The Tanggula (
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 ...
: ,
p ''Tánggǔlāshān'', or ,
p ''Tánggǔlāshānmài''), Tangla, Tanglha, or Dangla Mountains (
Tibetan
Tibetan may mean:
* of, from, or related to Tibet
* Tibetan people, an ethnic group
* Tibetan language:
** Classical Tibetan, the classical language used also as a contemporary written standard
** Standard Tibetan, the most widely used spoken dial ...
: ,
w ''Gdang La'',
z ''Dang La'') are a mountain range in the central part of the
Qinghai-Tibet 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 Tib ...
in
Tibet
Tibet (; ''Böd''; ) is a region in East Asia, covering much of the Tibetan Plateau and spanning about . It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people. Also resident on the plateau are some other ethnic groups such as Monpa people, ...
, China. Administratively, the range is in the
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, ...
of the
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 ...
, with the central section extending into nearby
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, ...
and the eastern section entering the
Yushu Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture
Yushu Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture (, , retranscribed into Tibetan as ), also transliterated as Yüxü or Yulshul, is an autonomous prefecture
Autonomous prefectures () are one type of autonomous administrative divisions of China, existing ...
of
Qinghai
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 po ...
province
A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman ''Roman province, provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire ...
.
The Tanggula is the source of the
Ulan Moron
The Mar Qu, Ulan Moron ( mn}, ''Ulaan Mörön'', lit. "Red River"; zh, 乌兰木伦, p=Wūlánmùlún) or Tuotuo River (, Chinese: , p ''Tuótuó Hé'', lit. "Tearful River"Powers, John & al. ''Historical Dictionary of Tibet' ...
and
Dangqu River The Dangqu ( Chinese: , p ''Dāngqū'') or Dam Chu (Tibetan: , w Dam Chu'', lit. "Marshy River") is a river in Qinghai province in the People's Republic of China. It is the geographic headwater of the Yangtze River, al ...
s, the geographic headwaters 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 ...
. The range thus functions as a dividing range between the basin of the Yangtze in the north and the
endorheic basin
An endorheic basin (; also spelled endoreic basin or endorreic basin) is a drainage basin that normally retains water and allows no outflow to other external bodies of water, such as rivers or oceans, but drainage converges instead into lakes ...
s of north-eastern Tibet in the south.
Overview
The elevations of the main ridge average more than .
The Yangtze River originates in this mountain range;
Geladandong
Geladaindong Peak (also spelled Geladandong, Geladaintong or Kolha Dardong) is a snow-covered mountain (or massif) located in Southwestern Qinghai Province of China near the border of Tibet Autonomous Region. It is the tallest mountain in the Ta ...
, high, located in
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, ...
, is the tallest peak in the range.
The
Qinghai-Tibet Highway and the
Qinghai-Tibet Railway cross the Tanggula Mountains at
Tanggula Mountain Pass
The Tanggu La, Tangla Pass, or Tanggu Pass (; bo, གདང་ལ) is a wide mountain pass in Southwest China over in elevation, which utilized by both the Qinghai–Tibet Highway and Qinghai–Tibet Railway to cross the Tanggula Mountains. Th ...
. This is the highest point of the Qinghai-Tibet Railway, and the highest point of any railway in the world, at above sea level. On account of snow and occasional road accidents, highway closures and concomitant traffic delays are not uncommon.
The mountains lie within the
Tibetan Plateau alpine shrub and meadows
The Tibetan Plateau alpine shrublands and meadows ecoregion covers the middle transition zone between the northern and southern regions of the Tibetan Plateau. The region supports both cold alpine steppe and meadows across a broad expanse of the ...
ecoregion
An ecoregion (ecological region) or ecozone (ecological zone) is an ecologically and geographically defined area that is smaller than a bioregion, which in turn is smaller than a biogeographic realm. Ecoregions cover relatively large areas of l ...
.
See also
*
Geladandong
Geladaindong Peak (also spelled Geladandong, Geladaintong or Kolha Dardong) is a snow-covered mountain (or massif) located in Southwestern Qinghai Province of China near the border of Tibet Autonomous Region. It is the tallest mountain in the Ta ...
*
Nyenchen Tanglha Mountains
The Nyenchen Tanglha Mountains (officially spelt Nyainqêntanglha Mountains in Chinese) are a long mountain range, and subrange of the Transhimalaya System, located in Tibet and the Tibet Autonomous Region of China.
Geography
One source ...
*
Tanggula Pass
The Tanggu La, Tangla Pass, or Tanggu Pass (; bo, གདང་ལ) is a wide mountain pass in Southwest China over in elevation, which utilized by both the Qinghai–Tibet Highway and Qinghai–Tibet Railway to cross the Tanggula Mountains. T ...
*
Tanggula railway station
The Tanggula (Dangla) railway station () is a railway station located in Amdo County, Tibet Autonomous Region, China, near the border with the Tanggula Town, Qinghai Province. The railway station has three tracks, one of them served by a platfor ...
*
Tanggula North railway station
Tanggula North railway station is a station on the Chinese Qinghai–Tibet Railway, a railway connecting Xining to Lhasa.
See also
* List of highest railway stations in the world
This article lists the highest rail transport, railways in the ...
*
Tanggula South railway station
Tanggula South railway station is a station on the Chinese Qinghai–Tibet Railway.
See also
* List of highest railway stations in the world
This article lists the highest rail transport, railways in the world. The table only includes non-cab ...
*
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 ...
References
Mountain ranges of Tibet
{{tibet-geo-stub