Nepal, the Himalayas are the highest mountains on Earth. Himalayas: photo, video, film, mountains on the map

The majestic Himalayas ... A harsh land of pristine beauty, where a person can be alone with the whole world. Thousands of square kilometers of mountains and amazing wildlife, evoking thoughts about the eternal secrets of life - all this can be found by a wanderer in the Himalayas. The pinnacle of the world is here, and we invite you to learn more about it.

Where are the Himalayas

About 70 million years ago, two giant tectonic plates collided - Indo-American and Eurasian. A powerful push marked the beginning of the largest mountain system on our planet. Just imagine: it occupies 0.4% of the total area of ​​the planet, which is incredibly large in relation to other geographic features.

The Himalayas are located on the mainland Eurasia, in the Asian part. They border in the north with the Tibetan plateau, in the south with the Indo-Gangetic plain. The system is over 2,400 km long and 350 km wide. The southern part of the Himalayas is adjoined by the so-called Pre-Himalayas - the smaller Sivalik mountains. This mountain system is home to many of the highest peaks in the world. The average height of the mountain ridges of the Himalayas is 6,000 meters. The highest is the famous Mount Everest (otherwise - Chomolungma, 8848 meters). And this, as we probably remember, is the highest point of our planet.

The Himalayan ridges give rise to the most big rivers in the south of Asia: Indu, Ganges and Brahmaputra.

We already have the first data, namely, where the Himalayan mountains are. More specifically about the countries that have a mountainous landscape, further.

Countries whose territories cover the Himalayas

Since the borders of the countries are divided practically regardless of the relief features, the mountain ranges of the Himalayas are located in several. These countries are India, Nepal, China (the area known as Tibet), Bhutan, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Myanmar, Tajikistan. Each of them got a site of a beautiful natural formation.

Total area mountain system- about 650 thousand square kilometers. Far from one another, many peoples live here. Natural conditions here are extremely harsh: cold at high altitudes, dangerous terrain. but locals happy with their magnificent home.

The first secrets have already been revealed to us by the Himalayas: where they are, the country (even several), which has mountainous areas on its territory. Further on the climatic conditions in the territories of the Himalayas.

Climate features

The Himalayan mountains are a particularly large form of relief. The mountains themselves on their southern side are swampy jungles, lush rainforests, conifers and deciduous trees, as well as a variety of shrubs and meadows. The northern slopes are not so rich and varied. Their surfaces are semi-deserts and mountain steppes... The ridges of the Himalayan ridges are of the Alpine type - sharp, steep. Huge glaciers lie on them in immeasurable numbers.

It is noteworthy that the coordinates of the Himalayas are such that the mountain system serves as a natural climatic boundary between the tropics of the south and the desert lands north of the Himalayas. The colossal areas and great heights of the mountains greatly influenced the climate of the neighboring countries. So, south of the Himalayas, at their very foot, there is a city with the highest rainfall on the planet. This is because the mountains delay the precipitation moving with air masses from the Indian Ocean, and they fall at their foot. At an altitude of 4500 meters above sea level in the Himalayas lies a zone of eternal snow.

The Himalayas, home to huge glaciers, impressed us. What about the inhabitants of the mountain range?

Inhabitants of the mountain system

Surprisingly, many people live in such harsh conditions as in the Himalayas. According to scientists, memorials about the first settlements of the territory of the mountain system date back to 8000 BC. NS. People came from the south (peoples from the Indian subcontinent), and from the northeastern direction (Tibetans), and from the west (Turkic peoples).
People settled their settlements in the valleys. Their remoteness from one another contributed to the separate development of these ethnic groups.

Readers have probably wondered: how can you survive in such inhospitable places? Those communities that led a sedentary lifestyle were engaged in subsistence farming where there were all the conditions for this: a horizontal surface, water, more or less fertile soil, a suitable climate. The modern inhabitants of the Himalayan valleys also provide themselves with their own labor. Here is another phenomenon that struck us with the Himalayas, where some of the oldest natural farms are located.

In the higher territories, the key occupation of the local population is distant pasture cattle breeding. The opportunity to do it is almost everywhere up to the edge of the snow.

