Niedere Tauern
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The Lower TauernThe New Encyclopædia Britannica, Vol. 1, 2003, p. 86. or Niedere Tauern () are a
mountain range A mountain range or hill range is a series of mountains or hills arranged in a line and connected by high ground. A mountain system or mountain belt is a group of mountain ranges with similarity in form, structure, and alignment that have arise ...
of the
Central Eastern Alps The Central Eastern Alps (german: Zentralalpen or Zentrale Ostalpen), also referred to as Austrian Central Alps (german: Österreichische Zentralalpen) or just Central Alps, comprise the main chain of the Eastern Alps in Austria and the adjacen ...
, in the
Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...
n states of
Salzburg Salzburg (, ; literally "Salt-Castle"; bar, Soizbuag, label= Austro-Bavarian) is the fourth-largest city in Austria. In 2020, it had a population of 156,872. The town is on the site of the Roman settlement of ''Iuvavum''. Salzburg was founded ...
and Styria. For the
etymology Etymology ()The New Oxford Dictionary of English (1998) – p. 633 "Etymology /ˌɛtɪˈmɒlədʒi/ the study of the class in words and the way their meanings have changed throughout time". is the study of the history of the Phonological chan ...
of the name, see
Tauern The word ''Tauern'' () is German and originally meant 'high mountain pass' in the Austrian Central Alps, referring to the many bridleways and passes of the parallel side valleys of the River Salzach that cut into the mountain ranges. From the Mi ...
.


Geography

The range forms a part of the
main chain of the Alps The main chain of the Alps, also called the Alpine divide is the central line of mountains that forms the drainage divide of the range. Main chains of mountain ranges are traditionally designated in this way, and generally include the highest ...
. The highest peak of the Lower Tauern is the Hochgolling, part of the Schladming Tauern, at 2,863 m (9,393 ft). Important mountain pass roads include Radstädter Tauern Pass (), Sölk Pass (), and Triebener Tauern Pass (). The range is also crossed by the Tauern Autobahn (A10) through the Tauern Road Tunnel.


Borders

In the west and south the ''Murtörl'' mountain pass and the River Mur separate them from the
Hohe Tauern The High Tauern ( pl.; german: Hohe Tauern, it, Alti Tauri) are a mountain range on the main chain of the Central Eastern Alps, comprising the highest peaks east of the Brenner Pass. The crest forms the southern border of the Austrian states of ...
mountain range, while in the east and north the River Enns and the Schober Pass marks the border to the
Northern Limestone Alps The Northern Limestone Alps (german: Nördliche Kalkalpen), also called the Northern Calcareous Alps, are the ranges of the Eastern Alps north of the Central Eastern Alps located in Austria and the adjacent Bavarian lands of southeastern Germa ...
.


Alpine Club classification

According to the Alpine Club classification of the Eastern Alps, the Lower Tauern may be divided into four subgroups (from west to east): * Radstadt Tauern (45a) * Schladming Tauern (45b) * Rottenmann and Wölz Tauern (45c) * Seckau Tauern (45d). The four groups listed above (the Radstadt Tauern, Schladming Tauern, Rottenmann and Wölz Tauern and Seckau Alps) are considered Alpine subsections.


Notable summits

Some notable summits of the range are:


Geology and environment

The Lower Tauern mark the approximate eastern limit of the continuous
ice sheet In glaciology, an ice sheet, also known as a continental glacier, is a mass of glacial ice that covers surrounding terrain and is greater than . The only current ice sheets are in Antarctica and Greenland; during the Last Glacial Period at La ...
in the
Alps The Alps () ; german: Alpen ; it, Alpi ; rm, Alps ; sl, Alpe . are the highest and most extensive mountain range system that lies entirely in Europe, stretching approximately across seven Alpine countries (from west to east): France, Swi ...
during the
Würm glaciation The Würm glaciation or Würm stage (german: Würm-Kaltzeit or ''Würm-Glazial'', colloquially often also ''Würmeiszeit'' or ''Würmzeit''; cf. ice age), usually referred to in the literature as the Würm (often spelled "Wurm"), was the last g ...
. Eastern parts of the group were therefore unglaciated, and served as an important refugium for silicicolous plants.


Winter sports

A number of skiing resorts are situated in the Lower Tauern, including Obertauern and
Schladming Schladming is a small former mining town in the northwest of the Austrian state of Styria that is now a popular tourist destination. It has become a large winter-sports resort and has held various skiing competitions, including most notably the F ...
.


References


External links


Tauern Tunnel - Price and Tips Updated 2015
{{Authority control Mountain ranges of the Alps Mountain ranges of Styria Mountain ranges of Salzburg (state)