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 adjacent ...

, 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=Bavarian language, Austro-Bavarian) is the List of cities and towns in Austria, fourth-largest city in Austria. In 2020, it had a population of 156,872. The town is on the site of the ...

and

Styria Styria (german: Steiermark ; Serbo-Croatian and sl, ; hu, Stájerország) is a state (''Bundesland'') in the southeast of Austria. With an area of , Styria is the second largest state of Austria, after Lower Austria. Styria is bordered to ...

. 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 p ...

. The highest peak of the Lower Tauern is the

Hochgolling The Hochgolling (2,862 m) is a mountain of the Eastern Alps, located on the border of Steiermark and Salzburg (state), Salzburg, Austria, near the ski resort of Schladming. It is the highest peak of the Lower Tauern range. A hiking rather than a ...

, part of the

Schladming Tauern The Schladming Tauern''Outline of the geology of Austria and selected excursions'', Volumes 34-35. Geologische Bundesanstalt (Austria), 1980. pp. 62/3. . (german: Schladminger Tauern) are a subrange of the Austrian Central Alps within the Eastern ...

, at 2,863 m (9,393 ft). Important

mountain pass A mountain pass is a navigable route through a mountain range or over a ridge. Since many of the world's mountain ranges have presented formidable barriers to travel, passes have played a key role in trade, war, and both Human migration, human a ...

roads include

Radstädter Tauern Pass Radstädter Tauern Pass (el. 1,738 m or 5,702 ft) is a high mountain pass in the Austrian state of Salzburg, connecting the town of Radstadt in the Pongau region with Mauterndorf in Lungau. Geography The pass separates the Radstadt Tauern ...

(),

Sölk Pass Sölk Pass (el. 1788 m.) is a high mountain pass in the Austrian Alps in the ''States of Austria, Bundesland'' of Styria. It crosses the Niedere Tauern and connects the Mur River valley with the Enns River valley. The pass road is a secondary ...

(), and Triebener Tauern Pass (). The range is also crossed by the

Tauern Autobahn The Tauern Autobahn (A 10) is an Autobahns of Austria, autobahn (motorway) in Austria. It starts at the Salzburg junction with the West Autobahn (A1), runs southwards, crosses the Hohe Tauern, Tauern mountain range on the main chain of the Alps an ...

(A10) through the

Tauern Road Tunnel The Tauern Road Tunnel is located on the Tauern Autobahn (A10) in the Austrian federal state of Salzburg. The use is subject to a toll. With a length of (4.07 miles), the tunnel ranks as one of the longest frequently-travelled road tunnels in Au ...

Borders

In the west and south the ''Murtörl''

and the

River Mur The Mur () or Mura (; ; ; Prekmurje Slovene: ''Müra''Novak, Vilko. 2006. ''Slovar stare knjižne prekmurščine''. Ljubljana: ZRC SAZU, pp. 262, 269. or ''Möra'') is a river in Central Europe rising in the Hohe Tauern national park of th ...

separate them from the

Hohe Tauern The High Tauern (plural, pl.; german: Hohe Tauern, it, Alti Tauri) are a mountain range on the Main chain of the Alps, main chain of the Central Eastern Alps, comprising the highest peaks east of the Brenner Pass. The crest forms the southern bor ...

mountain range, while in the east and north the River Enns and the

Schober Pass Schober Pass (el. 849 m.) is a high mountain pass in the Austrian Alps, located in the '' Bundesland'' of Styria. See also * List of highest paved roads in Europe * List of mountain passes This is a list of mountain passes. Africa Egypt ...

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 Germany. ...

Alpine Club classification

According to the

Alpine Club classification of the Eastern Alps The Alpine Club classification of the Eastern Alps (german: Alpenvereinseinteilung der Ostalpen, AVE) is a common division of the Eastern Alps into 75 mountain ranges, based on the Moriggl Classification (ME) first published in 1924 by the German a ...

, the Lower Tauern may be divided into four subgroups (from west to east): *

Radstadt Tauern The Radstadt Tauern (german: Radstädter Tauern) are a subrange of the Central Eastern Alps in Austria. Together with the Schladming Tauern, the Rottenmann and Wölz Tauern and the Seckau Tauern the Radstadt Tauern form the major range of mount ...

(45a) *

(45b) *

Rottenmann and Wölz Tauern The Rottenmann and Wölz Tauern''Outline of the geology of Austria and selected excursions'', Volumes 34-35. Geologische Bundesanstalt (Austria), 1980. pp. 62/3 & 65. . (german: Rottenmanner und Wölzer Tauern) are a subrange of the Austrian Centr ...

(45c) *

Seckau Tauern The Seckau Tauern or Seckau AlpsArnold, Rosemary, tr. James Hogarth (2000). ''Baedeker's Austria'', 4th ed., AA Publishing, p. 220. (german: Seckauer Tauern or ''Seckauer Alpen'') are a small subrange of the Low Tauern mountains in the Austrian C ...

(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 Las ...

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, Sw ...

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 Obertauern is a tourist destination which is located in the Radstädter Tauern in the Salzburger Land of Austria. The winter sports resort is separated in two communities: Tweng and Untertauern. Geography Obertauern lies in the southeast o ...

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 ...

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)