And we will consider a few more facts that will be interesting to know about the Himalayas.

Apart from knowing where the Himalayas are, several other features of this corner of the planet will also be interesting. We know about the Himalayas that this is the most inaccessible, highest (in terms of average) mountain system in the world. But what does their name mean?

The word "Himalayas" means "Abode of Snow". Indeed, already at an altitude of 4.5 kilometers the snow never melts here. In terms of the amount of snow, this natural form is in third place on the planet. Only the Arctic and Antarctic have overtaken the Himalayas.
It is also interesting to know that in such a cold climate in most mountain areas, the Hindus are sure that they are the refuge of their god Shiva.

Mount Everest (Chomolungma) is the highest in the world (above sea level). She is associated with triumph. Extreme climbers from all over the world are literally trying to climb Everest. This first happened in 1953, when Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay reached the summits. Mountaineering in the Himalayas is very popular. The mountain system contains ten of the fourteen eight-thousanders (in fact, their height is even slightly higher). To conquer them all is the dream of professional climbers.

This concludes our article on where the Himalayas are and what this mountain system is about.

Conclusion

"The abode of the snows", the Himalayas - mountains to which the prefix "most" is firmly attached. The tallest, the most inaccessible ... And people strive to get here in order to experience the power of nature, which created such a miracle. But the Himalayas do not invite guests. They are unwavering and tough. However, courageous travelers should try to become friends with the "celestial". Yes, indeed "heavenly", because the sky is so close here!

Ever since school days, we all know that the highest mountain on the planet is Everest, and it is located in the Himalayas. But not everyone has a clear idea of ​​where, in fact, are the mountains of the Himalayas? In recent years, it has become very popular mountain tourism, and if you are fond of it, then this miracle of nature - the Himalayas, is definitely worth a visit!

And these mountains are located on the territory of five states: India, China, Nepal, Bhutan and Pakistan. The total length of the largest mountain system on our planet is 2,400 kilometers, and its width is 350 kilometers. In terms of height, many peaks of the Himalayas are record holders. There are ten of the highest peaks on the planet, more than eight thousand meters high.

- Everest or Chomolungma 8848 meters above sea level. The highest mountain in the Himalayas was subdued to man only in 1953. All the ascents that were before that were not crowned with success, because the slopes of the mountain are very steep and dangerous. The strongest winds blow at the summit, which, combined with very low night temperatures, are difficult tests for those who dared to conquer this inaccessible peak. Everest itself is located on the border of two states - China and Nepal.

In India, the Himalayas, thanks to their gentler slopes, which are not so dangerous, have become a refuge for monks preaching Buddhism and Hinduism. Their monasteries are located in large numbers in the Himalayas in India and Nepal. Pilgrims, followers of these religions and just tourists flock here from all over the world. Thanks to this, the Himalayas in these regions are very visited.

But ski tourism in the Himalayas is not popular, since there are no suitable gentle slopes for skiing, which could attract tourists en masse. All states where the Himalayas are located are popular mainly among climbers and pilgrims.

Traveling through the Himalayas is not such an easy adventure, it can only be done by the hardy and strong spirit... And if you have these forces in stock, then you should definitely go to India or Nepal. Here you can visit the most beautiful temples and monasteries, spread out on the picturesque slopes, take part in the evening prayer of Buddhist monks, and at dawn indulge in relaxing meditation and hatha yoga classes conducted by Indian gurus. Traveling through the mountains, you will personally see where such great rivers as the Ganges, Indus and Brahmaputra originate.

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The Himalayas are the highest mountain system in the world.

"Only mountains can be better than mountains." Even from school, everyone knows that the highest mountains in the world, as well as the most picturesque and mysterious are the Himalayas.

The mythical Shambhala, the mysterious and formidable Bigfoot is just a small part of the myths and legends hidden from us by eternal white ice mountain peaks.

Geographical location and characteristics

On the vast territory of Central Asia, the highest mountain system on the planet is spread - the Himalayas, which in Sanskrit means “the abode of snows”. They are located on the territory of the following states:

• People's Republic of China (Tibetan region);
• Nepal;
• India;
• Pakistan;
• Bangladesh (a small part of it).

