking in 1898 when it received its royal charter ...

(MAPKU) became the first Chinese climbing team to reach the summit of Geladaindong.

References

External links

Geladandong page
{{Webarchive, url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061108063214/http://www.tibetinfor.com/english/news/2003-4-14/News02003414105417.htm , date=2006-11-08
Peking University mountaineering team's 1994 Geladaindong Climbing Photos page
Mountains of Qinghai