Tibet

Yamdrok Tso ( Turquoise lake ) is about 4500m above sea level

See bigger size for better view
#3 Explore 24 jan. 2008.


The Himalaya Range is a mountain range in Asia, separating the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau. By extension, it is also the name of the massive mountain system which includes the Karakoram, the Hindu Kush, and a host of minor ranges extending from the Pamir Knot. The name is from Sanskrit himālaya, a tatpurusa compound meaning "the abode of snow" (from hima "snow", and ālaya "abode"; see also Himavat).

Together, the Himalayan mountain system is the planet's highest and home to the world's highest peaks: the Eight-thousanders, including Mount Everest and K2. To comprehend the enormous scale of this mountain range consider that Aconcagua, in the Andes, at 6,962 m, is the highest peak outside Asia, while the Himalayan system includes over 100 mountains exceeding 7,200 meters.

The Himalayan system, which includes outlying subranges, stretches across six countries: Bhutan, China, India, Nepal, Pakistan and Afghanistan. They are the source of three of the world's major river systems, the Indus, the Ganga-Brahmaputra, and the Yangtze. Approximately 1.3 billion people live in the drainage basin of the Himalayan rivers.

Tibet is a plateau region in Central Asia. With an average elevation of 4,900 metres (16,000 ft), it is the highest region on Earth and is commonly referred to as the "Roof of the World."

Geographically, UNESCO and Encyclopædia Britannica consider Tibet to be part of Central Asia, while some academic organizations consider it part of South Asia.

Tibet is located on the Tibetan Plateau, the world's highest region. The world's highest mountain, Mount Everest, is on Nepal's border with Tibet. The average altitude is about 3,000 m in the south and 4,500 m in the north.

Several major rivers have their source in the Tibetan. These includeYangtze, Yellow River, Indus River, Mekong, Brahmaputra River, Ganges, Salween and the Yarlung Tsangpo River. Tibet has numerous high-altitude lakes referred to in Tibetan as tso or co. These include Lake Manasarovar, Namtso, Pangong Tso, Yamdrok Lake, Siling Co, Lhamo La-tso, Lumajangdong Co, Lake Puma Yumco, Lake Paiku, Lake Rakshastal, Dagze Co and Dong Co.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Himalaya
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tibet