The mountain range, stretching nearly 2,400 km in length, was formed about 50-70 million years ago as a result of the movement and collision of the Eurasian and Indo-American tectonic plates. But, in spite of such an ancient age on Earth, these mountains are still young by geological standards. The growth process of the Himalayas continues to this day, for example, the highest point of the planet - Mount Chomolungma (Everest) grows by about 6 cm per year.

Sharp as peaks mountain peaks of the Himalayas rise in the Indo-Gangetic valley and consist of three steps:

The Greater Himalayas are the most high part mountain range, rises above sea level for 4 km and higher. By the way, in the Himalayas there are 10 out of 14 "eight-thousanders" - mountain peaks, the height of which exceeds 8 km, as well as the most high point in the world - Mount Chomolungma, as the locals call it Everest, by the name of the geodesist George Everest, who in the middle of the 19th century determined the exact height of the peak. It amounted to as much as 8848 m.

Slightly lower, at an altitude of 2-4 km above sea level, there are fertile valleys, for example, Kathmandu and Kashmir, alternating with mountain ranges. These are the so-called Lesser Himalayas. Pre-Himalayas, the second name is Sivalik. These are the youngest and lowest elevations in the mountain system, their height does not exceed 2 km.

The area of ​​the ice sheet, located mainly on the slopes of high mountains, is 33 thousand square kilometers. The largest glacier is the Gangotri (26 km long), it gives rise to the Ganges - the sacred river of the Hindus. There are also many picturesque alpine lakes in the Himalayas, for example, Lake Tilicho is located at an altitude of 4919 meters!

Himalayas on the map

Rivers

From the Himalayas originate and carry their stormy waters such largest rivers planets like Indus, Ganges and Brahmaputra.

Climate

Monsoons carrying warm air with Indian Ocean, most of the year they supply the southern slopes of the mountains with life-giving moisture. The same cannot be said for the northern slopes of the Himalayas. Warm southern air is unable to overcome the mountain heights, so there is an arid continental climate.

The air temperature in the mountains reaches -40 degrees Celsius in winter, and the wind speed sometimes reaches as much as 150 km / h. The Himalayas have the third largest amount of snow and ice on the planet after the Arctic and Antarctic.

Flora and fauna of the Himalayas

Diversity flora The Himalayas are directly proportional to the height. At the southern foothills of the mountains, there is a real jungle, which here are called "terai", a little higher they are replaced by tropical forests, then mixed, coniferous, and finally - alpine meadows.

meadows in the himalayas photos

On drier and deserted northern slopes, semi-deserts, steppes and mixed forests replace each other. In the Himalayas, very valuable tree species grow, for example, dhak, fat tree. The boundaries of the ice sheet are approximately 6 km from the north and 4.5 km from the south. Above 4 km, vegetation of the tundra type is already found - mosses, dwarf shrubs, rhododendrons.

On the territory of Nepal is located national park"Sigarmatha" which is the object cultural heritage UNESCO. Here is the highest peak in the world, everyone famous mountain Everest, and two eight-thousanders, as well as endemic species (rare and endangered species of animals and plants) such as (snow leopard), Tibetan fox, black fox and others.

himalayan sheep photos

On the south side rhinos, tigers, leopards live and feel very comfortable. The north is home to bears, antelopes, yaks, wild horses and ibex.

Population

It is worth saying a little about the population of this mountainous region, because it is quite diverse. Already 8000 years BC, these mountains were inhabited by tribes. In the south lived the ancient Aryans, in the west - the Persian and Turkic peoples, the Tibetan tribes - in the east. They lived in isolated valleys, where they created their own state formations and closed ethnic groups.

In the 19th century, the Himalayas were the possessions of the British Empire, and in 1947 - a zone of military conflict due to the division of India and Pakistan. The population is still engaged in subsistence farming. Grain crops are grown on the humid southern slopes, while distant pastures are used in drier and less fertile areas.

Mastering and Interesting Facts

Among all eight-thousanders, Chomolungma has always attracted special interest. Local tribes did not climb its peaks for a long time, considering the mountain sacred. Everest was first conquered in 1953 by New Zealander Edmund Hillary and Sherpa (Sherpas - people living in Eastern Nepal) Tenzing Norgay.

The first Soviet expedition took place in 1982. Since 1953, Everest has been conquered more than 3700 times, however, there is another, more sad statistics - about 570 people died during the ascent. In addition to Everest, the most dangerous "eight-thousander" is considered mountain range Annapurna, the death rate among climbers for the entire time since the first ascent is as much as 41%! True, according to statistics for 1990-2008, the most dangerous peak began to be considered Kanchenjunga (8586 meters above sea level), the mortality rate over the years was 22%.

flora of the Himalayas photo

The Himalayas are becoming more and more "inhabited" region of the planet every year. The flow of tourists from season to season increases, which entails the development of infrastructure and the entire tourism system as a whole. Not so long ago, the authorities of China and Nepal agreed to develop transport links between their countries through the construction of a railway tunnel. It is expected to pass under the planet's highest peak - Everest! Preparatory work is already underway on this project.

In 2011, a dinner party was held in the Himalayas at an altitude of 6805 meters! Climbers in the number of seven climbed to a record height, taking with them a table, chairs, appliances and food. Lunch still took place, despite the cold and strong wind... Initially, the climbing group wanted to dine at an altitude of 7045 meters, but the hurricane wind did not allow it.

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In this article I will tell you about the most beautiful, most mesmerizing and most amazing

mountains of our vast planet. It - Majestic Himalayas .

There are no such mountains anywhere else in the world.

Himalayas - this is a harsh land of snowy peaks, towering above the ground. The mighty peaks of the Himalayas are in the zone of eternal snow. During the day, in the rays of the bright sun, their snow-white caps sparkle, at sunset their peaks are painted with a gentle red color, where on the pink ridges of the mountains you can observe a bizarre play of light and shadow. With the coming of night, peaked peaks are drawn against the background of a blue-black starry sky.

HimalayasIs not only one of the most beautiful places, created by nature itself, this is a sacred land, on which is inhabited by Buddhist and Hindu deities. Himalayan mountains – it is the largest mountain system with a length of 2,400 kilometers. From the cold white pyramid of Namcha Barwa in the forests of northern Assam to the east, this "abode of snow" stretches west along the border of the Tibetan Plateau through Bhutan, Sikkim, Nepal and Ladakh.

They end in Pakistan with the powerful western bastion of Nanga Parbat. The peaks of the southern Sivalik mountains rise to a maximum of 1520 meters above sea level. On north they border on small Himalayas, their average height is equal to 4,570 meters.

The basis of the entire system is Greater Himalayas, reaching maximum height in Nepal. There, in a small space, there are 9 of the 14 highest faiths. tires, including Everest (8846 m), Kanchen-janga 8598 m high, and Annapurna (8078 m). North of the Greater Himalayas, there is a mountain range called the Tibetan Himalayas (called Tethys), with the vast Tibetan plateau. Geologists have found that the occurrence Himalayan mountains, occurred in at least three stages. The first to form were the Great Himalayas (about 38 million years ago); followed by the Small Himalayas (about 26 and 27 million years ago); and finally, in the third stage, the Sivalik mountains appeared (about 7 million years ago). Over the past 1,500 million years, the mountains have grown 1,370 meters. In Hindu mythology, this region is called Deviabhuni - the land of the gods. According to legend, the great god Shiva lived on the top of Gaurishankar with his wife De vi and daughter of Himavat. Shiva - one of the supreme gods included in the divine trinity, "the master of animals." Therefore, his dwelling is located among the eternal snows of the Himalayas and from it flow the three great rivers of Asia - Indus, Brahmaputra and ganges... However, judging by the ancient Hindu and Buddhist legends, the god Shiva and his consort are not the only deities inhabiting the Himalayan mountains.

Legends say that here, in the center of the Earth, stands Mount Meru, around which the Sun, Moon and stars revolve. And it is here that Kubera lives - the god of wealth, the owner of earthly treasures and the ruler of supernatural beings called yakshas. Also (according to legend) the most important of the early Hindu gods, the Thunderer, lives on Mount Meru. The god Indra who gives rain and fertilizes the earth. In 400 BC. in search of religious truth, the Chinese monk Fa Xian came to the Himalayas. And the French geographer Jean Baptiste Bourguignon d'Arville compiled the oldest accurate map in the 30s of the 18th century. However, at that time, Baptiste could not correctly determine the height of many mountain peaks.

Early X
IX century, the British, hunters of large animals (tigers and bears), returning from the Himalayas, retold local legends about strange footprints in the snow. This was the first mention of the existence of the "Bigfoot". In the 50s of the XIX century, the highest top of the world was known to the West simply as Peak XV. The Indians called him Sagarmatha - "heavenly peak"; for the Tibetans it was Chomolungma - i.e. "Mother Goddess of the Earth." In 1862, the summit was named Everest, this name was given to it by the British, in honor of Sir John Everest, Governor General of India. Six years earlier, Sir J. Everest had led an expedition to map Himalayan mountains.

Towards the end of the 19th century Tibet and Nepalclosed their borders to Europeans. And in 1921 with the permission of the Dalai Lama, one expedition still visited the country. But, they could only get to the foot of Everest and mapped only its lower slopes. Three years later, in 1924, George Mallory (member of the previous expedition) took

a desperate attempt to climb the highest peak in the world. Mallory and his comrade Andrew Irwin were possibly the first people to stand on the summit of Everest. They were almost at their peak when the cloud covered them. After that, no one ever saw them again.

30 years later, the conquest of Everest was carried out by the British
expedition led by John Hunt. But, and he did not manage to reach the top.

The last assault was undertaken by New Zealander Edmund Hillary and Nepalese Norgay Tenzing. They were the first to stand where no man had stood before.

The attractiveness of Everest for climbers is undeniable, althoughmany attempts to reach the summit ended in failure, and sometimes in the death of the expedition participants. However, climbers are not stopped by anything. And to this day, they continue to storm the highest peak. But so far only 400 of them have been able to reach the top and stand on the "roof of the world".

Himalayas and Everest they carefully guard their secrets, and today they remain the only one of a kind snow kingdom - the abode of the gods.

And a person will never comprehend these secrets.

The greatest mountains in the world will forever remain a mystery to humanity ...

However, these unique mountains are inhabited by some creatures who were not afraid to settle on the snowy peaks of the Himalayas.

See stunning documentary about the inhabitants of the Himalayan peaks.

Himalayas- This is the highest mountain system of our planet, which stretches in Central and South Asia and is located on the territory of countries such as China, India, Bhutan, Pakistan and Nepal. There are 109 peaks in this mountain range, their height on average reaches more than 7 thousand meters above sea level. However, one of them beats them all. So, we will talk about the highest peak of the Himalayan mountain system.

What is it, the highest peak of the Himalayas?

The highest peak of the Himalayas is Mount Chomolungma, or Everest. It rises in the northern part of the Mahalangur-Himal ridge, the highest mountain range on our planet, which can only be reached after arriving in. Its height reaches 8848 m.

Chomolungma- This is the name of the mountain in Tibetan, which means "Divine mother of the Earth." In Nepali, the summit sounds like Sagarmatha, which translates as "Mother of the Gods". It was named Everest after George Everest, a British exploratory scientist who led the geodetic survey in the surrounding areas.

The shape of the highest peak of the Himalayas, Chomolungma, is a triangular pyramid, with a steeper southern slope. As a result, that part of the mountain is practically not covered with snow.

Conquest of the highest peak of the Himalayas

The inaccessible Chomolungma has long attracted the attention of Earth climbers. However, unfortunately, due to unfavorable conditions, the mortality rate here is still high - there were more than 200 official reports of deaths on the mountain. At the same time, almost 3,000 people successfully climbed and descended Everest. The first ascent to the summit took place in 1953 by Nepalese Tenzing Norgay and New Zealander Edmund Hillary using oxygen devices.